August 20th, 2009 by Reed Allmand 
A noncitizen of the United States may be able to file for bankruptcy in America.
Noncitizens of the United States often have the same question when considering bankruptcy. You can probably guess what it is, but for the sake of ease, here it is: Can I file for bankruptcy if I am not an American citizen?
The good news for non U.S. citizens is, yes you can file. In fact, you don’t have to be a U.S. citizen and you do not have to have resident-alien status. Bankruptcy is available to anyone who lives or owns something in America.
Like with a lot of bankruptcy laws, things get tricky from there. If you want to keep exempt assets you are at the mercy of the laws of the state in which your permanent home resides. This means someone visiting America can file for bankruptcy, but they might not be able to exempt anything. In a lot of cases it doesn’t really matter anyway, because the person may just be doing business here. Therefore they don’t have any property to exempt.
There have been cases before where non-citizens have setup mailboxes or have opened bank accounts in America in order to qualify for certain areas of law. For any of that trickery to work, it largely depends on the particular court. Of course any immoral or dishonest act would not be tolerated by a good bankruptcy attorney, but it is encouraged that you speak with a bankruptcy attorney to find out what you will and won’t qualify for.
In conclusion, whether you are a U.S. citizen, or not, contact a bankruptcy attorney if you are having financial difficulties. A bankruptcy attorney will be able to show you how you can get a fresh start.
About Reed Allmand
Allmand's vision is rooted in his own financially precarious childhood in Abilene "My father always had difficulty holding a job and supporting our family, so after my parents divorced when I was 12, my sister and I got jobs to help make ends meet," he recalls. "I remember what it felt like as a child to worry that our car would be repossessed or home foreclosed on."
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