Nolo's Essential Guide to Divorce - Emily Doskow [163]
Once a passport is issued, its use is not tracked or controlled by the Department of State, and there are no exit controls for American citizens leaving the United States. There may be controls at entry points into other countries-for example, Mexico requires that a parent traveling alone with a child provide the child's birth certificate along with written permission from the other parent. But not all countries do this.
Bankruptcy
If your former spouse files for bankruptcy, rest assured that it has no effect on your right to child or spousal support. Debts for past due child or spousal support are not wiped out by bankruptcy. All the same, if your spouse does file for bankruptcy, you should contact a lawyer with bankruptcy experience to give you some advice about how to proceed.
Here is some basic information about how bankruptcy and divorce affect each other.
Bankruptcy Basics
Chapter 7 bankruptcy: Also called "liquidation" bankruptcy. In a Chapter 7 case, the debtor gets to keep a small amount of property; everything else is sold and used to pay creditors. Debts that aren't paid in full are wiped out (discharged).
Chapter 13 bankruptcy: Also called "repayment" bankruptcy. The debtor comes up with a plan for paying back some or most of the debt over three to five years. Repayment plans can provide for anywhere from zero to 100% payment of debts, depending on how much income the debtor has left over after paying basic expenses. If the debtor completes the plan (many don't), the remaining debt is wiped out (discharged).
Debtor: The person who files for bankruptcy.
Child and Spousal Support
If your spouse files for Chapter 7 bankruptcy-the most common kind-you can continue trying to get past due child or spousal support by garnishing your ex-spouse's wages. And you will be first in line (of all your spouse's creditors) for any property that your former spouse is not, by law, allowed to keep after filing for bankruptcy. So, if your former spouse owns any such property, the bankruptcy trustee (the person appointed by the court to handle your spouse's property during the bankruptcy) will pay your claim before any others. The bankruptcy trustee has a legal obligation to notify you if your spouse files for bankruptcy.
If your spouse files for Chapter 13 bankruptcy, things are handled differently. (In this kind of bankruptcy, your spouse will submit a three- to five-year repayment plan to the court.) You cannot garnish your former spouse's wages. The repayment plan must list back child and spousal support as top priority debts, after administrative costs, which means you will be paid first before any other type of debt. And the plan must provide for 100% payment of the back support. The bankruptcy trustee must keep you advised of the status of the case and the current address of your ex-spouse when the case winds up. The Chapter 13 case will be thrown out of court if your spouse gets behind on support obligations.
Property You're Entitled To
Usually, spouses divide all their property when the divorce becomes final. But if your former spouse files for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and still owes you money under your marital settlement agreement, the debt won't be wiped out by the bankruptcy.
If your spouse files for Chapter 13 bankruptcy, debts owed to you from a property settlement can be wiped out ("discharged," in legal terms). This means that whatever portion of the debt your former spouse doesn't pay you under the Chapter 13 repayment plan is cancelled. If, however, before the bankruptcy you put a lien (legal claim) on real estate your former spouse owns, you may be in luck. Such debts are "secured" debts and must be paid in full as part of a Chapter 13 plan.
If your spouse agreed to take over joint debts and those are included in a bankruptcy filing, the creditors are likely to come after