# UK debt whilst living in the US



## mikiek (Sep 24, 2008)

Hi All, 

I have recently moved to the UK with my US wife (we met and married in the UK).

I was thinking about declaring myself bankrupt in the UK as I am struggling to meet the minimal payments as the currency is so weak here against the GBP.

Someone has suggested to me that I can simply stop paying the UK debt and it will be written off completely within 6 years as they will not have any correspondence from me. I have no intension of returning to the UK to live at any point. I will be returning once a year to visit my family so want to ensure that I don’t arrested at the airport for none payment, but as I understand it, so long as it’s not council tax or a fine, its not illegal to no pay your debts.

I have no UK or US assets and our cars are both in my wife's name. (One very old car that I use for work and a newer car that my wife uses).

I have been informed that the US cannot obtain any of my UK credit history so this would leave me free to build up a US credit history as normal.

We would like to obtain a US mortgage next year (after we save a deposit) Would this affect me obtaining one? - I don’t feel it would as the UK and US cannot share credit history.

All of the banks that I have debt with operate in the US as well as the UK, so can they track me down for payments if I don’t pay, perhaps by selling the debt to a collector or their litigation department?

The other smaller concern (as I don’t think this will be an issue) is that I live here on a CR1 marriage visa. I just want to make sure that these debts cannot be given to the US embassy in some way and they revoke my visa (although it sounds very unlikely).

Unfortunately for me, when I moved here I did update my address details with all 3 creditors, so in theory they do know where I am. I will change my address back to a UK address (a family members address) and hope that they do not pursue me.

Any help on this is really appreciated.


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## Fatbrit (May 8, 2008)

You should be okay. American immigration authorities don't care about your foreign (or domestic) debt unless you manage to get as far as something criminal with it such as fraud. Provided it remains a civil issue, it's off their radar. So don't do anything that could be considered fraudulent such as trying to max out your available credit just before you leave.

Your UK credit history doesn't generally follow you here. They could, I suppose, try to transfer it by selling it to a debt servicing company in the US. Should be possible to get it off playing the sort of tricks found here.

How long they pursue depends on how much you owe. Although there are an awful lot of people to pursue these days.

No idea what the statute of limitations for debt is in the UK.

If you want a good US credit history in a couple of years, you'll need to read up about how to play the game. The link I gave to the credit boards should help. Give yourself a dozen hours for studying to get the basics.


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## RICHNTRISH (Jun 4, 2008)

Unless you wish to fall out with your remaining UK family big time i would not change your address back to one of their residences ! 
Before obtaining County Court Judgements on you and the debt eventually getting written off your creditors will send many nasty letters to said address along with numerous annoying phone calls they will also employ debt collectors to visit and try to remove goods from the property which , ok they wont be able to obtain if your family stand their ground and prove you dont own anything at the property but , do you want them to go through that ?


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

How about the moral side of the issue?


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## Fatbrit (May 8, 2008)

twostep said:


> How about the moral side of the issue?


Both sides or only the OPs?


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## mikiek (Sep 24, 2008)

Thank you for your thoughts on this everyone.

RICHNTRISH - Very good point. I will keep my address as it is then, unless anyone else has any suggestions?

twostep - I appreciate where you are going, but if I cannot afford the repayments (which is not exactly ALL my fault; as I had an ex-partner that ran up most if not all of this debt in my joint name - please spare me a lecture!). Unfortunately with the currency being so weak in the US and not being able to get a high paid job here, things are very tight for me to the point where I cant afford living expenses, which is giving me sleepless nights and much stress. When I have banks charging me 20% interest on repayments, I'm sorry if my morals don't apply. There are many other people in my situation and that is a sad fact of life at the moment and there is very little herlp out there apart from Bankruptcy, which can still leave you with large repayments for 3 years (UK law).

Fatbrit - thank you so much for your thoughts. I will spend the weekend 'researching' my options.
What do you mean by - Both sides or only the OPs? - What is an OP?

thanks all...


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## Fatbrit (May 8, 2008)

mikiek said:


> What do you mean by - Both sides or only the OPs? - What is an OP?


The OP is the original poster = you!

Both sides means your side and the other side -- i.e. the corrupt corporations that provided you with your high-interest loan at great profit and will continue to squeeze you until they believe there is nothing worthwhile left.


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## synthia (Apr 18, 2007)

I think the mortgage crisis has been exacerbated by the free reign we have given the credit card companies. Some people might have been able to handle the changes in their mortgage payments if the credit card companies weren't charging such exhorbitant interest and fees.

And 20 percent is actually pretty good. Be sure to make your payments on time, or you will be looking as 30 percent or more.

If bankruptcy laws in the UK are like those in the US, you won't be able to use that option, as you have to be resident to file.

Do you have any property left in the UK that your creditors can get at? Do you have anything at all you could sell?


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

synthia said:


> I think the mortgage crisis has been exacerbated by the free reign we have given the credit card companies. Some people might have been able to handle the changes in their mortgage payments if the credit card companies weren't charging such exhorbitant interest and fees.
> 
> And 20 percent is actually pretty good. Be sure to make your payments on time, or you will be looking as 30 percent or more.
> 
> ...


What do credit card fees have to do with the poster's UK debt? I have never met anyone who was forced to use a credit card, not pay the balance and thus end up with the consequences of the contract they agreed to - fees and fines.

Unless he takes action the poster's mortgage will go into foreclosure. How this affets him upon a return to the UK in the future - ?


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## mikiek (Sep 24, 2008)

Thanks for your thoughts everyone.

I have no mortgage at the moment. A US mortgage is something that I want to be able to get in about 2 years time.

I have nothing in the UK that belongs to me, including any property.

Everything I own (not very much) is in the US as I only moved here a few months ago.

I'm not saying that I didnt agree to pay the credit card, etc back... What I am saying is that when I used these cards I had no idea I would be living in the US now and I had no idea at the time that the US $ is so weak against the GBP.

Added together with oversea's month transfers, 20% interest, and the currency being almost 2-1, in reality my debt has doubled, hence the reason I cannot afford to pay it now.

You can file for BR in the UK, so long as you haven't lived outside the country
for more than 3 years.


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## synthia (Apr 18, 2007)

twostep said:


> What do credit card fees have to do with the poster's UK debt? I have never met anyone who was forced to use a credit card, not pay the balance and thus end up with the consequences of the contract they agreed to - fees and fines.
> 
> Unless he takes action the poster's mortgage will go into foreclosure. How this affets him upon a return to the UK in the future - ?


What? The whole point of his post was that he has these debts and has these interest rates. They are killing him, and if he misses payments they will go up. I made no comment whatsoever about how he got into this mess. The interest rates are relevent if he doens't qualify for bankruptcy, as it affects the rate at which the debt grows. And what mortgage?

To the OP, you may have no other choie but bankruptcy. You will probably need an attorney back in the UK. In the US you must appear in person for at least one meeting, and have credit counseling before filing. There is also an income limit that can keep you from getting all the debt forgiven and instead put the filer on a payment plan. If this is what you want to do, try and get some books on the subject, and find a lawyer that will explain the process without charging you a fortune.


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