Attorney-General, Robert McClelland, has released the exposure draft Bankruptcy Legislation Amendment Bill 2009 containing the Government’s proposed reforms to Australia’s personal bankruptcy laws for public consultation.

The proposed amendments will:

• increase the minimum debt for which a creditor can petition for bankruptcy from $2,000 to $10,000;
• increase the stay period from when a declaration of intent to file a debtor’s petition is filed to when a creditor may commence action to recover debts from seven to 28 days; and
• increase the debt, income and asset tests thresholds for debt agreements.

In addition, the Bill proposes to strengthen the penalties for some offences, particularly those involving fraud, to appropriately reflect the seriousness of the conduct and ensure the penalties align with similar offences in other Commonwealth, State and Territory legislation. It also strengthens powers for the Inspector-General in Bankruptcy to investigate possible offences.

It appears that the proposal to reduce the bankruptcy period for first time bankrupts is not being implemented.

The draft Bill will be open for public comment until Monday, 14 September 2009