The purpose of the amendment bill to the Act on Bankruptcy and Restructuring, which has been submitted by the members of parliament (National Council of the Slovak Republic) for its second reading, is to adapt personal bankruptcy to the needs of citizens, primarily by lowering filing fees required to commence bankruptcy proceedings. Under the amendment bill, a debtor will have the option to clear debts by way of filing for bankruptcy or an installment plan.

A personal bankruptcy is available to an individual (natural person), regardless of any liabilities resulting from business activities, who is unable to pay off outstanding debt (i.e., who is insolvent) and whose property is the subject of enforcement action or a similar enforcement procedure, whilst the minimum value of property is no longer decisive. The amendment would introduce the possibility to receive the assistance of the Centre for Legal Aid (Centrum právnej pomoci) to make an advance payment of the bankruptcy trustee’s fees. These fees cannot be waived and could represent a major obstacle to the commencement of bankruptcy proceedings. In the case of an installment plan, the plan would be prepared by the bankruptcy trustee and the dates of individual installments would be determined based on the value of the outstanding debt.

It must be noted that, under the amendment, a debtor would be allowed to file for bankruptcy and clear his/her debts only once every ten years. The amendment bill also provides for debtor protection against the loss of accommodation, by introducing a so-called homestead exemption in bankruptcy, and creditor protection of so-called protected receivables. It is proposed that the amendment should become effective as of March 1, 2017.