Filing Bankruptcy in New Hampshire: Means Test, Exemptions and Courts

New Hampshire has one federal bankruptcy court district: the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Hampshire (https://www.nhb.uscourts.gov/).

Median family income for New Hampshire: 1 person $87,287; 2 people $109,324; 3 people $141,531; 4 people $155,203; add $11,100 for each additional person beyond 4. These figures apply to bankruptcy cases filed on or after July 15, 2026.

$400,000 in a homestead (or interest in one) for a single person; when more than one person holds or claims the exemption, the total is capped at $550,000. The home must have been used continuously as the primary residence for the previous 12 months; sale proceeds remain protected if reinvested in a new primary residence within 6 months. The right covers owned and occupied manufactured housing (but not land the owner doesn't also own), mobile homes, cooperatives and condominiums. The full market value may be claimed if the debt came from unpaid medical bills or other debts directly resulting from a terminal or catastrophic injury or illness. The statute sets a dollar limit, not an acreage limit.

One automobile up to $10,000 in value.

The debtor's interest in any property up to $1,000, plus up to $7,000 of any unused amount of the exemptions for household furniture, provisions and fuel, books, tools of the trade, the automobile, and jewelry.

Any interest in a retirement plan or arrangement qualified for tax exemption under federal law is exempt, subject to the Uniform Voidable Transactions Act. Examples listed include defined contribution and defined benefit plans, IRAs (including Roth and education IRAs), SEP and Keogh plans, 403(a) and 403(b) plans, and eligible state 457 deferred compensation plans. Rollovers between plans are not treated as fraudulent transfers. The exemption applies to debts arising after January 1, 1999.

In trustee process (wage garnishment), wages for work done after the writ is served on the employer are exempt. Wages earned before service are also exempt, except in actions on a New Hampshire court judgment, where wages equal to 50 times the federal minimum hourly wage for each week are exempt. Money in an account designated as a payroll account is also exempt from trustee process.

The New Hampshire bankruptcy court's Filing Without an Attorney page lists what the clerk's office cannot do (such as help complete forms or apply a rule) and links to Bankruptcy Basics, Before You File, a Pro Se Debtor's Guide (local guide dated 12/1/2023), credit counseling and financial management agencies, local and national forms, filing requirements, fee waiver and poverty guidelines, and means testing information. The Filing Requirements page says individuals must use the 100-series national forms, points to instruction booklets and Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 pro se short guides, and lists chapter-by-chapter documents and deadlines. Self-represented parties may consent to receive court notices by email by filing a signed Consent for Electronic Notice and Service form.

District of New Hampshire (the state's only bankruptcy district): under LBR 2016-1(b), Chapter 13 No-Look Fee (local rules and forms dated 2026.10.01), if the total fee for the debtor's attorney in a chapter 13 case is less than or equal to $6,500, the attorney need not file an application for compensation. The rule also states that if any debtor's attorney proposes to charge more than $7,500 or seeks more than $7,500 in compensation, an application for compensation must be filed.