What are the qualifying criteria for a DRO?
You must have lived in (or run a business in) England, Wales or Northern Ireland for the last three years.
You cannot:
- Have more than £75 left over each month after paying your household bills
- Be a homeowner
- Own a vehicle worth more than £4,000
- Vehicles adapted to help you with a physical disability are exempt from this cap
- Own any assets worth more than £2,000
- Be subject to any current bankruptcy or IVA proceedings, or
- Have qualifying debt balances that total more than £50,000
- Have written off debt by completing a DRO in the last six years
- This does not apply if you had a DRO approved but the debts were not written off
- For example, if the the order was ‘revoked’ or cancelled
An official receiver is assigned to deal with your DRO application.
They investigate your circumstances and can choose to decline a DRO if you have:
- Given away property, money or assets in the last two years
- Sold any property, money, or assets for less than their worth in the last two years
- Favoured any of the people you owe in the last two years
- This means paying one more than others
You must give the official receiver as much information as possible so they can make an informed decision.
It is an offence to mislead the official receiver while applying for a DRO.