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Can I go to prison for debt?

A lot of people who contact us are worried that not paying their debts could mean going to prison. In almost all cases, the answer to this is no.

More than a century ago, prison was a real risk for many types of ordinary household debt. In modern times, there’s no possible way you could go to prison for non-payment of most types of debt.

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What types of debt could lead to imprisonment?

Some types of priority debt could result in you going to prison if you don’t pay. Examples of priority debts that could lead to imprisonment include:


  • Criminal fines
  • Council tax (England only)
  • Business rates
  • Child maintenance arrears owed to the CSA

Even with these types of debt, prison is normally only possible as a last resort if you’ve ignored the debt or refused to pay.

If you’re struggling with these debts, don’t ignore them. We offer free debt advice.

For the majority of common debts you can’t be sent to prison for not paying. The debts include:


Are there any situations where other debts could lead to prison?

There are also some situations where you could be arrested and taken to court, or sent to prison after a creditor has taken you to court. This is very rare and would only happen as a last resort if you’ve not cooperated with the court.

For example, if you live in England or Wales and you’ve not paid a County Court judgment (CCJ), a creditor could apply to take money from your wages using an attachment of earnings.

If you repeatedly ignore the letters the court sends you about this, a bailiff could be sent to take you to court, and you could be fined or sent to prison for up to 14 days.  The fine or prison is a punishment for disobeying the court’s instructions, not for the debt itself.

However, in the past we’ve seen some examples of misleading letters from creditors referring to this. Other than some priority debts mentioned above, any suggestion by a creditor that you could be sent to prison for not paying a debt is simply not true, and if they threaten this you should consider making a complaint.

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