How to Fill Out U.S. Courts Form 425C (w/Examples) + FAQs

Form 425C is the official Chapter 13 Plan form used in many federal bankruptcy courts to propose how a debtor will repay creditors over a three-to-five-year period. You fill it out by stating your monthly plan payment, the duration of the plan, how secured debts will be cured or paid, how priority claims will be satisfied, and how unsecured creditors will share what is left. The form is governed by the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure Rule 3015 and by 11 U.S.C. § 1322, which sets the contents of any Chapter 13 plan.

Failure to fill out Form 425C correctly can lead to dismissal of your case under 11 U.S.C. § 1307, denial of plan confirmation under 11 U.S.C. § 1325, or a trustee objection that forces you to amend the plan. According to the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts annual filing data, Chapter 13 filings made up roughly 30% of all consumer bankruptcies in 2025, and the American Bankruptcy Institute reports that fewer than 40% of Chapter 13 plans complete successfully, often because of plan drafting errors.

Here is what you will learn from this guide:

• 📋 How to complete every Part of Form 425C line by line, including secured, priority, and unsecured treatment.
• ⚖️ How federal statutes and local court rules shape what you can and cannot include in your plan.
• 💵 How to calculate your monthly plan payment, commitment period, and disposable income.
• 🧾 Three named scenarios with sample numbers showing exactly how to fill in tricky sections.
• 🚫 The most common mistakes that trigger trustee objections and how to prevent them.

What Form 425C Is and Why It Exists

Form 425C is the Chapter 13 Plan model form recommended by the Judicial Conference of the United States and adopted, with local variations, by most federal bankruptcy courts. The form became mandatory in many districts after the December 2017 amendment to Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 3015.1, which allowed local districts to either adopt the national form or publish a local equivalent. Some districts, like the Southern District of New York, use the national 425C form, while others, like the Central District of California, use a local plan with similar fields. The plain-English purpose is simple: it tells the trustee, the judge, and your creditors how you intend to pay back debt over the life of the plan.

The consequence of skipping or fudging the form is severe because 11 U.S.C. § 1321 requires every Chapter 13 debtor to file a plan, and without a confirmed plan, the case cannot continue. A real-world example is Maria, a debtor in Atlanta who filed a hand-typed plan instead of the local 425C-equivalent form; the trustee objected, the court denied confirmation, and Maria had to refile her plan and pay a second filing fee. A common misconception is that the plan is just a budget proposal you can change anytime, but once confirmed, the plan binds both you and your creditors under 11 U.S.C. § 1327, and modifying it requires court approval.

The form also forces transparency, because every nonstandard provision must be disclosed in Part 9, which prevents debtors from hiding unusual terms in the fine print. The U.S. Trustee Program reviews each plan to confirm it complies with the Bankruptcy Code, and any inconsistency between Form 425C and your schedules can trigger a Section 341 meeting of creditors inquiry. The form is broken into nine numbered Parts, plus signature blocks, and each Part has its own legal source and consequence.

Before You Start: Documents You Need

Before you even open Form 425C, gather your means-test result from Form 122C-1, your six-month income history, your secured creditor statements, your tax returns for the last four years, and your full Schedules A/B through J. The plan numbers must mirror Schedule J’s net monthly income, because 11 U.S.C. § 1325(b) requires that all projected disposable income go to unsecured creditors during the applicable commitment period. The Supreme Court’s ruling in Hamilton v. Lanning, 560 U.S. 505 (2010) lets you adjust the historical means-test number for known or virtually certain future changes.

A common misconception is that you can guess at the numbers and let the trustee correct them, but trustees rarely correct plans, they object to them. The consequence of submitting a plan with numbers that do not match your schedules is an objection under Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 3015(f), which delays confirmation and may cost you attorney fees. For example, David, a self-employed contractor in Houston, listed $4,200 in monthly income on Schedule I but $3,800 on his Form 425C, and the Chapter 13 trustee filed an objection that pushed his confirmation hearing back 60 days.

Also confirm whether your district uses the national Form 425C or a local variant, because plan provisions may differ on issues like vesting of property and direct pay of mortgages. The Bankruptcy Court Locator lists every district court website where the local plan form is published.

Part 1: Notices

Part 1 of Form 425C is a checkbox section that warns creditors and the court whether the plan contains nonstandard provisions, limits secured claims by valuation, or avoids liens. You must check each box that applies, and an unchecked box that should have been checked makes the provision unenforceable under Bankruptcy Rule 3015(c). The plain-English meaning is that this is the warning label of your plan, designed to flag anything unusual so creditors get fair notice.

The consequence of checking the wrong box is that creditors may successfully argue they were not notified, voiding the related plan term. For instance, Linda, a homeowner in Phoenix, forgot to check the lien-avoidance box for a junior mortgage; the lien survived her completed plan and she had to reopen the case to fix it. A common misconception is that filing the motion separately makes the checkbox irrelevant, but the checkbox is the due-process trigger that creditors rely on.

Always cross-check Part 1 against Parts 3, 8, and 9 to confirm every nonstandard or stripping provision is flagged. If you are unsure, check the box, because over-disclosing is far safer than under-disclosing.

Part 2: Plan Payments and Length

Part 2 sets your monthly plan payment, the source of the payment, and the plan length, which must be either 36 or 60 months under 11 U.S.C. § 1322(d). Above-median income debtors must commit to 60 months unless they pay 100% of allowed unsecured claims sooner, and below-median debtors may choose 36 months but can extend to 60 for cash-flow reasons. The U.S. Trustee Program median income tables determine which side of the median you fall on for the case-filing date.

The consequence of choosing the wrong length is automatic objection by the trustee. A real-world example: Carlos, a software engineer in San Jose with above-median income, proposed a 36-month plan to clear $40,000 of unsecured debt at 30% repayment, and the trustee objected because 11 U.S.C. § 1325(b)(4) required a 60-month commitment period. A common misconception is that paying off priority debt in three years lets you exit early, but the commitment period is independent of the priority debt term unless you pay unsecured creditors 100%.

You also state how the trustee receives the payment, usually through a wage order or by ACH. Wage orders are the default in many districts because they reduce default risk, and missing payments triggers a motion to dismiss under 11 U.S.C. § 1307(c)(6).

Example Calculation

Suppose your Schedule J net monthly income is $850 and you owe $6,000 in priority taxes plus $1,800 in trustee fees over 60 months. Your monthly payment must be at least $850, but you also need to confirm it covers secured arrears and priority claims; in this case, $850 × 60 = $51,000, which is enough to cover priority and provide a meaningful unsecured dividend. The trustee’s percentage fee, capped at 10% under 28 U.S.C. § 586(e), comes off the top before disbursement.

Part 3: Treatment of Secured Claims

Part 3 covers how you handle secured debts like mortgages, car loans, and other liens. You must specify whether you will cure and maintain a mortgage under 11 U.S.C. § 1322(b)(5), strip a wholly unsecured junior lien, or pay a 910-day car loan at the contract rate. Each choice has its own subsection in Part 3, and the boxes you check directly control how creditors will be paid.

The consequence of misclassifying a claim is that the wrong creditor gets paid the wrong amount, and the creditor objection process under Rule 3007 will fix it the slow way. For instance, Tasha, a debtor in Detroit, listed her car loan as a non-910 claim and proposed cramdown at $8,000 instead of the $14,000 contract balance, but the lender objected because the loan was 700 days old and qualified for the hanging paragraph protection. A common misconception is that all car loans can be crammed down, but loans within 910 days of filing for personal-use vehicles cannot.

3.1 Maintenance of Mortgage Payments

Section 3.1 lists creditors whose ongoing mortgage payments you will continue paying, either through the trustee or directly. You must list the creditor name, collateral address, principal arrears, current monthly payment, and the start month for resuming the contract payment. The conduit payment system is mandatory in some districts, where the trustee pays the mortgage to ensure consistency.

3.2 Request for Valuation of Secured Claim

Section 3.2 lets you set a secured claim at the collateral’s replacement value under 11 U.S.C. § 506(a) and the Supreme Court’s Associates Commercial Corp. v. Rash ruling. The unsecured deficiency portion is treated like any other general unsecured claim. You must state the modified principal, interest rate, and monthly payment for each crammed-down claim.

3.3 Secured Claims Excluded From § 506

Section 3.3 captures the 910-day vehicle loans and one-year purchase-money personal property loans that the hanging paragraph excludes from cramdown. You must pay the full contract balance, but you may modify the interest rate to the Till rate, which the Supreme Court set as the prime rate plus a risk premium of 1% to 3%.

3.4 Lien Avoidance

Section 3.4 lets you avoid judicial liens that impair an exemption under 11 U.S.C. § 522(f). You must list the creditor, the type of lien, the property affected, and the math showing the impairment. Forgetting to file the parallel motion in some districts will leave the lien intact, even after the plan is complete.

3.5 Surrender of Collateral

Section 3.5 lists property you will surrender in full satisfaction of the secured claim. The surrender lifts the automatic stay only as to the listed creditor, allowing repossession or foreclosure to proceed. Any deficiency claim must be filed by the creditor as a general unsecured claim or it is discharged.

Part 4: Treatment of Trustee’s Fees and Priority Claims

Part 4 covers the Chapter 13 trustee’s percentage fee and priority claims under 11 U.S.C. § 507, like recent income taxes and domestic support obligations. Priority claims must be paid in full during the plan unless the holder agrees to less under 11 U.S.C. § 1322(a)(2). The trustee’s fee, set by the Executive Office for U.S. Trustees, is paid before any disbursement to creditors.

The consequence of underestimating priority debt is plan failure, because the math will not work without enough months of payments. James, a debtor in Miami, missed a $9,200 IRS priority tax claim from a late-filed return, and his plan had to be amended to add $153 per month, which his budget could not absorb, leading to dismissal. A common misconception is that all back taxes are dischargeable, but only taxes outside the three-year, two-year, 240-day rules qualify.

Domestic support obligations, including current child support and alimony, must remain current throughout the plan, and any default after filing is grounds for dismissal under 11 U.S.C. § 1307(c)(11).

Part 5: Treatment of Nonpriority Unsecured Claims

Part 5 sets how general unsecured creditors share what remains after secured, priority, and trustee fees are paid. The best-interests-of-creditors test under § 1325(a)(4) requires that unsecured creditors receive at least what they would get in a Chapter 7 liquidation. The disposable income test under § 1325(b) requires above-median debtors to pay all projected disposable income for 60 months.

The consequence of failing either test is denial of confirmation, even with no creditor objection, because the court must independently confirm. For example, Priya, a debtor in Boston with $40,000 of nonexempt equity, proposed a 0% plan to general unsecured creditors, and the court denied confirmation because the best-interests test required at least $40,000 to flow to unsecureds. A common misconception is that 0% plans are automatically allowed for below-median debtors, but the best-interests test still applies.

Part 5 also separately classifies certain unsecured debts under 11 U.S.C. § 1322(b)(1), like co-signed consumer debts, where the unfair-discrimination standard limits how much extra a separate class can receive.

Part 6: Executory Contracts and Unexpired Leases

Part 6 lists every executory contract and unexpired lease you assume or reject under 11 U.S.C. § 365. Assumed leases require you to cure defaults and continue the contract, while rejection treats any damages as a general unsecured claim. The plan must list the other party, the contract type, and the monthly payment.

The consequence of silence is that contracts not listed may be deemed rejected at confirmation under most local rules, costing you the contract benefit. For instance, Anthony, a tenant in Chicago, did not list his apartment lease, and his landlord moved to lift the stay because the lease was deemed rejected, forcing him to negotiate a new lease at higher rent. A common misconception is that month-to-month leases do not need listing, but most districts require disclosure of any continuing lease.

Part 7: Vesting of Property of the Estate

Part 7 sets when property of the estate revests in you, the debtor, either at confirmation or at discharge. Choosing vesting at discharge keeps property in the bankruptcy estate, which can protect post-petition assets from creditor levies, while vesting at confirmation gives you full ownership and control sooner. The choice has tax and lawsuit consequences described in 11 U.S.C. § 1327(b).

The consequence of choosing wrongly can be devastating, because vesting at confirmation may expose new property to old judicial liens, while vesting at discharge can complicate selling or refinancing during the plan. Sandra, a debtor in Seattle, vested at confirmation and found her home subject to a renewed judgment lien within months. A common misconception is that vesting affects discharge, but it only affects when the estate ends.

Part 8: Order of Distribution

Part 8 sets the priority order in which the trustee disburses your monthly payment among trustee fees, adequate protection, secured arrears, priority claims, and unsecured claims. Most plans pay trustee fees first, then ongoing mortgage payments, then arrears and priority claims pro rata, then unsecured claims. The precise order is governed by 11 U.S.C. § 1326 and local rules.

The consequence of an unusual distribution order is heightened scrutiny by the trustee, because front-loading certain creditors can violate the equality of distribution principle. Greg, a debtor in Denver, proposed paying his car lender ahead of priority taxes, and the trustee objected because the proposed order risked tax-debt accrual.

Part 9: Nonstandard Plan Provisions

Part 9 is where any nonstandard provision must appear, with a clear heading and the language of the term. Anything outside the preprinted boilerplate that is not in Part 9 is void under Bankruptcy Rule 3015.1. This is the safety net of the form.

The consequence of burying nonstandard terms elsewhere is unenforceability, even if the court signs the confirmation order. Renee, a debtor in Newark, included a creative balloon-payment term in Part 5 instead of Part 9, and the bankruptcy court ruled the provision unenforceable two years later, costing her thousands. A common misconception is that creative drafting in any section will be honored, but only Part 9 binds creditors.

Three Real-World Scenarios

Scenario 1: Below-Median Debtor With Mortgage Arrears

Plan Choice	Result for the Debtor
Cure $9,000 arrears over 36 months at $250	Saves the home, stops foreclosure under § 362
Pay 0% to unsecureds after best-interests test	Lawful because nonexempt assets total $0
Wage order to employer	Reduces missed-payment risk

Scenario 2: Above-Median Debtor With Cramdown

Plan Choice	Result for the Debtor
Cram down a non-910 car loan to $8,000 at Till rate	Reduces monthly payment by $180
Strip wholly unsecured junior mortgage	Eliminates $35,000 of debt at discharge
60-month commitment period at $1,100	Required by § 1325(b)(4)

Scenario 3: Self-Employed Debtor With Variable Income

Plan Choice	Result for the Debtor
Step-up payments in Part 9	Aligns with seasonal cash flow
Vest at discharge	Protects post-petition equipment from judgment liens
Direct pay equipment lease	Maintains operations without trustee delay

Three Named Examples in Practice

Maria is a single mother in Atlanta earning $3,200 per month who files Chapter 13 to save a home with $7,500 in arrears. She uses Section 3.1 to cure arrears at $125 per month for 60 months, completes Section 5 with 5% to unsecureds, and confirms her plan in 90 days. Carlos is a software engineer in San Jose earning $11,500 per month who must commit to 60 months because his income exceeds the California median; he crams down a 2018 truck in Section 3.2 from $22,000 to $14,500, saving $130 monthly. Priya is a recent law graduate in Boston with $40,000 nonexempt equity in a brokerage account who proposes a 100% plan to satisfy the best-interests test, paying $700 per month for 60 months and emerging with a clean discharge.

Mistakes to Avoid

• Listing a 910-day car loan in Section 3.2 instead of 3.3, which triggers a creditor objection and lost time.
• Forgetting to check Part 1 boxes that flag nonstandard provisions, voiding the related plan term.
• Proposing a 36-month plan when above-median, which violates the commitment period rule.
• Omitting priority taxes from Part 4, which makes the plan mathematically infeasible.
• Mismatching plan payments with Schedule J, which causes trustee objections and confirmation delays.
• Failing to file a parallel motion to value collateral in districts that require it, leaving the cramdown unenforceable.
• Burying creative terms outside Part 9, which renders them void under Rule 3015.1.
• Ignoring co-debtor classification under § 1322(b)(1), which exposes co-signers to collection.
• Skipping the best-interests test analysis, which leads to denial of confirmation even without objections.
• Forgetting to list executory contracts, which can cause deemed rejection under local rules.

Do’s and Don’ts

Do’s

• Do verify your median income on the case-filing date, because that controls the commitment period.
• Do reconcile Form 425C numbers with Schedules I and J, because consistency speeds confirmation.
• Do disclose every nonstandard term in Part 9, because that is the only enforceable location.
• Do request wage orders, because they reduce default risk and increase plan completion odds.
• Do consult the local bankruptcy court rules, because districts vary widely.

Don’ts

• Don’t propose 0% plans without running the best-interests test, because the court will deny confirmation.
• Don’t list a domestic support obligation in unsecured claims, because it is a priority claim.
• Don’t assume executory contracts are automatically continued, because most local rules treat silence as rejection.
• Don’t choose vesting at confirmation without checking for renewed judgment liens, because exposure can be costly.
• Don’t sign Form 425C without reading the perjury warning, because false statements are federal crimes.

Pros and Cons of Using Form 425C

Pros

• It standardizes plan drafting, which lowers attorney drafting costs.
• It gives clear notice to creditors, which reduces confirmation objections.
• It aligns with Bankruptcy Rule 3015.1, which simplifies appeals.
• It allows nonstandard provisions in Part 9, which preserves drafting flexibility.
• It tracks Code sections, which reduces drafter error.

Cons

• It can be rigid for unusual cases, which forces overuse of Part 9.
• Local variants exist, which creates confusion for multi-district practice.
• Checkbox errors can void terms, which is a high-risk failure mode.
• The form does not cover every Code section, like § 1305 post-petition claims.
• It does not replace the need for Schedules I and J, which still drive the math.

Key Entities You Should Know

The Chapter 13 Trustee is the standing trustee who collects your monthly payments, reviews your plan, and disburses to creditors. The U.S. Trustee Program supervises trustees and reviews plans for legal compliance. The bankruptcy judge confirms the plan after a confirmation hearing under Rule 3015. The debtor’s attorney drafts and files Form 425C, and the creditors and their counsel may object before confirmation. The Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure and the Bankruptcy Code are the controlling authorities.

Recap of Key Court Rulings

The Supreme Court in Hamilton v. Lanning held that projected disposable income allows forward-looking adjustments to the historical means-test number, which directly affects Part 5 of Form 425C. The Court in Till v. SCS Credit Corp. set the prime-plus formula for cramdown interest rates used in Section 3.2. The Court in Associates Commercial Corp. v. Rash defined replacement value for cramdown collateral. In Bullard v. Blue Hills Bank, the Court ruled that denial of plan confirmation is not a final appealable order, which encourages careful drafting of Form 425C from the start.

State-Level Nuances

Federal law controls the form, but state exemptions plug into the best-interests test. California debtors choose between System 1 and System 2 exemptions, and the choice affects the floor for unsecured payments. Texas debtors enjoy unlimited homestead protection, which usually means a low floor for unsecureds. Florida debtors use Article X, Section 4 of the state constitution for homestead, similarly compressing the unsecured floor. New York debtors use CPLR § 5206 for the homestead, with caps that vary by county.

FAQs

Is Form 425C the same in every district?

No. Many districts adopt the national Form 425C, but others publish a local equivalent under Bankruptcy Rule 3015.1. Always check your local court website before filing.

Can I file Form 425C without an attorney?

Yes. Pro se filing is allowed under 28 U.S.C. § 1654, but Chapter 13 plan drafting is complex, and most pro se filers struggle to confirm a plan without professional help.

Must my plan run the full 60 months if I am above median?

Yes. The commitment period rule requires 60 months for above-median debtors unless unsecured creditors are paid 100% sooner.

Can I propose 0% to unsecured creditors?

Yes. A 0% plan is allowed if you pass both the best-interests test and the disposable-income test under § 1325. Otherwise the court will deny confirmation.

Can I cram down my car loan?

No. A 910-day purchase-money car loan for personal use cannot be crammed down under the hanging paragraph. Older or business-use loans can be modified.

Do I need to list every creditor in Form 425C?

Yes. Every secured, priority, and significantly classified unsecured creditor must appear in the relevant Part. Omission risks undischarged debt and creditor objections.

Is the plan binding once confirmed?

Yes. Under 11 U.S.C. § 1327, confirmation binds you and your creditors. Modification later requires court approval and notice.

Can I change my plan payment after confirmation?

Yes. Post-confirmation modification is allowed under 11 U.S.C. § 1329 for changes in income, expenses, or circumstances. The trustee or any creditor can also seek modification.

Will the trustee draft Form 425C for me?

No. The Chapter 13 trustee reviews and objects to plans but does not draft them. The debtor or counsel is responsible.

Can I include nonstandard provisions in any section?

No. Nonstandard provisions are enforceable only in Part 9 under Bankruptcy Rule 3015.1. Anywhere else, they are void.

What happens if I miss a plan payment?

Yes, missing a payment can lead to dismissal under 11 U.S.C. § 1307(c)(6). Cure the default fast or move to modify.

Are domestic support obligations dischargeable in Chapter 13?

No. Current and past-due domestic support obligations are nondischargeable priority claims under § 507(a)(1) and must be paid in full.