Moving abroad with an IPA

Divock

Hi

I’ve just recently been approved bankruptcy on the 14th of August and agreed to pay an IPA. My mother and father are moving to Portugal in 12 months and I would like to move with them. When should I tell the trustee that I intend to move? And what will happen to my IPA if I move with no job prospects? How likely are they to close my IPA? I’m going to save every penny for the next 12 months so have no problem keeping my IPA open if the monthly amount decreases? My parents would likely help if possible.

Also now that I’m bankrupt am I able to open a bank account in Portugal? I’m guessing this is unlikely, I was just hoping to get one sorted before brexit kicks in. Any help is greatly appreciated.

Minkym00

Tell them when you know.

If you have no income your IPA will be ceased.

Your debt history is highly unlikely to follow you to Portugal.

terrence45

Bit worried that you signed up to an IPA without checking how they work first. Absolutely don't get your parents to top it up if your income goes down, that's not the point at all!

If your income decreases or you become unemployed during the 3-year term, the IPA will be reduced accordingly or even set to zero if you have no spare cash left. You simply have to inform them every time your income or expenditure changes significantly.

Opening a bank account in Portugal will be no problem at all - I did the same in Europe a couple of months into bankruptcy and the credit/bank agencies in different countries are not connected whatsoever. I could have taken loans, credit cards etc if I'd wanted to!

Best do it now, before Brexit, but if you are still living here for a year you may have an issue as I had to be registered at a local address and have a foreigner's ID number, which you can only get by living there (this wasn't Portugal, but may be similar).

If the bank account isn't possible, you can set-up a virtual account with Transferwise. You get a debit card and it works in as many currencies as you want. You can make bank transfers but not direct debits or standing orders at the moment.