Foreign debt 28 February 2022 at 3:58PM edited 28 February 2022 at 4:14PM in Debt-free wannabe 3 replies 292 views

Popb

My wife has suffered a stroke in the USA and we have no insurance. The bill is already huge and growing. Can I go bankrupt in the USA or can they chase the debt here and can they take my house in UK. Any advice would be great as tearing my hair cut with worry but my wife needs me

MEM62

If you were without medical insurance you would have had had to sign some kind of assurance that you would pay otherwise treatment would not have been offered.  Check the documents that you signed.  

sourcrates

Moved from Bankruptcy forum.

If the individual returns to the UK without paying a US medical bill, the medical facility in the US cannot legally prevent the patient from doing so.

What it can do is get a US court to issue a judgment in absentia.

With this in place, the former patient would need to repay the bill upon entering the US in the future.

Debts such as these would need to be pursued by a UK collection agency, or through the UK courts, and unless its a substantial amount of money, it rarely happens, due to both the costs involved and the logistics.

fatbelly

Undoubtedly it will be for a large sum, and we are not experts in US bankruptcy. I expect there will be a residency requirement like in England rules but I don't know.

What we do know is that if you are a homeowner with equity you do not want to declare bankruptcy in England.

Your wife needs to get well enough to travel, and to come back. Take it one step at a time.