Bonuses in Bankruptcy: How It Relates to the Means Test

Question: For 2024 my annual salary is $108K, everything else I earned were bonuses. Will they include the bonuses in my total earnings even though it’s not a guarantee? 

Answer: The Means Test looks back at what actually happened during the six month prior to the month of filing bankruptcy. So yes, absolutely, for purposes of the Means Test, any bonus received during the six months prior to filing will be included. The other issue though, is abuse due to excess “Disposable Income” and that is forward looking. For that, whether we have to count it depends on the circumstances. Have you received a bonus of approximately this amount every year for the last ten years? Then again, absolutely. Not “guaranteed”, but it always happens? Will get counted. Bonus has varied dramatically based on interest rated, etc.? We have a good argument it should not be counted… but not guaranteed!