Consumer insolvency proceedings in Poland

On 31 December 2014 a new Polish regulation of consumer bankruptcy entered into force, replacing previous provisions criticised for their inefficiency. The new regulation liberalized access criteria and introduced State financing for debtors with insufficient assets to pay for the costs of the proceedings. Consumer bankruptcy under Polish law involves a sale of the debtor's assets in ordinary bankruptcy proceedings and subsequent adoption and realisation of a payment plan over a period of up to 3 years (extendable by further 18 months). A possibility for an arrangement with creditors adopted by majority vote has also been provided. More than 2000 consumer bankruptcy cases have been opened under new provisions during 2015, as opposed to ca. 120 cases during the whole period of application of the previous provisions (2009-2014).