In short
Form 122A-2 is the second half of the means test. It starts with the income figure from Form 122A-1, subtracts a long list of allowed expenses, and arrives at monthly disposable income.
Many of those expenses aren’t what a person actually spends. They’re standard amounts the IRS publishes for food, housing, transportation and health care, by household size and county. The form multiplies what’s left by 60 months and compares it with dollar thresholds in the Bankruptcy Code. The result is one of two boxes at the top of page 1: there is a presumption of abuse, or there isn’t.
Who files it
Only a Chapter 7 debtor whose income on Form 122A-1 comes out above the state median. Below the median, this form isn’t filed.
What it asks
Part 1: Determine Your Adjusted Income
Current monthly income from Form 122A-1, less any part of a non-filing spouse’s income that doesn’t go toward household expenses.
Part 2: Calculate Your Deductions from Your Income
IRS National and Local Standards for living expenses, then other necessary expenses such as taxes, childcare and court-ordered payments, then additional deductions the Code allows, then payments on secured and priority debts.
Part 3: Determine Whether There Is a Presumption of Abuse
Disposable income over 60 months, measured against the thresholds. On the 04/25 form, under $10,275 means no presumption and over $17,150 means there is one. In between, it depends on how the figure compares with 25% of nonpriority unsecured debt.
Part 4: Give Details About Special Circumstances
Space to describe circumstances that justify extra expenses or an adjustment to income, with documentation for the trustee.
Part 5: Sign Below
A signature under penalty of perjury.
Where the standard amounts come from. The dollar thresholds on this form adjust every three years, next on April 1, 2028. The IRS expense standards and the state median income tables change more often. The U.S. Trustee Program publishes the current ones at justice.gov/ust/means-testing.
When it’s filed
It’s filed with the petition, or within 14 days after it. That’s the deadline Bankruptcy Rule 1007(c) sets for the schedules and statements.
Related forms
- Chapter 7 Statement of Your Current Monthly Income (Official Form 122A-1)
- Statement of Exemption from Presumption of Abuse Under §707(b)(2) (Official Form 122A-1Supp)
- Schedule J: Your Expenses (Official Form 106J)
The official form
Official Form 122A-2 is 9 pages long and is used in Chapter 7 only cases. This guide describes the 04/25 revision, the date printed beside the form’s title. The federal courts publish the form and replace it when it changes, so their page always has the current one.
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