Current claims in Russian personal bankruptcy are monetary obligations and mandatory payments that arise after the commercial court accepts the bankruptcy petition. They are not entered in the ordinary creditors’ register, are paid ahead of registered claims under a special priority system and are not automatically discharged when the procedure ends.
A later invoice or due date does not by itself turn an old debt into a current claim.
A current creditor uses a separate route to assert and protect the claim.
A remaining current debt may be pursued after the bankruptcy case ends.
What is a current claim
Article 5(1) of Federal Law No. 127-FZ links classification to the time when the obligation arose. The working cutoff is the date of the Russian commercial court order accepting the petition to declare the individual bankrupt. An obligation arising after that date may be current unless a special rule provides otherwise.
The accrual of an obligation must be distinguished from an invoice, payment deadline, demand letter or later judgment. A service supplied before the cutoff does not normally become current merely because the invoice was issued later. Periodic obligations should be divided by their individual billing or performance periods.
Current claim versus registered claim
| Issue | Current claim | Registered claim |
|---|---|---|
| When it arose | After the court accepted the bankruptcy petition | Before acceptance, unless a special rule provides otherwise |
| Creditors’ register | Not entered in the ordinary register | Filed and determined through the register procedure |
| Payment | Ahead of registered claims, but within four current-priority levels | Under register priorities after current claims and procedural expenses |
| Procedural status | The status alone does not make the creditor a participant in the bankruptcy case | An admitted bankruptcy creditor receives the procedural rights provided by law |
| After completion | An unpaid balance remains enforceable | An ordinary balance may be covered by discharge, subject to statutory exceptions |
The route for an older debt is explained separately in the guide to filing a claim in a Russian individual’s creditors’ register. A current creditor should not copy that process mechanically.
Common current claims of an individual
The legal basis and accrual period matter more than the label attached to the debt. One contract or account can contain both registered arrears for earlier periods and current charges for later periods.
- Maintenance obligations: pre-petition arrears and new periodic amounts require separate calculations.
- Housing and utilities: old charges are separated from services supplied during the procedure.
- Capital-repair contributions: current contributions belong to the third level under Article 213.27.
- Taxes and mandatory payments: classification follows the special rule governing when the tax obligation arises, not merely the date of a tax demand.
- Contracts: payment for goods, work or services depends on the performance period and the terms of the obligation.
- Court costs and the administrator’s remuneration: the statute places them in the first current-priority level.
How to divide periodic obligations
Rent, utilities, maintenance, annuity and other recurring liabilities should be calculated month by month or by the relevant performance period. A single consolidated invoice must not obscure which part relates to the period before acceptance and which part arose afterwards.
For example, utility arrears for months before the cutoff remain registered in nature, while charges for later services may be current. New instalments under an ongoing annuity agreement must also be considered separately; the property-specific issues are explained in the guide to bankruptcy of an annuity payer in Russia.
The four current-priority levels
Article 213.27(2) establishes a special order for an individual’s bankruptcy. The statement that current claims are paid outside the register means that they rank ahead of registered creditors; it does not abolish priority among current creditors.
| Level | Claims included | Example |
|---|---|---|
| First | Current maintenance, bankruptcy court costs, the financial administrator’s remuneration and amounts due to persons engaged by the administrator | A new maintenance instalment or documented procedural expense |
| Second | Severance and remuneration under employment contracts | Current wages owed by an individual acting as employer |
| Third | Housing charges, utilities and capital-repair contributions | Apartment charges accruing after the cutoff |
| Fourth | Other current payments | A new contractual or mandatory payment not included above |
Claims within the same level are paid in calendar order. A later creditor does not gain priority merely by sending more demands or obtaining a judgment more quickly.
Who pays and from which funds
During asset realisation, the financial administrator controls the bankruptcy estate. Payments from the estate must respect the source of funds, mandatory expenses and the priority in Article 213.27. A transfer by the debtor from a controlled account without an agreed legal basis may create another dispute.
Protected income, the subsistence allowance and additional excluded amounts should not automatically be treated as a pool available to every current creditor. The individual’s allowance and the estate must be analysed separately under the applicable court orders and bankruptcy rules.
Step-by-step route for a current creditor
- Obtain the acceptance order. Record the exact cutoff date and case number.
- Identify when the debt arose. Separate performance periods, acts, deliveries, services and mandatory payments.
- Prepare the calculation. Show principal, periods, payments and supporting documents separately.
- Select the current-priority level. Refer to the relevant paragraph of Article 213.27(2).
- Send the claim to the financial administrator. Keep delivery evidence and request confirmation of how it is recorded.
- If disputed, use the competent court procedure. Jurisdiction and the form of claim depend on its legal basis and the parties’ status.
- Monitor distributions. Check reports, available funds and calendar order within the level.
- Verify the balance after completion. The unpaid part survives, but its amount and future enforcement route require documentary proof.
Documents for the creditor
- the order accepting the bankruptcy petition and later court orders;
- the contract, judgment, enforcement instrument or other legal basis;
- acts, invoices, receipts, tax records and period-by-period calculations;
- evidence of services, delivery or accrual of a mandatory payment;
- payment records showing any partial satisfaction;
- correspondence with the debtor and financial administrator;
- a calculation of priority and calendar order;
- evidence that the demand was sent to the relevant persons.
If the administrator disputes priority
A dispute may concern the accrual date, legal basis, amount, priority or source of payment. The creditor should first obtain the administrator’s written position and compare it with the underlying documents. Merely labelling a demand “current” does not prove its classification.
Article 5(4) allows a current creditor to protect rights affected by the administrator’s conduct before the commercial court dealing with the bankruptcy. The appropriate remedy depends on the actual dispute. This section is not a standalone guide to complaints against a financial administrator and does not replace review of the required procedural document.
What the debtor should do
The debtor should continue recording new obligations after filing. Bills and demands should be given to the administrator, earlier and later periods should be separated, and new maintenance, utility and mandatory payments should be disclosed with proof of any amounts already paid.
The debtor should neither promise payment outside statutory priority nor conceal a new obligation. Equally, an amount already withheld or distributed from the estate should not be paid twice. The overall sequence is described in the step-by-step Russian personal bankruptcy guide.
If the estate has insufficient funds
Priority ahead of the register does not guarantee full payment. Funds may be insufficient for all claims at one level, while a higher level must be paid first. Calendar order applies within one level, so the outcome depends on actual receipts into the estate.
The creditor should document the unpaid balance and examine the administrator’s report. The debtor should not treat a lack of funds during the procedure as automatic extinction. The statute expressly preserves unpaid current claims after the case ends.
Are current claims discharged
No universal discharge applies. Article 213.28(5) preserves current creditors’ claims to the extent unpaid and allows them to be pursued after the bankruptcy proceedings end. This is an express exception to the individual’s general discharge.
After completion, the parties should examine the final order, all distributions and the balance for each period. Other surviving liabilities and grounds for denying discharge appear in the guide to debts not discharged in Russian personal bankruptcy.
Gardening associations, annuity and special cases
The general test does not displace special rules. For membership and special-purpose contributions to a gardening association, membership, the members’ resolution, the accounting period and the accrual of each payment must be verified. That narrower scenario is covered in the guide to gardening-association contributions in bankruptcy.
Annuity, tax, rent, utility and continuing contractual obligations can use different accrual rules. A single account balance without a period-by-period breakdown is insufficient for legal classification.
Court and out-of-court bankruptcy
The priority in Article 213.27 concerns court-administered personal bankruptcy and distributions from the estate. The Russian out-of-court MFC procedure has no financial administrator or ordinary bankruptcy estate, so the judicial route cannot be transferred mechanically.
For an MFC case, the commencement date, published creditor list, accrual of the new obligation and the effect of Article 223.6 must be examined separately. A new payment does not automatically become part of the older published list.
Frequently asked questions
What date starts the current-claims period?
The working cutoff is the date when the Russian commercial court accepts the bankruptcy petition. The full acceptance order and any special rule for the obligation must be checked.
Must a current claim be entered in the register?
No. Article 5(2) excludes current claims from the ordinary register. The creditor needs a separate calculation and the correct assertion route.
Are utility charges during bankruptcy current?
Charges for services after the cutoff are generally current and fall within the third level. Earlier arrears and later periods must be separated.
Are current claims always paid in full?
No. They rank ahead of registered claims, but payment depends on available funds, higher-priority claims and calendar order within the same level.
Can the balance be recovered after completion?
Article 213.28(5) preserves the unpaid part. Its amount and future enforcement route must be supported by court and accounting records.
Does a later due date make an old debt current?
Not necessarily. Classification normally follows when the obligation arose, not the date of an invoice, demand or payment deadline. Performance periods must be reviewed separately.
Official sources
- Federal Law No. 127-FZ: the official text of the Russian Bankruptcy Law.
- Article 5 of Federal Law No. 127-FZ: definition and treatment of current claims.
- Article 213.27 of Federal Law No. 127-FZ: the four current-priority levels for an individual.
- Article 213.28 of Federal Law No. 127-FZ: survival of unpaid current claims.
- Plenum Resolution No. 63 of 23 July 2009: determining when a current monetary obligation arises.
- Russian Supreme Court Review of Individual Bankruptcy Cases of 18 June 2025.
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