A creditor may initiate a Russian court bankruptcy case against an individual when a documented monetary claim meets Federal Law No. 127-FZ. As a general rule, the creditor needs an enforceable court judgment, claims of at least RUB 500,000 and a delay of at least three months. Article 213.5 contains limited exceptions to the judgment requirement, but the commercial court still reviews the debt and the debtor’s insolvency.
An initiating petition differs from filing a proof of claim in bankruptcy that has already commenced.
No general advance notice applies to an ordinary individual; a special rule may apply to a current individual entrepreneur.
The court reviews the claim, delay, insolvency, genuine disputes and supporting documents.
Who may initiate an individual’s bankruptcy
A bankruptcy creditor holding a monetary claim or an authorised public body may file the petition. The existence of a debt does not by itself mean that the petition will be accepted or upheld. The nature, amount and maturity of the claim, the evidence and the individual’s financial position all matter.
If a case has already commenced on the debtor’s, another creditor’s or a public body’s petition, there is no need to open it again. The creditor should check the case docket, the Unified Federal Register of Bankruptcy Information and the filing deadline, then follow the procedure for lodging a claim in the creditors’ register.
The RUB 500,000 and three-month conditions
For the court to accept a creditor’s or authorised body’s petition, claims against the individual must total at least RUB 500,000 and remain unpaid for at least three months after their due date. When several petitions have been filed, the court applies the statutory rules governing their sequence and consolidation.
The threshold permits initiation of the case; it does not replace the insolvency review. At the hearing, the court examines whether the claim has been paid, whether the individual is genuinely unable to perform the obligations and whether the delay is merely temporary.
When an enforceable court judgment is required
The general rule under Article 213.5 of Federal Law No. 127-FZ is that the creditor’s claim must be confirmed by a judgment that has entered into force. A bankruptcy case should not replace ordinary litigation over a genuinely disputed debt.
A petition without a prior judgment is permitted only for the categories expressly listed in Article 213.5(2). They include mandatory payments, claims based on notarised transactions or a notarial writ of execution, documented monetary obligations acknowledged but not performed by the individual, credit agreements with credit institutions and certain child-support claims. The current statutory list must be matched to the creditor’s actual documents.
Is advance publication on Fedresurs required?
No advance notice of an intended filing is generally required for the bankruptcy of an ordinary individual. Paragraph 7 of Supreme Court Plenum Resolution No. 45 expressly clarifies this point. Rules developed for advance publication before a company’s bankruptcy petition should not automatically be transferred to individuals.
There is, however, a specific rule for a current individual entrepreneur. If the creditor relies on an Article 213.5(2) category and files without a prior judgment, notice must be published at least 15 calendar days before filing. The individual’s current business status and the legal basis of the claim must therefore be checked first.
A genuine dispute and review of the debt
Even where a claim appears to fall within a statutory exception, the court does not have to treat it as undisputed. It reviews the documents, the reality of the obligation and the individual’s objections. An acknowledgement by the debtor does not remove judicial scrutiny.
If there is a genuine dispute that must be determined outside bankruptcy and no enforceable judgment exists, the petition may be held unsubstantiated, left without consideration or the proceedings may be terminated, depending on the procedural setting. A contrived objection made solely to delay the case should not automatically defeat the petition, but this assessment belongs to the court.
Starting the case or lodging a claim
| Issue | Creditor’s bankruptcy petition | Claim in the creditors’ register |
|---|---|---|
| Timing | Before bankruptcy exists, when the creditor seeks to initiate it | After the case has commenced and the procedure has been published |
| Primary purpose | Obtain review of the petition and commencement of a procedure where justified | Establish the amount, nature and ranking of a particular claim |
| Initiation threshold | Article 213.3 amount and delay conditions apply | The initiation threshold does not itself determine whether the claim may be lodged |
| Financial administrator | The petition names an SRO; the court appoints under the statutory process | An administrator has normally already been appointed |
| Outcome | A court order on substantiation and the applicable next procedure | A court order admitting or rejecting the claim |
What the petition should contain
The petition must be tailored to the actual debt and evidence. A generic template used without checking the documents can conceal a fatal procedural defect.
| Section | What to state | What to verify |
|---|---|---|
| Court and parties | Commercial court, creditor, individual, addresses and identifiers | Jurisdiction and current details |
| Obligation | Contract, origin of the debt, due date and calculation | Monetary nature, maturity and no double counting |
| Filing basis | Enforceable judgment or the precise Article 213.5(2) exception | Entry into force or complete evidence for the exception |
| Bankruptcy criteria | Amount of claims and length of default | Article 213.3 compliance on the filing date |
| SRO | Name and address of the self-regulatory organisation | Do not nominate a particular administrator |
| Relief sought | Find the petition substantiated and apply the statutory procedure | Do not present the desired outcome as automatic |
Supporting documents
- the agreement, receipt, primary records and a detailed claim calculation;
- the enforceable judgment and enforcement materials, or evidence for the applicable exception;
- evidence of the due date and continuing default;
- assignment, succession, guarantee or security documents where relevant;
- a current extract confirming whether the individual is registered as an individual entrepreneur, obtained no earlier than five business days before filing;
- evidence of service on participants and documents required by the Commercial Procedure Code;
- the signatory’s authority and evidence concerning the applicable court fee or exemption;
- advance publication for a current individual entrepreneur only where the special statutory rule applies.
Before filing, check whether another case has already commenced through the commercial court docket and bankruptcy register. A private loan evidenced by a receipt requires a separate assessment of the evidence discussed in our guide to promissory-note debt in bankruptcy.
Court deposit and costs under the 2026 rules
Following Federal Law No. 544-FZ, funds covering the financial administrator’s fixed remuneration are deposited by the creditor or authorised body after the court issues the order accepting the petition and before the substantiation hearing. The bankruptcy case number must appear in the payment document.
If the applicant agrees to fund specialists engaged by the administrator, the petition states a maximum amount and the corresponding funds are deposited during the same period. Under Article 213.5(5), these applicant-funded expenses cannot be charged to the individual.
The SRO and appointment of the financial administrator
The petition states the name and address of the self-regulatory organisation whose member is to be appointed. It may not substitute a particular administrator’s name for the SRO. Appointment remains a matter for the commercial court under the statutory nomination process and eligibility requirements.
No adviser can guarantee the appointment of a preferred person. Before filing, it is sensible to verify the SRO’s registration details and address without attempting to bypass the legally prescribed selection process.
How the petition is considered
- Pre-filing review. The creditor verifies jurisdiction, the claim basis, threshold, delay, business status and whether a case already exists.
- Filing and service. The papers are submitted to the commercial court and served as required by procedural and bankruptcy law.
- Initial court review. The court may accept the petition, require defects to be corrected, return it or apply another statutory procedural outcome.
- Deposit after acceptance. The applicant pays the required funds before the substantiation hearing and identifies the case number.
- The individual’s response. The debtor files objections and the Article 213.5 information about assets, income and accounts.
- Substantiation hearing. The court reviews the claim, delay, insolvency, any genuine dispute and procedural compliance.
- Court order. If the conditions are proved, the applicable procedure is introduced; otherwise the petition receives the statutory negative outcome.
Possible outcomes and creditor risks
A substantiated petition does not automatically lead to liquidation of the individual’s assets. The initial question is whether debt restructuring conditions are met; asset realisation is introduced only on the statutory grounds. The court may also decline to find the petition substantiated, leave it without consideration or terminate proceedings.
Before initiating the case, a creditor should compare likely recovery with costs, timing, available assets, security, competing priorities and transaction challenge risks. See the broader framework in our Russian personal bankruptcy overview.
- filing on a disputed debt without first obtaining a judgment;
- miscalculating the threshold or default period;
- confusing the initiating petition with a proof of claim;
- using an outdated extract on individual-entrepreneur status;
- publishing unnecessarily or failing to publish where the specific entrepreneur rule applies;
- using the obsolete pre-filing deposit process without a case number;
- naming a particular administrator instead of the SRO;
- assuming that every expense will necessarily be recovered from the debtor.
Frequently asked questions
May a bank file without a prior judgment?
Yes. Claims under credit agreements with credit institutions are included in Article 213.5(2). The court still reviews the documents, amount, delay, insolvency and the individual’s objections.
May a private creditor file on a signed receipt without suing first?
Not invariably. The exception may apply where documents establish a monetary obligation that the individual genuinely acknowledges but does not perform. A real dispute normally requires prior litigation; the court makes the final assessment.
Must the creditor publish 15 days in advance?
Not for an ordinary individual. The special publication rule concerns a current individual entrepreneur where the creditor files without a judgment on an Article 213.5(2) claim. Status and claim basis must be checked on the filing date.
Can the creditor name a particular financial administrator?
No. The petition names the SRO from whose members the administrator is to be appointed. The court appoints under the statutory process.
Must the deposit be paid immediately?
Under the rules effective in 2026, payment is made after the petition is accepted and before the substantiation hearing, with the case number in the payment document.
What if another creditor has already filed?
Check the docket and the first petition’s procedural status. Later petitions follow special sequencing rules; after a procedure begins, the creditor will normally seek admission of its claim to the register.
Official sources
- Federal Law No. 127-FZ: Articles 213.3, 213.5 and 213.6.
- Federal Law No. 544-FZ dated 29 December 2025: the revised Article 213.5 deposit timing.
- Supreme Court Plenum Resolution No. 45 dated 13 October 2015: paragraphs 7, 8, 13, 14 and 16.
- Supreme Court review of individual bankruptcy cases dated 18 June 2025, amended 29 April 2026.
- Commercial Court Case File, Unified Federal Bankruptcy Register and My Arbitr electronic filing service.
Review the petition before filing
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