“Dear Steve,
English citizen with Hong kong perm residency. Lost job in Aug 2009 in Hong Kong, suffered from severe depression, went back to my parents in the UK, claiming jobseekers allowance since nov 2009, remained unemployed now. When leaving HK, I just left and left credit card bill unpaid. With interest, to date, I owe 185k HKD. I lived in a serviced apartment and have no assets, property, car and no savings as I was living month to month. a debt collector recently Began hassling my cousin, and I have no idea how they got his details. I was working in HK for 4 years, and paid all cc bills in a timely manner during this time. I suddenly lost my job whilst suffering from Depression and suffered a breakdown on my return to the UK. I cut all ties with HK, Inc friends and ran away from my problems. Since this recent call from my cousin, I must face my problems without this affecting him or his family. I have been in contact with the collector, who now have my ph detais in the UK
What are my options if I contact the bank, and try to arrange a repayment schedule? What if they wont accept the amount i can currently pay or if the debt has been referred to an agency and they want the full amount? I won’t be able to pay more then 50 to 60 GBP currently until I find a job and I will need to wire the money to HK. The debt is only with one bank. I will not go back to HK but can I go down the IVA or bankruptcy route via a lawyer I can find on the Internet? and what are the implications if bankruptcy is the only route? I have no savings and my parents cannot bail me out as they are retired. If I go down the iva or bankruptcy route, how much is written off and how long would I need to make payments for? Thank you for any assistance or advice offered.
Anon”
The Answer:
Dear Anon,
I’m so sorry to hear about the situation. I suppose the good news is you had a place to go back to and find shelter so you could begin to recover. I’m assuming you’ve already begun treatment for the depression, if you haven’t yet then contact your local GP and let the NHS help you get that under control.
More good news is that the Hong Kong system is mirrored after the UK debt relief system. You would have both IVA (Individual Voluntary Arrangement) and bankruptcy options available to you. However, based on your current income the bankruptcy option is the most logical. I doubt you would be required to make payments.
it is now time to clean up the HK mess left behind. Please contact a HK Insolvency Practitioner and discuss filing bankruptcy. However you should get right on this, time is of the essence once you leave the country.
For information on bankruptcy in Hong Kong, visit the Official Receiver’s site. The need for the IP in HK is going to be to have someone represent you in your absence.
Please update me on your progress by posting updates here in the comments section of your question. I’m very interested in how this works out for you.
If you have a credit or debt question you’d like to ask just use the online form. I’m happy to help you totally for free.