11 U.S.C. § 362 (Automatic Stay) Explained: What It Stops

11 U.S.C. § 362 is the Bankruptcy Code's automatic stay, the provision that stops most creditors from collecting a debt the moment a bankruptcy petition is filed. It freezes lawsuits, wage garnishments, repossessions, and collection calls against the debtor and the debtor's property, subject to a list of exceptions in subsection (b).

This article covers the federal automatic stay under 11 U.S.C. § 362, which applies the same way in every bankruptcy case filed anywhere in the United States. It does not cover state exemption law or the means test, which vary by state; for those, see the Bankruptcy Laws by State hub, or a specific state's guide such as Bankruptcy in California, Bankruptcy in Texas, Bankruptcy in Florida, or Bankruptcy in New York.

Information last verified against primary federal sources on August 12, 2026. This article has not yet been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

What the Automatic Stay Actually Stops

Under 11 U.S.C. § 362(a), filing a petition under Chapter 7, 9, 11, 12, or 13 (or an involuntary petition, or certain SIPA applications) operates as a stay, applicable to all entities, the moment it is filed. No separate order or court appearance is needed for the stay to take effect.

The U.S. Courts' own bankruptcy-basics guide describes the practical effect this way: "As long as the stay is in effect, creditors generally may not initiate or continue lawsuits, wage garnishments, or even telephone calls demanding payments." Specifically, § 362(a) stops:

• Starting or continuing a lawsuit, administrative proceeding, or other action against the debtor on a debt that arose before the filing
• Enforcing a judgment obtained before the filing against the debtor or property of the estate
• Any act to obtain possession of, or exercise control over, property of the bankruptcy estate
• Creating, perfecting, or enforcing a lien against property of the estate, or against the debtor's property for a pre-filing debt
• Any act to collect, assess, or recover a debt that arose before the filing, including collection calls and letters
• Setting off a debt the creditor owes the debtor against what the debtor owes the creditor
• Starting or continuing a U.S. Tax Court proceeding over certain pre-filing tax liabilities

The stay protects both the debtor personally and property of the bankruptcy estate, which is why the statute describes it as "applicable to all entities" rather than limited to the original creditor who was owed the debt.

What the Stay Does Not Stop: The Section 362(b) Exceptions

Disclosure that a stay is broad does not mean it is universal. Section 362(b) lists specific actions that keep moving forward even after a bankruptcy petition is filed, and several of them cover situations readers commonly assume are frozen.

Criminal proceedings are not stayed at all. Under § 362(b)(1), the commencement or continuation of a criminal action or proceeding against the debtor is entirely outside the automatic stay. Bankruptcy is a civil debt-relief process; it has no effect on a criminal case.

Most domestic-relations matters continue. Section 362(b)(2) excepts a long list of family-law actions from the stay: establishing paternity; establishing or modifying child support or alimony (domestic support obligations); child custody or visitation proceedings; a divorce or dissolution proceeding, except for the part that divides property of the bankruptcy estate; and domestic-violence proceedings. It also excepts collecting support from property that is not part of the estate, income withholding for support, suspending a driver's, professional, occupational, or recreational license for unpaid support, reporting overdue support to credit bureaus, intercepting a tax refund for support arrears, and enforcing medical support obligations.

Tax audits and assessments continue. Under § 362(b)(9), the IRS and state tax authorities can still audit a debtor, issue a notice of deficiency, demand a tax return, or make an assessment, though the filing of certain new tax liens can be limited.

A landlord with an existing eviction judgment may be able to proceed. Section 362(b)(22) allows an eviction to continue if the landlord already obtained a judgment for possession before the bankruptcy was filed. The debtor has a narrow, time-limited opportunity under § 362(l) to keep the stay in place by certifying eligibility and depositing rent with the court, but that mechanism has specific procedural requirements and does not apply once the deadline passes. Section 362(b)(23) similarly lets an eviction based on endangering the property or illegal drug use on the premises proceed, subject to the debtor's objection rights under § 362(m).

How Long the Automatic Stay Lasts

Absent an earlier order lifting it, § 362(c) sets two separate clocks:

• The stay as to property of the bankruptcy estate lasts until that property is no longer property of the estate, under § 362(c)(1).
• The stay covering everything else in § 362(a), meaning actions against the debtor personally, lasts until the case is closed, the case is dismissed, or (in a Chapter 7, 9, 11, 12, or 13 case) a discharge is granted or denied, under § 362(c)(2).

These two durations do not always end on the same day, which matters most for the repeat-filer situations below.

Filed Bankruptcy Before? The Repeat-Filer Rules

The single most consequential, and most commonly misunderstood, part of § 362 is what happens to the stay on a second or third bankruptcy filing within a year. The two subsections work very differently, and confusing them is a real risk for anyone filing again after a recent dismissal.

Second filing in a year, § 362(c)(3). The statute's exact text is that the stay "shall terminate with respect to the debtor on the 30th day after the filing of the later case" unless a party in interest moves and the court, after notice and a hearing completed before the 30th day, finds the later case was filed in good faith. This subsection applies only to an individual debtor in a Chapter 7, 11, or 13 case who had a single or joint case pending and dismissed within the preceding year (not counting a case that was refiled outside Chapter 7 after a dismissal under § 707(b)). The law presumes bad faith, meaning the debtor has to overcome that presumption, in situations including two or more prior cases pending within the year, or an earlier case that was dismissed for failing to file required documents, failing to provide adequate protection, or failing to perform a confirmed plan, unless the debtor shows a substantial change in circumstances.

Third-or-later filing in a year, § 362(c)(4). This is the provision most often mistaken for a shorter version of the 30-day rule above, and it is not. Its exact text is that where an individual had two or more single or joint cases pending and dismissed within the preceding year, "the stay under subsection (a) shall not go into effect upon the filing of the later case." There is no automatic stay at all from day one. A stay only comes into existence if a party in interest requests it and the court, within 30 days, finds the filing was made in good faith as to the creditors who would be stayed.

Exactly how far a § 362(c)(3) termination reaches, whether it cuts off the entire stay or only the protection running to the debtor personally while leaving the stay on estate property intact, is a question courts have not answered the same way everywhere. Anyone in a repeat-filing situation should not assume which reading applies in their case without talking to a bankruptcy attorney about the law in their circuit.

Can a Creditor Get the Automatic Stay Lifted?

A creditor who wants to move forward despite the stay can file a motion for relief from stay. Under § 362(d), the court "shall grant relief" in several situations:

• For cause, under § 362(d)(1), including a failure to provide adequate protection of the creditor's interest in property
• Lack of equity, under § 362(d)(2), for an act against property, if the debtor has no equity in the property and the property is not necessary for an effective reorganization
• Single-asset real estate cases, under § 362(d)(3), where the creditor gets relief unless the debtor files a plan with a reasonable chance of confirmation, or starts making monthly interest payments, within a set period
• Filing as part of a scheme, under § 362(d)(4), to delay, hinder, or defraud creditors, such as through serial filings or property transfers meant to abuse the stay

Timing matters for these motions too. Under § 362(e), a stay-relief request automatically terminates 30 days after it is filed unless the court, after notice and a hearing, orders it continued pending a final hearing. For an individual debtor in a Chapter 7, 11, or 13 case, the court must reach a final decision within 60 days of the request or the stay terminates by operation of law.

The leading Supreme Court case on what a creditor must show for relief under § 362(d)(1) is United Savings Association of Texas v. Timbers of Inwood Forest Associates, Ltd., 484 U.S. 365 (1988). The Court held that an undersecured creditor is not entitled to compensation for the delay caused by the automatic stay as part of the "adequate protection" analysis; adequate protection compensates for a decline in the value of the collateral itself, not for the lost time-value of a claim that was already undersecured before the case was filed.

What Happens If a Creditor Violates the Stay? Damages Under Section 362(k)

Section 362(k) gives an individual debtor a direct remedy. Its exact text: "an individual injured by any willful violation of a stay provided by this section shall recover actual damages, including costs and attorneys' fees, and, in appropriate circumstances, may recover punitive damages."

There is a narrow carve-out: recovery is limited to actual damages where the creditor acted on a good-faith belief that § 362(h), which addresses stay termination tied to a debtor's failure to timely file a statement of intention on personal property, applied to the situation.

The statute does not define "willful" beyond this text, and the standard for what counts as a willful violation is not spelled out in § 362 itself. If a creditor keeps calling, garnishing wages, or pursuing a lawsuit after learning about a bankruptcy filing, that is worth raising with a bankruptcy attorney promptly rather than assuming it will resolve on its own.

How Courts Have Applied the Automatic Stay

More than 19,600 federal court decisions cite 11 U.S.C. § 362, according to recordinglaw.com's case-law index, which reflects how central the automatic stay is to bankruptcy litigation generally. Timbers of Inwood Forest, discussed above, remains the leading Supreme Court authority specifically construing what the stay requires when a secured creditor seeks relief for lack of adequate protection.

Common Misconceptions

"Bankruptcy stops a criminal case." It does not. Criminal proceedings, including a DUI charge, are entirely excepted from the automatic stay under § 362(b)(1). A civil traffic infraction may be treated differently depending on how the state classifies it, but bankruptcy generally has no effect on a pending criminal matter.

"Filing bankruptcy stops a divorce or custody case." It does not, for custody, visitation, support, paternity, or domestic-violence proceedings. Only the part of a divorce case that divides property belonging to the bankruptcy estate can be paused, under § 362(b)(2).

"The automatic stay stops child support or alimony collection." It does not. Section 362(b)(2) excepts establishing, collecting, and modifying support, income withholding, license suspension for arrears, credit-bureau reporting, and tax-refund interception for support obligations.

"If I already have an eviction judgment against me, filing bankruptcy stops the eviction." Usually not. Section 362(b)(22) lets a landlord with a pre-filing judgment for possession continue, unless the debtor uses the narrow cure-and-deposit procedure in § 362(l) before the deadline passes.

"My second bankruptcy in a year gets the same automatic stay as my first." No. Under § 362(c)(3), the stay self-terminates on day 30 unless a motion to extend is filed and granted, after notice and a hearing completed, before that deadline.

"My third bankruptcy in a year still gives me 30 days of protection." No, and this is the costliest version of the misconception. Under § 362(c)(4), there is no stay at all from day one unless someone affirmatively asks the court to impose one within 30 days and the court finds good faith.

Disclaimer

This article provides general information about the federal automatic stay under 11 U.S.C. § 362, as in effect and verified against primary federal sources on the date noted above. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Whether the stay applies to a specific creditor action, how a repeat-filing situation will be treated, and whether a stay violation is willful all depend on case-specific facts and the law of the circuit where the case is filed. Confirm current details with a bankruptcy attorney licensed in your state before relying on anything here for your own case.

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Last updated: August 12, 2026.