Last reviewed: 7 October 2026
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Bankruptcy exemptions, explained: the federal list, state law and who gets which
An exemption lets an individual debtor protect certain property from creditors in bankruptcy. Under 11 U.S.C. § 522(b), an individual debtor may exempt the property on either the federal list in subsection (d) or, in the alternative, the property exempt under state and other federal law, and which route is open depends on the state.[1][2] This page explains the structure, the federal list with the dollar amounts adjusted effective 1 April 2025, and the main limits. It does not give any state’s exemption amounts.
The short version
- Two sets of exemptions. Section 522(b)(2) is the federal list in subsection (d). Section 522(b)(3) is property exempt under federal law other than subsection (d), or under state or local law, plus certain other property. The debtor may exempt the property in one or the other.[1]
- The state decides whether you have a choice. The U.S. Courts say many states have adopted their own exemption law in place of the federal exemptions, and in other places the debtor may choose between the federal package and state law.[2] Section 522(b)(2) allows the federal list unless the state law that applies to the debtor specifically does not so authorize.[1]
- Which state’s law applies depends on where you have lived. The statute looks to the place where the debtor’s domicile has been located for the 730 days before filing, with a fallback if the debtor moved.[1]
- Exempt means the trustee generally cannot sell it to pay creditors. The U.S. Courts say the trustee gathers and sells nonexempt assets, and that the Code lets the debtor keep “exempt” property.[2]
Which exemption system applies
Section 522(b)(1) says an individual debtor may exempt from property of the estate the property listed in either paragraph (2) or, in the alternative, paragraph (3). In a joint case, one spouse may not choose paragraph (2) while the other chooses paragraph (3). If the spouses cannot agree, they are deemed to elect paragraph (2), where that election is permitted under the law of the jurisdiction where the case is filed.[1]
| Route | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Federal list, § 522(b)(2) and (d) | The property specified in subsection (d), unless the state law applicable to the debtor under paragraph (3)(A) specifically does not so authorize.[1] |
| State and other law, § 522(b)(3) | (A) Subject to subsections (o) and (p), property exempt under federal law other than subsection (d), or under state or local law applicable on the filing date to the place where the debtor’s domicile has been located for the 730 days immediately before filing. (B) An interest as a tenant by the entirety or joint tenant, to the extent exempt from process under applicable nonbankruptcy law. (C) Retirement funds, to the extent they are in a fund or account exempt from taxation under the Internal Revenue Code sections listed there.[1] |
The 730-day domicile rule
If the debtor’s domicile has not been located in a single state for the 730 days before filing, section 522(b)(3)(A) looks to the place where the domicile was located for the 180 days immediately before that 730-day period, or for a longer portion of that 180-day period than in any other place. If the domiciliary requirement leaves the debtor ineligible for any exemption, the debtor may elect the federal list in subsection (d).[1] So recent moves between states can change which state’s exemptions apply.
The federal list, with the amounts in force since 1 April 2025
The statute text prints the original dollar figures. The adjusted figures below come from the notice recorded in the statute’s “Adjustment of Dollar Amounts” note (90 Fed. Reg. 8941, effective 1 April 2025). Adjustments do not apply to cases commenced before they take effect, and the next scheduled adjustment is 1 April 2028.[1][3]
| Subsection (d) | Property | Limit from 1 April 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| (1) | Residence, cooperative or burial plot used by the debtor or a dependent | $31,575 in aggregate value[1] |
| (2) | One motor vehicle | $5,025[1] |
| (3) | Household furnishings, goods, clothing, appliances, books, animals, crops, musical instruments held for personal, family or household use | $800 per item and $16,850 in aggregate[1] |
| (4) | Jewelry held for personal, family or household use | $2,125 in aggregate[1] |
| (5) | Any property (the “wildcard”) | $1,675 plus up to $15,800 of any unused amount of the (d)(1) exemption[1] |
| (6) | Implements, professional books or tools of the trade | $3,175 in aggregate[1] |
| (7) | Unmatured life insurance contract owned by the debtor, other than credit life insurance | No dollar limit in the text[1] |
| (8) | Accrued dividend or interest under, or loan value of, an unmatured life insurance contract | $16,850, less amounts transferred as described in the text[1] |
| (9) | Professionally prescribed health aids | No dollar limit in the text[1] |
| (10) | Right to receive a Social Security benefit, unemployment compensation or local public assistance; a veterans’ benefit; a disability, illness or unemployment benefit; alimony, support or separate maintenance, and certain pension-type payments, to the extent reasonably necessary for support, with the exceptions in the text | Not a fixed dollar cap; the “reasonably necessary” limit applies to the support and pension items[1] |
| (11) | Crime victim awards; certain wrongful-death, life insurance and loss-of-earnings payments; personal bodily injury payments | The personal bodily injury item is capped at $31,575 (not including pain and suffering or compensation for actual pecuniary loss); the wrongful-death, life insurance and loss-of-earnings items carry a “reasonably necessary” limit; the crime victim item shows no dollar figure in the text[1] |
| (12) | Retirement funds in an account exempt from taxation under the Internal Revenue Code sections listed there | No dollar limit in this paragraph; see the IRA limit in subsection (n) below[1] |
Limits on the exemptions
- Newly acquired homestead value (subsection (p)). If a debtor elects under (b)(3)(A) to use state or local exemptions, the debtor may not exempt more than $214,000 in aggregate value of interest in a residence, cooperative, burial plot or claimed homestead that was acquired in the 1,215-day period before filing, with exceptions including the one for a family farmer’s principal residence and for value moved from a previous principal residence in the same state.[1]
- Felony and listed-debt cap (subsection (q)). A $214,000 cap on the same kinds of property (a residence, cooperative, burial plot or claimed homestead) also applies to a debtor who elects state exemptions if the court finds, after notice and a hearing, a felony conviction demonstrating abuse of the Code, or if the debtor owes a debt from the securities-law, fiduciary-fraud, racketeering-remedy or serious-injury categories the subsection lists. It does not apply to the extent the amount is reasonably necessary for the support of the debtor and dependents.[1]
- Transfers to hinder creditors (subsection (o)). For state-law homestead-type exemptions, value is reduced to the extent it is attributable to property the debtor disposed of in the 10 years before filing with intent to hinder, delay or defraud a creditor.[1]
- IRAs (subsection (n)). For assets in IRAs under Internal Revenue Code sections 408 or 408A (other than SEP and SIMPLE accounts), the aggregate value exempted may not exceed $1,711,975, not counting amounts attributable to rollover contributions and the earnings on them. The amount may be increased if the interests of justice so require.[1]
What an exemption does and does not do
Under section 522(c), unless the case is dismissed, exempt property is not liable during or after the case for a debt that arose before the case began, with four listed exceptions. They include debts of the kinds in section 523(a)(1) and (5) (such as certain taxes and domestic support), certain liens that are not avoided and properly filed tax liens, and two categories involving federal depository institution regulators and fraud in obtaining education financing.[1] A waiver of an exemption in favor of an unsecured creditor is unenforceable in a bankruptcy case as to property the debtor may exempt under subsection (b).[1] Section 522(f) also lets a debtor avoid certain judicial liens and certain nonpossessory, nonpurchase-money liens on listed property to the extent they impair an exemption, with limits.[1] Each debtor in a joint case can claim exemptions separately.[1][2]
What this page does not cover
It does not list any state’s exemptions, which are in each state’s own statutes, and it does not say how a given asset would be valued or claimed on the schedule of exempt property. Outside bankruptcy, a different set of state exemptions governs a creditor’s collection; see judgment-proof status and exemption planning. This is general information, not legal advice. Our Standard checks companies; it does not review any court process.
Your next step
If you are considering bankruptcy, a bankruptcy attorney can tell you which exemption system applies where you live and how your own property would be treated; see free legal help for debt problems. For how a Chapter 7 case works overall, see Chapter 7 vs. Chapter 13.
When we will update this page
We revisit it when section 522 changes or the dollar amounts are next adjusted (scheduled for 1 April 2028). Sources last read 7 October 2026.
What you can do next
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