Bankruptcy in Canberra - Will I lose my business if I go bankrupt?

When people in Canberra come to me trying to talk about Bankruptcy, they are always packed with questions. The internet has plenty of information, but far too much of it is confusing or contradicts itself, so I make it my mission to try and make it clearer. One of the very most standard issues is 'Will I lose my business if I declare bankruptcy?' The short answer is no. If you are an owner of a business any shape or size you can keep your business if you wish to. In Canberra, businesses that eventually become insolvent have a few options such as liquidation, voluntary administration and so on. It's individuals who go bankrupt not businesses.

Bankruptcy is a complex area so get some professional advice on this one if you have a business. Generally speaking, the debts in a business and personal debts go hand in hand when a business owner declares bankruptcy. There are some necessary implications for directors of companies when it pertains to Bankruptcy in Canberra: A bankrupt can not be a director of a company, so if you have a pty ltd company you will need to resign as a director after you're bankrupt.

A restriction that applies when you are bankrupt as a business owner is that you can be in your very own business as a sole trader only. There are things you will need to make known as a part of that but basically you can still run your business. For some business owners, bankruptcy affects their ability to run the business because of the licensing issues. For instance, if you run a building company, your license will be suspended once you're bankrupt and as a consequence you can no longer trade without that license, so make sure you are asking the appropriate questions when it involves licenses and Bankruptcy in Canberra.

On the other hand if your business is not impacted directly by such issues, then you'll need to restructure the way you run your business. There are considerations when and if you go bankrupt as a business owner: you can not acquire heaps of debt in your business, then go bankrupt and after that open the doors the next day like absolutely nothing had happened. There are laws in place to avoid what is called phoenix companies popping up out of the ashes of an old business.

Having said that, it's just a point of talking to the suitable people about Bankruptcy. Here in this situation you may believe you need a liquidator for your business, and you might be right, but remember that every liquidator is different and have their own motives. Liquidators earn money from your liquidation - heaps of money - so just what advice do you think you will get?

When it comes to Bankruptcy, I think that giving generic advice in this area is essentially dangerous as it can have very considerable implications for directors and business owners. This is since it is one of those cases where what the right advice for one business owner is the wrong advice for the other. There are some principles however, that you may benefit from. There is no reduce to the size of the business you run even though you are bankrupt. You can employ staff. You can constantly deal with your providers under certain conditions, the main one being you will need to meet the payment terms agreed upon.

So when it concerns Bankruptcy, don't get too confused about what you can and can't do as a business owner, just get the appropriate advice ... If you need to learn more about what to do, exactly where to turn and what questions to ask about Bankruptcy, then feel free to consult Fresh Start Solutions Canberra on 1300 818 575, or visit our website: www.freshstartsolutions.com.au/bankruptcy-Canberra