Schedule G is the bankruptcy form where you list every contract and lease that’s still active when you file your case. Officially called Form 106G, it covers apartment leases, car leases, cell phone plans, gym memberships, employment agreements, and anything else where you and the other party both still owe each other something. The form itself is short. What matters is what happens next: each agreement you list will eventually be kept or dropped, and that choice can decide whether you walk out of bankruptcy with your car, your apartment, or your phone plan intact.
What Schedule G Covers
The form targets two categories: executory contracts and unexpired leases. The official instructions define an executory contract as “a contract between you and someone else in which both of you still have obligations to perform under the contract at the time you file for bankruptcy,” and an unexpired lease as one where “the lease period has not yet ended.”1United States Courts. Instructions for Bankruptcy Forms for Individuals
If an agreement has been fully performed on both sides, or already expired, it doesn’t belong here. If you have no active contracts or leases, you check “no” on the first question and move on.
Agreements You Have to List
The scope is wider than most people expect. The test is whether both sides still owe something, not whether the agreement feels important. Common entries include:
- Property leases: apartments, houses, commercial space, storage units, land.
- Personal property leases: vehicle leases, equipment rentals, furniture lease-to-own.
- Service contracts: cell phone plans, internet service, gym memberships, streaming subscriptions with fixed terms.
- Professional agreements: employment contracts, consulting arrangements, independent contractor agreements where both sides still have duties.
- Licenses and maintenance plans: software licenses and equipment maintenance agreements with ongoing performance on both sides.
A month-to-month gym membership belongs on the form for the same reason a five-year commercial lease does. The gym still owes you access; you still owe the fees.
How to Fill It Out
For each contract or lease, you provide the name and mailing address of the other party, and a brief description of what the agreement covers.2United States Courts. Official Form 106G Schedule G Executory Contracts and Unexpired Leases The form suggests short descriptions like “rent,” “vehicle lease,” or “cell phone.” You don’t attach copies of the contracts, but having them in front of you makes the descriptions accurate.
The form has no dedicated fields for expiration dates or account numbers. Adding those to your description anyway helps the trustee and the other party match your entry to the right agreement. You can download the current form from the U.S. Courts website under the bankruptcy forms section.3U.S. Courts. Bankruptcy Forms
Assuming or Rejecting the Agreements You List
Listing a contract isn’t the end of the story. Under 11 U.S.C. ยง 365, each executory contract and unexpired lease will be either assumed or rejected during the case.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 365 Executory Contracts and Unexpired Leases Assuming means you keep the agreement and continue performing under its terms. Rejecting means you walk away, and the rejection is treated as a breach occurring immediately before your filing date.
Assumption comes with strings if you’ve fallen behind. Before the court will approve it, you have to cure any defaults, meaning you pay all past-due amounts and return the relationship to where it stood before you missed payments. You also have to compensate the other party for any actual financial loss caused by the default and show you can keep up going forward.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 365 Executory Contracts and Unexpired Leases That cure requirement is where many debtors hit a wall. Three months behind on a car lease means finding those three months in a lump sum, unless the lessor agrees to a payment plan.
Rejection is simpler. The other party can file a claim for damages caused by the breach, but the debtor’s personal liability on that claim typically gets discharged along with other debts. You give up the leased car; the damages claim joins the pile of unsecured debt.
Deadlines
The deadlines differ by chapter and by the type of property involved.
Chapter 7
In a Chapter 7 case, the trustee has 60 days from the petition date to assume or reject executory contracts and unexpired leases involving residential property or personal property. The court can extend the window, but if no one acts within it, the contract is automatically deemed rejected.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 365 Executory Contracts and Unexpired Leases
Chapter 7 debtors also have to file a Statement of Intention (Form 108) declaring, for each personal property lease listed on Schedule G, whether they plan to assume or reject it. The deadline is 30 days after filing your petition or the date of the meeting of creditors, whichever comes first.5United States Courts. Statement of Intention for Individuals Filing Under Chapter 7 Missing it can lift the automatic stay that’s keeping the lessor at bay. If you already know you want to keep a leased vehicle, file the Statement of Intention with your initial petition rather than waiting.
Chapter 13
In Chapter 13, you generally have until plan confirmation to assume or reject leases on residential property and personal property, unless the other party asks the court to force a decision sooner. For nonresidential real property leases where you’re the tenant, the deadline is tighter: 120 days from the order for relief or plan confirmation, whichever comes first.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 365 Executory Contracts and Unexpired Leases
What Happens If You Leave a Contract Off
Forgetting to list something creates real problems. Under federal bankruptcy rules, your case can be automatically dismissed on the 46th day after filing if you haven’t submitted all required schedules, including Schedule G, within 45 days of your petition.6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 521 Debtors Duties The statute says the case “shall be automatically dismissed.” It’s not a discretionary call.
Even if Schedule G is filed on time but a specific contract is missing from it, the fallout can linger. A contract the trustee never formally assumes or rejects is generally deemed rejected once the deadline passes, and the other party can then pursue a breach claim. If the contract wasn’t disclosed, questions can arise later about whether the discharge actually covered that debt.
The fix is straightforward. Under Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 1009, you can amend Schedule G at any time before the case closes, with notice to the trustee and any affected party.7Cornell Law School. Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure Rule 1009 Amending a Voluntary Petition, List, Schedule, or Statement The court charges a $34 fee for amending your schedules, and a judge can waive it for good cause.8United States Courts. Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule Catching the omission early beats dealing with it after discharge.
When Schedule G Gets Filed
Schedule G is part of the initial petition package. The federal rules require it to be filed with your petition or within 14 days after.9Cornell Law School. Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure Rule 1007 Lists, Schedules, Statements, and Other Documents Time to File Expect the trustee to ask about specific entries at the meeting of creditors a few weeks later. A complete, accurate Schedule G at the outset saves you the trouble of amendments and keeps the case moving toward discharge.