Can You Have A Joint Debt Management Plan With Your Partner?
Not as a formal product, because no such product exists. A debt management plan is an informal arrangement rather than something you are granted, so there is no joint version to apply for.
A couple can each run an arrangement built from one household budget. If a provider offers to administer both together, ask exactly what that means for each of you if one of you stops paying.
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Sorting out debts as a couple? Get free advice on how joint debts are treated.
Free, confidential and no obligation.The Financial Conduct Authority’s glossary describes a plan as an agreement between a customer and their lenders. The unit is the customer, not the household.
A joint debt is one you both signed for, and it stays joint whatever either of you arranges. What a debt management plan is sets out the basics.
Is there such a thing as a joint debt management plan?
No, and there could not be. There is no statutory form of a plan at all, so there is no joint form of it either.
Why the question has no legal answer
A debt management plan is an informal arrangement rather than a statutory scheme. No Act of Parliament creates it, nothing prescribes its form, and it binds nobody by force of law.
What is binding is your contract with the provider, not the plan itself. The creditors are not parties to it.
What a provider means when it offers one
Nothing defines the term, so nothing establishes what any provider means by it. Whatever it means, it is an administrative convenience rather than a legal status, because no legal status exists to offer.
So ask what happens to each of you if one stops paying, and get the answer in writing. Setting up a plan covers the paperwork either way.
Two arrangements is the ordinary answer
Each of you makes offers to your own creditors, and the joint debts appear in both sets of figures. That is how a household with two sets of debts is normally handled.
What happens to a joint debt if only one of you starts an arrangement?
It stays joint. Your arrangement does not bind the creditor and does not release the other account holder from anything.
The effect on your partner, by debt type
| The debt | Effect on the other person | Why |
|---|---|---|
| A debt in your sole name | Nothing changes for them | They were never liable, and your arrangement does not make them liable |
| A joint loan, card or overdraft | They remain liable for the whole balance | Your reduced payment is a reduced payment on an account in both names |
| Joint council tax liability | They remain liable for the whole bill | The council can pursue either of you for all of it |
| A debt they guaranteed | The guarantee is unaffected | Your arrangement changes nothing about what they signed |
| A debt in their sole name | Nothing changes for you | It is theirs, and it does not belong in your arrangement |
No creditor has to accept a debt management plan, and nothing requires one to give a reason for refusing.
A reduced payment on a joint account is a reduced payment for both
The account is in both names, so how it is paid is recorded against both of you. Neither of you can change that unilaterally.
That is worth understanding before you offer anything. Whether a plan affects your credit score sets out what gets recorded.
Council tax is the Scottish one couples get caught by
Joint liability for council tax means the council can pursue either of you for the whole bill, and whether you are jointly liable with your partner sets out when that applies.
Sorting out joint debts as a couple? Get free help
Free, confidential and no obligation.Can a couple run two arrangements side by side?
Yes, and it is the usual approach. The two budgets come from one set of household figures, which is why a provider will ask about both incomes.
How the household figures work
An adviser assessing what a Scottish household can afford uses the common financial tool, prescribed by regulation 15 of the Bankruptcy (Scotland) Regulations 2016, which works from household income and expenditure.
A debt management provider is not bound by that instrument, and it will still want the household picture. Which budget information you need sets out what to gather.
A partner who is not in an arrangement still appears in the budget
Their income counts towards the household’s costs even though their debts are their own. That is not the same as making them liable for anything.
Two providers or one
Some couples use the same provider and some use different ones. What matters is that the figures add up to one household, not that the paperwork sits in one place.
If you use different providers, tell each what the other is doing. A creditor comparing two offers on the same joint account will notice if they do not match.
Splitting the joint debts
A joint balance usually appears in both sets of offers, with each of you offering a share. Tell the creditor what the other is offering so it can see the whole picture.
Will your partner be told, and will it show anywhere?
Nothing is published, because there is no register of arrangements. What shows is how the joint accounts are being paid.
There is no public record at all
A debt management plan appears on no register in Scotland. The Accountant in Bankruptcy keeps the DAS Register for debt payment programmes and the Register of Insolvencies for trust deeds and sequestrations.
Your credit file is yours alone
A sole account is recorded on your file and not on theirs. A joint agreement is in both names, so it is recorded on both, and whether a plan affects your credit score covers what the entries look like.
Your creditors are the ones under a duty about who learns of the debt
CONC 7.9.7, which is a rule, requires a firm to take reasonable steps to keep third parties from becoming aware that you are being pursued in respect of a debt.
That binds the lender, the collection agency and the debt purchaser, because CONC 7.9 governs debt collection conduct. Your own provider is bound instead by CONC 8, and if it has written to the wrong person that is a complaint.
Do the Scottish statutory solutions allow a joint application?
Only one of them does. A debt payment programme can be applied for jointly, and a trust deed and a sequestration cannot.
The four routes
| The route | Joint application? | The detail |
|---|---|---|
| Debt management plan | No formal joint version exists | There is nothing to apply for, so couples simply run two arrangements |
| Debt payment programme | Yes, a joint programme is provided for | Each debtor must be liable for a debt the programme would pay |
| Protected trust deed | No | A trust deed is granted by one person over their own estate |
| Sequestration | No | Sequestration is awarded against one debtor's estate |
| Time to pay order | No | It relates to a decree against a particular debtor |
Two people can apply together if they are spouses or civil partners of each other, or living together as if they were. That condition is in regulation 22(1)(b), substituted on 29 October 2018 and amended on 4 November 2019.
Since 2 July 2013 the debt test is that each of them is liable for a debt the programme would pay, rather than that both are liable for the same debt. A joint programme is not open to any two people who happen to share a debt.
A joint programme sits in regulation 22 of the Debt Arrangement Scheme (Scotland) Regulations 2011, and whether you can do a joint Debt Arrangement Scheme sets out how it works.
A trust deed is a personal deed
It is granted by one person over their own estate, with a statutory minimum of £5,000 of debt at the date of granting under section 164(3) of the Bankruptcy (Scotland) Act 2016.
A couple who both need one grant two, and each is assessed separately. Nothing joins them.
And Scottish bankruptcy is not English bankruptcy
Scotland has the Accountant in Bankruptcy where England and Wales have the Official Receiver and an adjudicator, and the Scottish process is called sequestration rather than bankruptcy.
A creditor here petitions for sequestration and the court makes an award. The difference between a plan and sequestration sets that out.
What is the risk if you separate?
One person’s payment can keep a joint debt alive against the other. That is a Scottish rule and it catches separated couples every year.
The prescription point
Section 6 of the Prescription and Limitation (Scotland) Act 1973 gives most consumer debts a five-year negative prescription, which an acknowledgement interrupts.
Section 10(2) then draws a distinction that matters here. An acknowledgement by performance, which means a payment, binds everyone jointly and severally liable.
Either kind of acknowledgement has to be made to the creditor or its agent, under section 10(1). A payment to a collection agency counts and a remark to a family member does not.
An acknowledgement by written admission binds only the person who makes it, under the same subsection. So a payment revives a joint debt against your former partner and a letter does not.
What to do about it
- Establish which debts are genuinely joint before either of you pays anything.
- Take advice on any old debt before making a payment towards it.
- Ask the creditor to confirm in writing what each of you is being held liable for.
- Close or convert joint accounts you no longer both use.
Council tax and separation are a common pairing
Joint liability for a council tax year does not end when one of you moves out. The council can still pursue either of you for the whole of that year’s bill.
Tell the council the date the household changed and ask what each of you is now liable for. Get the answer in writing.
And an arrangement protects neither of you from enforcement
A plan does not stop enforcement. It has no statutory effect on diligence at all.
A creditor with a decree against one of you can instruct diligence against that person, and whether a plan stops a wage arrestment sets out what does.
What should a couple check before either of you starts?
Six things, and all of them are easier settled first. A money adviser will work through them with both of you in one appointment.
The checklist
| What to settle | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Which debts are joint and which are sole | Check every agreement, not just the statements |
| Who pays what while an arrangement runs | Including the joint accounts nobody has cancelled |
| Whether either of you has a priority debt | Council tax, rent, fuel and anything in enforcement come first |
| What each of you can actually afford | Two budgets from one household set of figures |
| Whether a statutory route fits better | A joint programme may suit a couple better than two informal arrangements |
| What happens if you separate | One person's payment can revive a joint debt against the other |
Nothing obliges any creditor to accept either of your offers, and whether creditors have to accept covers what happens when one refuses.
Consider whether one arrangement is enough
Where the debts are almost all in one name, one arrangement may be all that is needed. Two arrangements for two people with separate debts is the other common shape.
Write down who is responsible for what
A short note of which debts each of you is dealing with saves a great deal later. It is particularly worth doing if there is any chance you will not always be together.
And get the advice together
Citizens Advice Scotland, StepChange, National Debtline and Advice Direct Scotland all advise couples free of charge, and National Debtline’s Scottish guide sets out the options available here.
A joint programme under the Debt Arrangement Scheme is the one route built for two people, which is why it is worth asking about first.
Frequently asked questions
Can two people be on one debt management plan?
Not as a legal arrangement, because there is no statutory form of a plan at all. A provider may administer two arrangements together and call it a joint plan.
Does my arrangement release my partner from a joint debt?
No. The creditor is not bound by anything you agree, and the other account holder remains liable for the whole balance under the original agreement.
Will my partner's credit file be affected?
Only through accounts in both names. A joint agreement is recorded on both files, and a debt in your sole name is recorded on yours.
Can we apply for a Debt Arrangement Scheme together?
Yes, if you are spouses or civil partners or living together as if you were, which regulation 22(1)(b) requires. Since 2 July 2013 the debt test is that each of you is liable for a debt the programme would pay.
Can we grant a joint trust deed?
No. A trust deed is granted by one person over their own estate, so a couple who both need one grant two and each is assessed separately.
What happens to joint council tax?
Joint liability means the council can pursue either of you for the whole bill. It is a priority debt and it should be dealt with before unsecured credit.
If we separate, does my payment affect my ex-partner?
It can. Under section 10(2) of the Prescription and Limitation (Scotland) Act 1973 a payment binds everyone jointly and severally liable, while a written admission binds only its maker.
Does a joint arrangement protect either of us from sheriff officers?
No. A debt management plan has no statutory effect on diligence, whether one of you is in it or both.
Related guides
- Can You Do A Joint Debt Arrangement Scheme With Your Partner? Who can apply jointly, whether you have to owe the same debts, how creditor consent works, and what happens if you separate.
- How Do You Set Up A Debt Management Plan? What to have ready, whether to use a provider or do it yourself, the steps in order, and what to check in the paperwork before you sign.
- Which Budget Information Do You Need For A Debt Management Plan? The three sets of figures a provider asks for, the budget tool behind them, and the Scottish details worth flagging early.
- Does A Debt Management Plan Affect Your Credit Score? Why the plan itself never appears, which markers creditors add to the accounts, how long they last, and what happens once the plan ends.
- Are You Jointly Liable For Council Tax With Your Partner? What joint and several liability means in practice, whether the name on the bill matters, and what happens to the debt if you separate.
- Do Creditors Have To Accept A Debt Management Plan? Why a plan rests on goodwill, what a creditor weighs up, what agreeing does and does not stop, and how consent works under the DAS.
- When Should You Move From A Debt Management Plan To A Statutory Debt Solution? The signs a plan has stopped working, what a statutory route can do that an informal one cannot, and which fits which situation in Scotland.
- Can Creditors Still Take Court Action While You Are On A Debt Management Plan? Why an informal plan carries no legal protection, which creditors move fastest in Scotland, and what does stop enforcement.
- What Is The Difference Between A Debt Management Plan And Sequestration? What each one is in law, whether the debt is repaid or written off, what happens to your home and car, and how long each lasts.
- What Is A Debt Management Plan? What informal means in practice, which debts go in, what happens to interest and creditor contact, and what a plan cannot do in Scotland.
Written as general information about Scottish debt law rather than regulated financial or legal advice, and your own circumstances may change the answer. Free, impartial help is available from Citizens Advice Scotland, StepChange, National Debtline and Advice Direct Scotland.