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How to prioritise and reduce your debts, and where to get free debt advice

• Updated: 21 December 2017

Alternatives to bankruptcy and the different types of agreements you can make with your creditors.

• Overview

  If you owe people money (your ‘creditors’) you can make arrangements to…

• Breathing Space (Debt Respite Scheme)

  If you live in England or Wales, you can get temporary protection from…

• Debt Management Plans

  A Debt Management Plan is an agreement between you and your creditors to…

• Administration orders

  An administration order is a way to deal with debt if you have a county…

• Individual Voluntary Arrangements

  An Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA) is an agreement with your…

• Debt Relief Orders

  Debt Relief Orders (DROs) are one way to deal with your debts if you: owe…

Find out what help you can get to help you manage your debts.

Late commercial payments - interest and debt recovery costs you can charge businesses for late payments

Guidance on debt relief orders for debt advisers. To search, press ‘control’ and ‘f’ on your keyboard at the same time. A search box will appear.

• Updated: 4 March 2025

The DMO carries out the government’s debt management policy of minimising financing costs over the long term, taking account of risk. We minimise the cost of offsetting the government’s net cash flows over time, while operating in a risk appetite...

• Updated: 15 April 2021

A Debt Relief Order (DRO) is a solution to deal with personal debts you cannot pay. It helps you make a fresh start (with some restrictions).

• Updated: 28 June 2024

When debt payments can be taken from your wages, changing how much you pay, paying it off early, and reporting a change to your circumstances

Contact HM Revenue and Customs if you cannot pay your tax bill - get more time to pay or pay in instalments.

Debt recovery if you're owed money from people or businesses in an EU country.