Exiting Debt Review



Exiting Debt Review


According to the National Credit Act, you are expected to settle your outstanding debt when exiting debt review.

However the question arises as to what happens if your financial position improves or changes for the better.

In this case you may be in a position to afford your debt again as per the original loan agreements that were in place before you went on debt review.

The Act is surprisingly silent on this scenario. However what has transpired in practice regarding terminating debt review since 2007 is the following:

  • Your debt review payment plan was set up without a court order

    ie the creditors agreed to the debt review payment terms without your debt counsellor having to obtain a court order.

    In this case you can approach your creditors via your debt counsellor and establish first whether they will accept your exit from debt review, and will allow you to resume your original payment plan. Bear in mind that the creditors will have been incurring a possible loss (due to reduction in interest rates or other) whilst you were on debt review. They may expect you to make good this loss.

    Establish very clearly in writing what they will accept. You want to avoid even the slightest possibility that creditors will come after you for arrears or bad credit if you exit debt counselling.

    If the expectations of the creditors can be confirmed, then the debt counsellor can issue you with a certificate that allows you to terminate debt review.

  • Your debt review payment plan was set up by a court order

    ie the creditors did not agree to the debt review payment terms with your debt counsellor, who then had to apply to the courts and obtain a court order.

    In this case exiting debt review is only possible by having the court order set aside or by settling the debt. This makes the situation more complex as you have to approach the courts. In this case it is perhaps better to simply pay off more of your debt faster.

    There is nothing stopping you from paying off more each month anyway.


Please speak to a professional about your debt review. This page is meant as a guide, but I am not a professional in the industry. I have done my own research and found these facts and pulled them together on one page to give you a starting point. Things change, your circumstances may have specifics not addressed here. It is vital to discuss any details with the appropriate qualified advisor before taking any steps.



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