The new Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act makes an important distinction between an individual in financial difficulty who has little or no income, and one who has a medium size or higher income. As such, the duration of the bankruptcy will be longer if you are in the second category (see “Duration of Bankruptcy” for more information). The objective of the new law is to encourage the Consumer Proposal, should the income of the individual permit such a choice. To determine if you have surplus income, the calculation will depend on your personal circumstances and is therefore difficult to explain in detail herein. This will be discussed with the administrator that you will meet at your first information session. In fact, this step is extremely important because the having or not having of surplus income will affect the duration of your bankruptcy and the monthly payments that you may have to make. The criteria that are taken into account include : the number of dependents, future taxes to be paid, day care expenses, alimony or child support, expenses related to a medical condition, and work related expenses.