Black Friday is just around the corner. It’s a great time to score some deals on merchandise. And now we have Cyber Monday. It’s a new Black Friday that makes it even easier to spend money because you don’t have to get off of your couch to shop.

They make it so easy to pile up debt on credit cards when buying toys and trinkets for your loved ones. And before you know it, you’ve got credit card payments you can’t afford justby trying to avoid being Scrooge.

The Tale

What if the Ghost of Christmas Past or Christmas Future appears and tells you, “go ahead and spend away,” you are going to file bankruptcy come January. Is this the solution to your gift giving woes?
When you file for bankruptcy you have to disclose all of your recent spending. If you fail to disclose anything, you’ll get found out soon enough. The trustee assigned to your case is going to comb through pages and pages of documents that you will be forced to submit as part of your bankruptcy. One thing he or she is sure to notice is a large amount of purchases made right before filing.

The key to bankruptcy is that it’s meant as a last resort for people in a desperate situation. You aren’t allowed to spend lots of money only to turn around and file bankruptcy soon after. That is considered defrauding your creditors and that’s what you’re doing if you go Christmas crazy on your credit card only to have the balances wiped out in bankruptcy months later.

The Moral of the Story

If you were honest and actually disclosed your Black Friday madness in the bankruptcy paperwork, your bankruptcy will probably still go through in spite of the recent spending spree. But, you’ll end up having to pay back this money if you don’t want your case to be dismissed.

And what happens if you didn’t disclose the recent spending? Not only could your bankruptcy be dismissed completely, but you could also face fines and jail time.

So what is the moral of our Christmas story? It’s better to say “bah humbug” to someone’s face than “Merry Christmas” behind bars.