Payments

There are several plan payment options available to debtors:

Employer Wage Deduction

Chapter 13 plans funded by employer wage deductions complete successfully at a much higher rate than those funded by direct payments.  While in bankruptcy, a debtor’s personal budget falls under the Trustee’s supervision, and the Court has issued an Order giving him the authority to issue a wage remittance directive to the debtor’s employer. To that end, if a debtor is employed, the Trustee will require the employer to withhold plan payments from his or her paycheck and forward these deductions to the Trustee’s lockbox in Memphis, Tennessee.  The directive is authorized by General Order  No. 2015-4 and L.B.R. 3015-1(a); compliance is mandatory.

Online Through Nationwide TFS

Wage deduction may not be an option for some debtors.  Only in unusual circumstances will the Trustee allow a debtor to make plan payments directly, in place of payroll deductions.  In such circumstances, online payment through Nationwide TFS is preferred.  For a fee comparable to that of a cashier’s check or money order, a private company–Nationwide TFS–provides the debtor with the ability to make plan payments to the Trustee by electronic withdrawal directly from his or her bank account.  Nationwide TFS is a private company that is not affiliated in any way with the Trustee’s office.  Neither the Trustee nor his office shares in any fee paid to Nationwide TFS. 

Please review the following information regarding Nationwide TFS:

TFS Logo

Money Order or Cashier’s Check

Debtors that are unable to make plan payments online via Nationwide TFS can make their plan payments by money order or cashier’s check.  However, this is the least preferred method of doing so. If direct payment is authorized, please be sure to include your name, and your Chapter 13 case number on the payment instrument.  Payments must be made payable to “Michael G. Malaier, Trustee”  and must be mailed, via U.S. Postal Service, to the address below:

Michael G. Malaier, Trustee
P.O. Box 120
Memphis, TN 38101-0120

Once you send your payment to the Memphis lockbox, it will take 3 to 5 business days before it is posted by the Trustee’s staff.  As such, if time is of the essence (and it usually is with respect to Chapter 13 payments), please consider the additional time required for processing. If you intend to mail a money order or cashier’s check to the payment address above, please note the following:

  • We DO NOT ACCEPT personal checks or cash.  If you send an incorrect form of payment it will be returned to you.
  • We DO NOT ACCEPT payments at our Tacoma, Washington office.  If you send your payment directly to our office it will be returned to you and your case may be considered delinquent. 
  • UPS and FedEX will not deliver to P.O. boxes.  You must use the United States Postal Service to mail money orders and cashier’s checks to the Memphis P.O. box.