- 1). Write a letter to each of your creditors at the start of divorce proceedings. Advise your creditors that you and your spouse are divorcing. A key element of successfully navigating through a divorce without causing undue financial stress is to communicate directly and as openly as possible with your creditors.
- 2). Negotiate a temporary agreement (if possible) between your spouse as to which one of you will be responsible primarily for a particular credit account or debt. For example, if each of you use a credit card for purchases, taking individual responsibility for making at least the minimum payment for the account may make sense. Such a determination must be made in light of the overall asset and debt situation of the parties, as well as available income.
- 3). Notify your creditors of any agreements you reached pertaining the payments of debts during the course of your divorce. Keep in mind that your creditors are not bound to accept any agreements reached between you and your spouse. However, if your agreements are designed to generally satisfy your financial obligations while your divorce is pending, your creditors are likely to exhibit a willingness to work with you.
- 4). Draft a proposal to some of your creditors (as necessary) to propose placing your account in a temporary abeyance for a specific time frame. An abeyance essentially freezes your account in place for the agreed-to time period. You neither add new charges to the account nor do you make payments (or you make only minimal payments) during the abeyance. The creditor agrees to lower or stop interest, late fees and other charges during the period of abeyance. Some debtors are willing to enter into an abeyance agreement for three to six months while a divorce pends. They understand that it's in their best interests to ease your debt burden today with the objective of having their accounts fully satisfied in the future.
- 5). Obtain a standard abeyance agreement form from any creditor that agrees to put your account on hold for a period of time during your divorce.
- 6). Execute the abeyance agreement. Your spouse signs the document as well. Keep copies of the agreement for you and your spouse and send an original back to the creditor.