The Means Test Qualifier is a tool that will help you calculate if the Means Test is necessary or not. The Qualifier shows the median family income based on the debtor's state and the number of members in the debtor's household and compares that to the debtor's annual income. Below are the three areas that this information can be entered in NextChapter:
Debtor's State - the state used for the median family income figure is based on the state selected as the debtor's residential address.
Number of household members - The number of household members can be selected in the Debtor Profile section.
Annual Income - the annual income is based on the monthly income entered in the Income section. NextChapter will use the monthly average income based on the income entered from the last full 6-months or if the income is the same each month, you can enter one pay advice and select the box Use to Calculate 6 Month Average.
If the debtor’s income is lower than the median income, there will be a green thumbs up indicating that there is no presumption of abuse and the means test will not be required. The Means Test form will not be included in the preview and the packet and you can skip the Means Test Questions and Calculation and Presumption sections in the program.
If the debtor’s income is higher than the median income, you will see a red thumbs down indicating that there is a presumption and that the Means test is required. You will need to proceed to the Means Test Questions and the means test will be included in the preview and in the final packet.
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