When you file for chapter 7 bankruptcy, you must declare all your debts as your schedules are filed under penalty of perjury. This means it is not only illegal to withhold information on any credit cards you own, regardless of the balance on them, but you would put your bankruptcy case at risk of dismissal and commit a criminal felony if you were to act untruthfully.

If you own credit cards with a zero balance, you are not required to give notice of your bankruptcy filing to that credit card company. However, some credit card companies that run regular credit checks on you may become aware of your bankruptcy filing and cancel your card as a result.

If you agree to reaffirm the balance on your card, that is you choose to waive the discharge to the debt on your card, and enter into a new agreement, most creditors will allow you to keep your credit card. It is in the creditor’s interest for you to keep paying off your debt to them and keep your business. You should beware though that a lot of credit card companies can either lower your credit amount available or raise your interest rate due to changes in your credit score, so filing bankruptcy could affect any card you decide to keep.

Be aware that recently paid off balances on credit cards before a bankruptcy filing may raise red flags and question the legality of your bankruptcy filing since you gave preference to one creditor over another. If you know you will be filing for bankruptcy and want to pay off a card, you should do it well ahead of time. Similarly, running up an unreasonably large sum on a credit card prior to filing for bankruptcy can also disqualify your bankruptcy filing.

Unfortunately there is no quick fix. Bankruptcy filing can stay in your credit report for up to ten years. So typically your best option is to have your debt discharged in your bankruptcy filing and slowly rebuild your credit afterwards by handling your finances responsibly. Credit card companies want your business and it is common to receive new credit card offers after bankruptcy filing.