Amendments to be introduced to bankruptcy laws soon will make the process of bankrupting individuals much quicker.
The Bankruptcy (Amendment) Ordinance also will introduce an alternative to bankruptcy, known as a 'voluntary arrangement', for individuals in financial difficulties.
Under the terms of the changes, which have been gazetted but are awaiting a final implementation date, the existing two-stage procedure of a receiving order followed by an adjudication order will be replaced by a single bankruptcy order.
The ordinance can only be implemented into law when the Secretary for Financial Services designates a day for it to be gazetted - something he has so far not done.
The official receiver has indicated the two-stage bankruptcy procedure is unnecessary, because little purpose is served by the gap in time between the making of the receiving and adjudication orders.
Under existing law, it is only when an adjudication order is made that a debtor can be made bankrupt.
The government receiver believes provisions allowing a debtor to seek a moratorium on proceedings and for a new procedure for individual voluntary arrangements are sufficient to eliminate the need for the two-stage bankruptcy process.