IVA stands for Individual Voluntary Arrangement. It is an arrangement that an insolvent person has agreed to enter into between him/her and the organisations they owe money to. The arrangement results in reduced payments in order to pay off part of the money owed and usually, after 5 years, the remainder of the debt can be written off.
In order to enter into an IVA a person has to be classed as insolvent, which means they are unable to pay debts due to having more liabilities than assets. Normally a person will have to be classed as having a significant debt problem (debts over £10,000). From being insolvent a person (or business) needs to take action. This could be to consolidate debt, arrange an IVA (individual voluntary agreement), or become bankrupt.
During the 5 years that debt repayments are made, all interest charges are frozen and no correspondence is received from the creditors. You normally deal only with the company involved in setting up the IVA, which has to be a licensed professional.
If you own your own home you may have to release equity by remortgaging or taking out a secured loan on the property.
An IVA is an agreement between you and your creditors that is legally binding and gives you the opportunity to protect important assets, such as your home.
An IVA is different to bankruptcy and is designed to avoid some if the stigma and issues that surround bankruptcy. However, an IVA should not be seen as an easy option.