Page - 185 - in Austrian Law Journal, Volume 2/2021

ALJ 2021 From debt to discharge 185 relief after a specific period of time; even if the creditors do not receive any payment within this time.23 The latest amendment to the provisions on insolvency proceedings ("Restrukturierungs- und Insolvenz-Richtlinie-Umsetzungsgesetz" – RIRUG) entered into force in July 2021. In particular, the provisions regarding the settlement plan and the proceedings for income levy had to be modified to align the IO with the European Restructuring and Insolvency Directive: Among other measures, the duration of debt relief in proceedings for income levy had to be changed from five to three years within the framework of a repayment plan ("Tilgungsplan"), whereas the duration of “regular” proceedings for income levy was left at five years (§ 199 [2] IO). The reduction of the duration of the proceedings for income levy to three years had already been planned in the context of the IRÄG 2017, but had not been implemented due to the disapproval of creditor representatives and banks;24 instead, the duration of the proceedings was reduced to five years.25 B. Debt discharge for consumers As has already been mentioned, there are special consumer bankruptcy proceedings called "debt settlement proceedings" (§§ 181 et seq IO);26 if debt settlement proceedings are opened at the request of a creditor, they have to be designated as "general enforcement proceedings" until the debtor requests a debt relief instrument (§ 184a [1] IO). As described above, Austrian insolvency law offers three different options for natural persons (and thus also for consumers) for debt discharge: By means of a reorganisation plan (§§ 140 et seq IO), a settlement plan (§§ 193 et seq IO) or proceedings for income levy (§§ 199 et seq IO).27 1. Reorganisation plan The reorganisation plan may be submitted by any natural person, regardless of whether that person is an entrepreneur or a consumer.28 Within the framework of a reorganisation plan, the debtor must fulfil strict requirements: In principle, a minimum quota of 20% must be 23 Mohr, Privatinsolvenz3 Rz 1; Nunner-Krautgasser in Nunner-Krautgasser/Reissner 1 (11); cf. Dellinger/Oberhammer/Koller, Insolvenzrecht4 Rz 480. 24 Cf. Nunner-Krautgasser, Aktuelle Insolvenzreform in Österreich: Erleichterung der Restschuldbefreiung für natürliche Personen, ZinsO 2017, 2525 (2525). 25 Cf. Jürgens, IRÄG 2017. Das Abschöpfungsverfahren an der Schnittstelle von Gerichten und Treuhändern, ÖRPfl 2019 H 2, 30 (30); Senoner/Weber-Wilfert, IRÄG 2017 – Änderungen des (Privat-) Insolvenzrechts (Teil 1), RZ 2017, 174 (174). 26 Kodek, Insolvenzrecht2 Rz 555; Mohr, Privatinsolvenz3 Rz 3; Dellinger/Oberhammer/Koller, Insolvenzrecht4 Rz 494. 27 Cf. Kodek, Insolvenzrecht2 Rz 551; Mohr, Privatinsolvenz3 Rz 4; Rechberger/Seeber/Thurner, Insolvenzrecht3 Rz 29; Nunner- Krautgasser, ZinsO 2017, 2525 (2525); Feuchtinger/Lesigang, Insolvenzrecht4 130 et seq; Dellinger/Oberhammer/Koller, Insolvenzrecht4 Rz 438 et seq. 28 Nunner-Krautgasser, ZinsO 2017, 2525 (2525 et seq); Mohr, Privatinsolvenz3 Rz 5; Feuchtinger/Lesigang, Insolvenzrecht4 130.