Tunbridge Wells is fast becoming the "debt capital of Europe" thanks to UK law.

While people have long taken advantage of libel tourism and health tourism, debt tourism is a fast-growing trend in Kent.

As the law stands anyone who lives in the country for six months can be declared bankrupt under UK rules, which are much less stringent than certain EU countries such as Spain.

While there are long-term consequences to being declared bankrupt, in the short-term at least it writes off debts after a year.

In countries such as Germany and Italy, bankruptcies can last much longer and pundits have been warning for some time that jurisdiction battles are likely to arise as companies fight to have their bankruptcy proceedings heard in 'friendlier' countries.

Under European Union law, a company can request to file for bankruptcy in the country where it has its “centre of main interest”.

At an individual level, more and more people from the continent are choosing to hop on a Eurostar and head to Kent - Tunbridge Wells in particular - and file here. As it happens, one of the specialists in the field in based in the town, hence its popularity.

Listen to insolvency specialist Mark Sands

Kent's proximity to Europe and lower rents than London mean it is seeing more of such debt tourists setting up temporary homes.

Mark Sands, director of personal insolvency at Tenon Recovery, said: "Someone faced with financial difficulty, when weighing up the options of either staying in for example Germany and having a bankruptcy lasting for six or more years, could look at the option of moving to the UK, living here for six months and taking advantage of the UK bankputcy regime".