The food container maker has liabilities of between $1bn (£760m) and $10bn with assets of $500m and $1bn, according to bankruptcy filings submitted to Delaware’s bankruptcy court.
Bankruptcy protection will allow it to escape the pursuit of creditors and let executives try and sell the business to keep it as a going concern.
Tupperware warned in April that it had “substantial doubt” about its ability to remain in business as it grappled with slumping sales.
In June, Tupperware announced plans to lay off 148 employees by closing its last remaining US factory in early 2025, shifting production from South Carolina to Mexico.
The company has spent months negotiating with lenders over how to manage more than $700m in loans, which it struggled to repay because of higher interest rates.
Tupperware on Wednesday noted that it has made “significant progress” in modernising its operations and improving efficiencies following the appointment of a new management team in the past year.
The company has hired advisers from Chicago-based law firm Kirkland & Ellis and restructuring firm Alvarez & Marsal to oversee the bankruptcy proceedings.