General Motors Corp. (GM) has won the necessary regulatory approval to launch a debt-for-equity exchange in much of Europe, the results of which will help determine whether the auto maker must file for bankruptcy.

GM announced Tuesday that the United Kingdom Listing Authority approved a prospectus to be released in several European countries, allowing GM to get a debt swap launched Monday in the U.S. underway there.

The auto maker is offering to exchange 225 shares of its common stock for each $1,000 equivalent principal amount. GM made the offer Monday as it outlined a deeper cost-cutting plan and said it would likely face a bankruptcy reorganization if fewer than 90% of bondholders accept the offer.

The company, surviving on U.S. Treasury loans, is under a government-imposed deadline of June 1 to complete the exchange. GM is still awaiting clearance of the exchange in Italy.