Wage Garnishment in Illinois
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A wage garnishment order allows creditors to take money directly from your paycheck. Most of the time, this is only possible after a court has entered a judgment. Here's how Illinois regulates wage garnishments.
Written by Upsolve Team.
Updated September 10, 2025
What Is Wage Garnishment?
Wage garnishment happens when money is taken out of your paycheck to pay off a debt. Creditors can sue you to get a wage garnishment order, but they can't usually take money from your paycheck without a court order.
Once a creditor has a court order, your employer is legally required to hold back part of your wages and send it directly to the creditor. This continues until the debt is fully paid off.
The creditor can't take your whole paycheck, though. The amount they can take is limited by Illinois law, which we discuss later.
⚠️ Some creditors don’t need a court order to start garnishing your wages. This includes certain government agencies collecting on things like unpaid taxes or defaulted federal student loans. Child support and alimony also follow different garnishment rules under Illinois and federal law.
Who Can Garnish My Wages in Illinois?
In Illinois, most types of creditors can garnish your wages, but the rules depend on the type of debt. For common consumer debts like credit cards or medical bills, the creditor usually needs a court order called a Wage Deduction Order. This can come from the original creditor, a collection agency, or a debt buyer.
💡 There’s also something called a wage assignment, which is a voluntary agreement that may be part of a loan contract. For example, payday lenders sometimes include these in their terms. Wage assignments don’t go through the court and aren’t considered formal garnishments under Illinois law.
This article focuses on typical consumer debts where the creditor must go through the court process to garnish your wages.
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Illinois Wage Garnishment Process
In Illinois, a creditor with a judgment against you (sometimes called a judgment creditor) usually initiates the wage garnishment process by sending a Citation to Discover Assets to your employer and mailing a copy to you. In some counties, instead of a Citation to Discover Assets, the creditor sends a Wage Deduction Summons to your employer and a Wage Deduction Notice to you. The documents and process are substantially the same regardless of the form title.
Your employer must provide the information requested in the citation before the hearing date shown on the citation’s front page. Illinois citation forms and the information requested vary from county to county, but, at a minimum, your employer must tell the creditor whether you are employed, how much you earn, and how often you get paid.
If your employer provides the requested information before the hearing date, they don’t have to attend the hearing. On the hearing date, the judge will issue a Wage Deduction Order. You and your employer will both receive a copy of the order. After your employer receives the order, your employer will begin garnishing your wages.
You don’t have to attend the hearing, but you may attend. The hearing is your only opportunity to object to the garnishment. You can object to the garnishment if your wages are protected by exemptions that your employer didn’t include with its answer to the creditor. Employment income is usually not exempt under Illinois law, but other kinds of income are exempt from wage deductions. Some examples of exempt income include Social Security and other income from the federal government, workers’ compensation benefits, unemployment benefits, and government assistance, to name a few.
You can also object to the garnishment if the amount of the judgment is incorrect. For example, if you’ve already paid part of the judgment and your payment hasn’t been properly deducted from the total. You can’t object to the validity of the judgment at this hearing, only the remaining balance.
How Much of My Paycheck Can Be Taken by Wage Garnishment?
Illinois law limits the amount that can be taken from your paycheck to fulfill a wage deduction order. From each paycheck, your employer can withhold whichever of these two is smaller:
15% of your gross wages (before subtracting taxes and other deductions); or
Your disposable earnings (the take-home amount after taxes and deductions are subtracted) minus Illinois’ hourly minimum wage multiplied by 45. Illinois’ minimum wage in 2021 is $11, and $11 x 45 = $495, so this number would be your net pay minus $495.
If your take-home pay is less than $495 per paycheck, your employer can’t withhold anything from your pay.
The total amount deducted from your pay can’t be more than the amount of the judgment, plus any additional costs, fees, and interest. The creditor’s court costs are usually included in the amount of the judgment, and some judgments also include the creditor’s attorney fees. Illinois judgments automatically accrue post-judgment interest at an annual rate of either 9% (for judgments of more than $25,000) or 5% (for judgments of $25,000 or less).
State law requires the creditor to send your employer an updated Certificate of Judgment balance every January 1, April 1, July 1, and October 1 until the judgment is paid in full.
How To Stop a Garnishment in Illinois
In rare cases, you may be able to contact the creditor and work out a payment arrangement that doesn’t involve wage deductions. Because you don’t have much negotiating power at this point, your chances of success are small. Depending on the size of your paycheck, the creditor may be facing a very long period of small payments trickling in, so they may be open to another payment arrangement. But the creditor was likely aware of this before proceeding with the garnishment order, based on your employer’s answers to the Citation to Discover Assets.
For the most part, there are only two ways to stop wage garnishments in Illinois. First, you can pay off the judgment. You may be able to pay the judgment in a lump sum, or you may have to wait for the garnishment to run its course. The second way to stop a garnishment is by filing bankruptcy. When you file bankruptcy, a section of the Bankruptcy Code called the automatic stay stops all debt collection efforts against you, including the garnishment. Through your bankruptcy, you may be likely to eliminate, or discharge, the judgment debt completely. Depending on your circumstances, you may be able to complete the forms and file Chapter 7 bankruptcy by yourself for free without hiring a lawyer.
Are There Any Resources for People Facing Wage Garnishment in Illinois?
If you’re dealing with a wage garnishment, it may be helpful to consult with a licensed Illinois attorney to discuss your options. Even if you can’t afford to hire an attorney, there are legal aid organizations that may be able to help. These are some of the legal aid resources available in Illinois:
