Wage Garnishment in California

What Is Wage Garnishment?

Wage garnishment is a debt collection tool creditors use that allows them to take wages from your paycheck to repay an overdue debt. It’s sometimes called a wage attachment. Most wage garnishments for consumer debt require a court order. 

Federal and state laws govern wage garnishment. California’s state law provides more protection than federal law. 

💡 The federal Consumer Credit Protection Act (CCPA) covers wage garnishment, and Chapter 5 of the California Rules of Civil Procedure governs wage garnishment in the Golden State. 

Who Can Garnish My Wages in California?

If you work in California, creditors, debt collectors, and debt buyers can garnish your wages for past-due debt. This may include credit card debt, back rent, car loans, medical bills, or payday loans. 

🧑‍⚖️ These creditors must get a court order judgment to collect consumer debt. 

If you get sued for a debt, you can respond to the lawsuit and try to stop garnishment before it begins. If you’re worried about responding on your own but can’t afford an attorney, consider using Upsolve’s partner SoloSuit. They've helped over 300,000 people respond to debt lawsuits, and they have a 100% money-back guarantee.

SoloSuit is an affiliate partner, which means Upsolve may earn a small commission if you choose to use their paid service. This helps keep our services free.

Some Debts Don’t Require a Court Order

Your wages can also be garnished for past-due alimony, child support payments, IRS debt, and federal student loan debt without a court order.

These debts go through an administrative process rather than through the court, so they don’t require a court judgment. This article will focus on non-special debts that do require a court judgment.

California Wage Garnishment Process 

Here’s an overview of California’s wage garnishment process:

• Step 1: The creditor sues you to win a judgment.

• Step 2: The creditor serves paperwork to your employer.

• Step 3: You get served and garnishment begins. 

If you object to the garnishment or want to file a claim of exemption, you typically need to do so within 10 days of getting the garnishment notice from your employer.

Step 1: Debt Lawsuit

Before a creditor can take money from your paycheck, they usually have to sue you in court and win the case. This process starts when the creditor files a lawsuit. If the court decides in their favor, it issues something called a judgment. 

📃 A judgment is a legal document that confirms how much you owe, including the original debt plus any added interest, fees, or court costs.

Once the judgment is in place, the creditor can begin the wage garnishment process, but that doesn’t happen automatically. Garnishment is a separate step that comes after the judgment.

💡 During this process, the creditor is often called the judgment creditor, and you may be referred to as the judgment debtor. Your employer is known as the garnishee, since they’re the one responsible for sending part of your paycheck to the creditor. A local official, like a sheriff or a court-appointed agent, is often in charge of making sure the process is carried out. This person is sometimes called the levying officer.

Once the judgment is granted, the creditor and the levying officer handle the next steps to begin garnishing your wages.

Step 2: Your Employer Gets the Court Order

Once a creditor has a judgment, they can ask the court for a document called a writ of execution. This is an official order that allows wage garnishment to begin. It tells your employer to hold back part of your paycheck to help pay off the debt.

The court issues the writ, and a levying officer delivers it to your employer. 

📅 This writ is usually valid for 180 days, which means the garnishment process can begin anytime during that period.

Along with the writ, the court includes other paperwork. This may include:

• An earnings withholding order

• A financial statement and claim of exemption form (you can use this to request protection for some or all of your wages)

• Instructions for employees

Together, these documents are often called the garnishment packet.

Once your employer gets the packet, they usually have 15 days to fill out and return a form called the employer’s response. If they don’t respond, they might become responsible for part of the debt, so most employers take this seriously and respond quickly.

Step 3: Garnishment Begins

Your employer has to give you a copy of the garnishment papers within 10 days of receiving them. Wage garnishment usually starts on the first payday that comes at least 10 days after your employer was served.

In some cases, a document called a memorandum of costs after judgment is included with the paperwork. This shows any extra fees the creditor is trying to add to the total amount you owe, like more interest or collection costs. 

✋ You have 10 days to object to these added costs if you believe they’re not accurate or fair.

How To File Objections and Exemptions

If you want to stop or reduce the wage garnishment, you have the right to file an objection or claim an exemption. 

📅 In most cases, you’ll need to do this within 10 days of getting the garnishment papers from your employer. You can still ask for an exemption after garnishment starts, but it may take more time to resolve.

Common Reasons for Objection

Some common reasons people object include:

• They believe they qualify for an exemption.

• They don't owe the debt.

• They weren't properly served.

• The debt was already discharged in bankruptcy.

Claim of Exemption

In California, you may also be able to claim an exemption if you need the money for basic living expenses or to support other people in your household.

To start the process, you’ll need to follow the employee instructions that came in the garnishment packet. 

✍️ This usually means filling out the claim of exemption form and a financial statement, then submitting those to the sheriff’s office. It’s a good idea to keep the original and file a copy. The instructions will tell you exactly where to send everything.

If you have questions about your case, you can call the sheriff’s office or the court clerk. They can give you information about the process, but they aren’t allowed to give legal advice. 

See: EJ-155 Exemptions From the Enforcement of Judgment

What Happens at the Court Hearing?

If you file an objection or claim an exemption, the court will hold a hearing to review your request. The creditor has 10 days to respond if they want to challenge your objection or exemption.

At the hearing, the judge will decide whether your wages should:

• Be garnished for the full amount the creditor requested

• Be garnished for a smaller amount based on your exemptions or financial hardship

• Not be garnished at all

⚠️ It’s important to show up to the hearing. If you don’t, the court will likely approve the garnishment by default, and it may be harder to change the decision later.

If the court agrees with you, the garnishment will stop. Any money already taken from your paycheck might be returned to you. But if the court sides with the creditor, the garnishment will continue until the full amount of the debt is paid.

What Are the California Wage Garnishment Limits?

Your pay can’t be garnished for more than you owe (including fees, costs, and interest), and there are limits to how much of your paycheck a creditor can take. 

The formula starts with your disposable wages. That’s your wages after legally mandated deductions, such as taxes, Social Security, Medicare, and state unemployment insurance tax. 

Your wages can only be garnished for whichever is less:

• 25% of your disposable earnings for a week, or

• 50% of the amount that your weekly earnings exceed 40 times the state or local minimum wage. 

  • If your weekly earnings are less than $660 (40 x $16.50 state minimum wage), your wages can’t be garnished at all.

For example, say your disposable income is $700 per week.

• 25% of $700 is $175. 

• 40 times $16.50 (the state minimum wage) is $660. $700-660 is 40. 50% of 40 is $20.

So we’re comparing $175 to $20 to see which is less. Since $20 is less, that’s the maximum amount a creditor can garnish from your weekly disposable earnings.

Private student loans must follow the California wage garnishment process, but federal debts including federal student loans and back taxes follow different formulas.

Can You Stop a Wage Garnishment in California?

Yes.  To stop wage garnishment in California, you have a few options:

• You can try to negotiate your debt payments with the creditor, even while your wages are being garnished. 

• You can also pay your debt in full, which stops the garnishment, but this isn’t realistic for most folks.

• You can file bankruptcy to stop the garnishment quickly and wipe out the underlying debt.

How Bankruptcy Can Help With Wage Garnishment

Filing Chapter 7 bankruptcy is a powerful way to stop wage garnishment and other collections. But it goes a step further and wipes out the underlying debt causing the garnishment if it’s from credit cards, medical bills, personal loans, or other eligible debts.

🛑 Wage garnishment stops as soon as you file bankruptcy because the court issues an automatic stay. This legal protection stops debt collection. 

If your case is successful, most of your debts will be completely discharged and the wage garnishment will permanently stop. You won’t owe the debt, so debt collectors can’t go after you for the money. 

✨ Upsolve has a free tool that can help you prepare your Chapter 7 paperwork. It only takes two minutes to see if you’re eligible. Upsolve is a nonprofit organization that’s helped over 18,000 people wipe out more than $800 million of debt.

Are There Any Resources for People Facing Wage Garnishment in California?

California has several resources to help you with the wage garnishment process. Here are a few organizations to start with:

• Los Angeles Legal Aid Foundation: Self-help information and resources for Californians dealing with wage garnishment.

• Free California Law Help: Resources, advice, and contact information for California legal clinics from the Legal Aid Association of California. 

• San Joaquin County Self-Help Legal Clinic: A legal aid clinic serving Stockton and the surrounding community.

• California Courts: Wage garnishment information from the Judicial Branch of California.