IRS wage garnishment
An IRS wage levy takes all but a small part of your pay, every payday, with no end date until it is released.
IRS wage garnishment works differently from every other debt. The 25% cap in federal law does not cover tax debts, the Department of Labor says. An IRS wage levy keeps going each pay period until you pay, make other arrangements or the levy is released, per the IRS. No court case is needed.
What IRS wage garnishment must leave you
The exempt amount comes from your filing status and the dependents you list on the levy statement. The IRS sends Publication 1494 to your employer with the levy and payroll sends the rest of each check to the IRS. Three questions show your own number.
Which state do you work in?
How do you file your taxes?
Do you also support another spouse or child?
How often are you paid?
How much do you take home?
If payroll takes more than this, call and we check the order against your pay stub.
Call 833-991-9547| Pay period | 0 dependents | 1 | 2 | 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weekly | $309.62 | $411.54 | $513.46 | $615.38 |
| Every two weeks | $619.23 | $823.08 | $1026.93 | $1230.78 |
| Twice a month | $670.83 | $891.66 | $1112.49 | $1333.32 |
| Monthly | $1341.67 | $1783.34 | $2225.01 | $2666.68 |
What does my notice mean?
What your notice says
The date printed on your paper is the one to beat. Call with it in front of you and a specialist goes through it with you.
Call 833-991-9547Three ways the IRS releases a wage levy
The IRS lists the release reasons on its levy release page. Three apply to most people.
- Hardship: if the levy leaves you unable to meet basic living costs, the IRS says a wage levy must be released.
- Payment plan: a plan whose terms do not allow the levy to continue ends it. Balances of $50,000 or less qualify for the simpler plans, per IRS payment plans and a tax specialist on our line sets it up with you.
- Paying or settling: once the balance is paid, the levy is released.
A tax specialist on our line goes through which release fits your bills and your balance and handles the appeal if the IRS says no.
Social Security checks
The IRS can levy up to 15% of each Social Security payment for unpaid federal tax, says the Social Security Administration. Private creditors generally cannot. More on Social Security garnishment.
Common garnishment questions
How much can the IRS legally garnish from your wages?
Everything above the Publication 1494 amount for your pay period, filing status and dependents. A single person paid weekly with no dependents keeps $309.62; the rest can go.
How long before the IRS will garnish your wages?
The IRS mails a series of bills first, ending with a final notice of intent to levy. Call us as soon as that notice arrives, before the date it gives.
Can the IRS garnish wages without warning?
No. A wage levy comes after written notices. If money is already coming out, the paperwork went to your last address on file.
IRS wage garnishment payment plan
A payment plan whose terms do not allow the levy to continue is one of the ways the IRS releases a levy. See the ways to stop a garnishment.
Work on releasing your IRS levy
A payment plan or a hardship release can end an IRS wage levy. Call now and a specialist goes through which one fits your case for free.
Call 833-991-9547