Garnishment laws in Utah let a creditor with a court judgment take money directly from your paycheck, bank account, or other property, but both federal and state rules cap how much can be taken and shield certain income entirely. For most debts, no more than 25% of your disposable earnings can be garnished, Social Security and retirement funds are generally off-limits, and you have 14 days to formally contest a writ once you’re notified.
How Wages Get Garnished and How Much They Can Take
Garnishment almost always starts with a court judgment. A judge rules that you owe the debt, the creditor files an application for a Writ of Garnishment naming your employer or bank as the “garnishee,” and once the court issues the writ that third party is legally required to withhold the specified funds.1Utah State Courts. How to Apply for a Writ of Garnishment A few debts skip the judgment step: the Utah State Tax Commission can issue an administrative garnishment order for unpaid state taxes,2Utah Legislature. Utah SB 42 Tax Commission Collection Amendments and the IRS and the U.S. Department of Education can garnish for federal taxes and defaulted federal student loans without going through a court.
For ordinary consumer debts, federal law under the Consumer Credit Protection Act caps how much can come out of your paycheck. The maximum is the lesser of:
- 25% of your disposable earnings for the pay period, or
- The amount by which your disposable earnings exceed 30 times the federal minimum wage — $217.50 per week at the current $7.25 minimum.
Whichever calculation leaves more money in your pocket controls.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1673 Restriction on Garnishment If your weekly disposable earnings fall below $217.50, nothing can be garnished at all. “Disposable earnings” means what’s left after legally required deductions like taxes and Social Security, not after voluntary items like health insurance premiums or 401(k) contributions. Utah Rule of Civil Procedure 64D mirrors these federal limits for ordinary debts.4Utah State Courts. URCP Rule 64D Writ of Garnishment
Child support and alimony garnishments hit harder. The federal cap is 50% of disposable earnings if you’re currently supporting another spouse or dependent child, and 60% if you’re not. If you’re more than 12 weeks behind, add another 5% to either figure, so the ceiling can reach 65%.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1673 Restriction on Garnishment Utah’s Rule 64D sets the child support cap at 50% for writs issued through state court, while federal limits apply to orders enforced under federal law.4Utah State Courts. URCP Rule 64D Writ of Garnishment Federal tax levies follow their own formula tied to filing status and dependents, and they can take considerably more than an ordinary garnishment.
Bank Accounts and What’s Protected
A bank garnishment does not follow the 25% rule. When the writ reaches your bank, the bank can freeze and turn over enough money to satisfy the entire judgment, as long as the funds aren’t legally exempt. The writ reaches only what’s in the account when the bank processes it; if the balance falls short, the creditor can serve additional writs later.
Several types of federal deposits are protected from garnishment by private creditors when they arrive by direct deposit: Social Security, Supplemental Security Income, veterans’ benefits, federal retirement and disability payments, and military pay.5Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Can a Debt Collector Take My Federal Benefits Banks are required to review accounts before complying and to leave protected deposits alone. If exempt funds get frozen anyway, you can file a claim of exemption with the court to recover them.
Joint accounts complicate things. If only one holder owes the debt, the other co-owner may have to prove which portion of the money is theirs. Keeping exempt income in a separate account, rather than mixing it with other funds, makes that proof far easier if a garnishment lands.
Income and Property Creditors Can’t Touch
Utah and federal law shield a significant list of income sources and assets from ordinary creditor collection.
Protected Income
Social Security benefits are exempt from levy, garnishment, and bankruptcy proceedings under Section 207 of the Social Security Act, with narrow exceptions for delinquent federal taxes, child support, and alimony.6Social Security Administration. SSR 79-4 Levy and Garnishment of Benefits Workers’ compensation, unemployment insurance, disability payments, TANF, and SNAP benefits are also generally protected. And if your weekly disposable earnings fall below $217.50, wages themselves are fully protected from ordinary garnishment.7U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 30 Wage Garnishment Protections of the Consumer Credit Protection Act
Retirement Accounts
Money in 401(k) plans, pensions, and traditional or Roth IRAs is generally exempt from garnishment under federal and state law, as long as it stays in the account. Once you withdraw it and deposit it into a regular checking or savings account, the protection can be lost unless you can trace the money back to its exempt source. If you’re facing collection, leave retirement money where it sits. Federal tax debts, child support, and alimony can still reach retirement funds that would otherwise be off-limits to private creditors.
Homestead Equity
Under Utah Code 78B-5-503, you can exempt up to $42,000 of equity in your primary residence. The exemption drops to $5,000 for property that isn’t your primary residence. Joint owners can each claim it, up to a household maximum of $84,000 for a primary residence or $10,000 otherwise.8Utah Legislature. Utah Code 78B-5-503 Homestead Exemption Mobile homes qualify. The homestead exemption does not stop property tax liens, purchase-money mortgages, or child support judgments.
Personal Property
Utah’s Exemptions Act shields several categories of personal property from seizure:
- One motor vehicle used for daily transportation, up to $3,000 in value (recreational vehicles do not qualify).
- Household furnishings reasonably necessary for one household, up to $1,000 per category.
- Professional books, tools, and equipment used in your primary occupation, up to $5,000 total.
- Up to three firearms with ammunition: one handgun, one shotgun, and one shoulder arm.
These figures come from Utah Code 78B-5-505 and 78B-5-506 and are adjusted periodically.9Utah Legislature. Utah Code Title 78B Chapter 5 Part 5 Utah Exemptions Act
Contesting a Garnishment in Utah
You have 14 days from the date the garnishee mails or delivers notice to file a Reply and Request for Hearing with the court.10Utah State Courts. Garnishment and Debtors Rights Miss it and the garnishment proceeds without your input. The reply should state why the garnishment is improper. Common grounds:
- The debt amount is wrong or the debt has already been paid.
- The garnished funds are exempt — Social Security, retirement, disability, and similar sources.
- You were never properly served with the underlying lawsuit.
- The judgment itself is void or was entered incorrectly.
If you file on time, the court sets a hearing. You’ll need evidence to back up your claim: pay stubs, bank statements showing the source of deposits, proof that funds are exempt. The burden is on you. If you win, the court can modify or terminate the writ.
Setting Aside a Default Judgment
Many garnishments trace back to default judgments entered against debtors who never responded to the lawsuit, often because they weren’t aware of it. Under Utah Rules of Civil Procedure 55(b) and 60(b), you can move to set aside a default judgment for reasons such as improper service, mistake, fraud, or lack of jurisdiction. Claims based on mistake, newly discovered evidence, or fraud must be filed within three months; all motions must come within a “reasonable time,” which the judge decides case by case. You also have to show a meritorious defense — enough of an argument that the court sees a real reason to reopen the case.11Utah Courts. Motion to Set Aside Default or Judgment If the underlying judgment falls, the garnishment falls with it.
When Multiple Creditors Are Garnishing You
Only one writ of garnishment can be active at a time. Your employer or bank must satisfy writs in the order they were served: first in, first paid. When one writ is fully satisfied or expires, the next in line takes over.1Utah State Courts. How to Apply for a Writ of Garnishment
There’s one exception. A continuing garnishment issued by Utah’s Office of Recovery Services or the Department of Workforce Services, typically for child support or public assistance overpayments, jumps to the front and stays there until it’s paid in full, pausing other creditors’ writs. No matter how many writs are pending, the total withheld in any pay period still cannot exceed the federal caps.
Employer Rules and Firing Protection
When your employer receives a garnishment order, they have to withhold the specified amount and forward it to the creditor or collecting agency. An employer who ignores a writ or miscalculates the deduction can be held liable for the full amount they should have withheld.
Federal law bars your employer from firing you because your wages are garnished for a single debt. Violating that protection is a misdemeanor with a fine of up to $1,000, up to a year in jail, or both.12Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1674 Restriction on Discharge From Employment by Reason of Garnishment The word “single” matters. Once two or more separate debts are being garnished, that federal protection no longer applies.
How Long a Judgment Lasts and How Fast It Grows
Waiting a garnishment out is expensive. A Utah district court judgment is enforceable for eight years, and the creditor can file a motion before that window closes to renew it for another eight, potentially indefinitely.13Utah Legislature. Utah Code 78B-2-311 Justice court judgments can’t be renewed by motion; the creditor has to file a new lawsuit for nonpayment.14Utah State Judiciary. Motion to Renew Judgment
Meanwhile, the balance grows. Utah’s post-judgment interest rate for civil judgments entered after May 8, 2018 is the federal rate plus 2%, currently 5.51% for 2026. Judgments under $10,000 for goods or services carry a higher rate of 13.51%.15Utah State Courts. Post Judgment Interest Rates On a $15,000 judgment, 5.51% adds roughly $825 a year on top of what’s already owed.
Bankruptcy’s Automatic Stay
Filing for bankruptcy triggers an automatic stay under 11 U.S.C. § 362 the moment the petition is filed, and it halts most collection activity, including active wage garnishments and bank levies. No separate hearing is needed. Creditors who keep garnishing after receiving notice of the stay can face sanctions.16Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 362 Automatic Stay
The stay only covers debts that existed before you filed. New obligations remain collectible, and some debts punch through the stay entirely, most notably domestic support obligations like child support and alimony, which can keep being garnished during bankruptcy.
If wages were garnished within the 90 days before you filed, you may be able to recover them, provided at least $600 was taken in that window, the garnishment was for a dischargeable debt, and you have exemptions available to protect the money. This isn’t automatic and typically takes a separate motion in bankruptcy court.