How to Fill Out and File a Tennessee Slow Pay Motion

A Tennessee slow pay motion asks the court that entered a money judgment against you to let you pay it off in weekly, biweekly, or monthly installments instead of all at once, and filing it automatically pauses wage garnishment while the judge decides.¹ The procedure is set out in Tennessee Code Annotated § 26-2-216 and works the same way in General Sessions and Circuit Courts across the state. You complete a sworn motion and financial affidavit, file it with the clerk, give notice to the creditor, and appear at a hearing where a judge sets your payment amount.

When You Can File

You cannot file the day the judgment is entered. The appeal window has to run out first, with no appeal filed. In General Sessions Court, that window is 10 days from the date of the judgment.² For Circuit Court judgments, it is 30 days.³ Once the window closes, you are eligible.

The statute covers money judgments broadly, whether the underlying debt is a contract, a medical bill, or another civil claim. You can file before a garnishment has been served or after. One rule matters more than any other at this stage: you get only one motion for installment payments per judgment.¹ If it is denied, or if you later default and need the court’s help, you will have to work with the original motion rather than filing a fresh one. Prepare the financial disclosure carefully the first time.

Where to Get the Form

The Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts publishes an official version titled “Request to Make Payments (Motion and Affidavit for Installment Payments and Order).” It is available as a fillable PDF or Word document on the court system’s General Sessions civil forms page.⁴ The clerk’s office in the court that entered your judgment also keeps paper copies. Some counties use a local version, but the required content is the same because the statute dictates what the affidavit must contain.

Filling Out the Motion and Affidavit

The form is really two documents on one page: a motion asking for a payment plan, and a sworn affidavit laying out your finances. Both sections have to be complete before you file.

Case Information

Fill in the docket or case number, the full legal names of the plaintiff (the creditor) and defendant (you), and the court where the judgment was entered. The clerk uses these details to match your motion to the correct judgment file. Check them against your court papers before you write anything down.

The Financial Affidavit

This is the part the judge will actually read closely. Section 26-2-216 requires you to state that you cannot pay the judgment from funds other than your wages, salary, or other income, and that the amounts involved make installment payments necessary or fair.¹ The statute specifically requires you to disclose your employer’s name and address (or other source of funds), the amount of your wages or salary, and the date you receive payment.

The form itself asks for more than the statutory minimum. Be ready to list:

All income sources, including wages, child support, Social Security, pensions, or any other regular money coming in, with amounts and frequency.
Dependents, with name, age, and relationship for each person who relies on your income.
Monthly expenses: rent or mortgage, utilities, groceries, transportation, insurance, medical costs, and childcare.
Outstanding debts, with creditor name and address and the balance on each.

Pull together recent pay stubs, bank statements, and billing statements before you sit down to fill the form out. The judge uses these numbers to figure your disposable income and judge whether your proposed payment is realistic. Vague or incomplete answers give the creditor room to object and give the judge less reason to approve what you ask for.

Your Proposed Payment

Pick a specific dollar amount and a frequency. The statute allows weekly, biweekly, or monthly payments.¹ Match the schedule to your pay cycle. The amount should fit your disclosed expenses but still show real effort. Ten dollars a month on a $5,000 judgment will not survive scrutiny. A number that reflects most of your actual disposable income is much likelier to be approved.

Swearing the Affidavit

This is not a form you can sign at home and drop off. The affidavit has to be sworn under penalty of perjury before a deputy court clerk or a notary public. You certify that the information is true to the best of your knowledge, and the official signs below. Many filers simply handle the oath at the clerk’s office when they file, since a deputy clerk can administer it on the spot.

Filing, Fees, and Notice to the Creditor

Take the completed, sworn form to the clerk’s office in the court that entered your judgment. There is a filing fee, and it varies by county and court. In Shelby County, General Sessions charges $27 and Circuit Court charges $50.⁵ Call your clerk’s office ahead of time if the cost matters. The fee is separate from the judgment itself.

You also have to give notice to the judgment creditor or their attorney. The statute requires “due notice” before the court can hold a hearing on the motion.¹ That means getting a copy of your filed motion to the other side so they have a chance to respond. Ask the clerk what service method your court uses. Some accept certified mail; others want personal delivery or service through the sheriff. Once the motion is filed and notice is given, the clerk schedules a hearing, usually within a few weeks.

The Hearing and the Court’s Order

You appear in front of the judge on the assigned date. Expect to testify under oath about the income, expenses, and debts you listed. Bring supporting documents in case the judge wants verification beyond what is on the form.

The creditor has the right to appear and push back. Objections usually come down to whether you reported your income accurately, whether some expenses look inflated, whether you have assets you could sell, or whether your proposed payment is so low that the judgment would take years to clear. The judge weighs both sides. If your affidavit is thorough and honest, most of these arguments boil down to a disagreement about what you can afford, and that call belongs to the judge.

If the judge finds the request reasonable, the court issues an order setting the payment amount, frequency, and due date. All payments go to the clerk of the court, not directly to the creditor.¹ The judge can also set an amount different from what you proposed. If your finances support a higher payment, expect an adjustment upward.

How the Garnishment Stay Works

Filing the motion triggers an automatic stay on garnishment. No writ of garnishment against your wages, salary, or other funds can be issued, executed, or returned while the motion is pending, and the stay continues afterward as long as you comply with the court’s payment order.¹ That is the practical point of the whole process. The creditor cannot take money directly from your paycheck or bank account while you are keeping up with the schedule.

If You Miss a Payment

Default lifts the stay and lets the creditor resume collection. Because you only get one motion per judgment, a missed payment is a serious problem rather than a routine reset. Tennessee Code § 26-2-217 does provide a safety valve: if your default was caused by job loss or another justifiable reason beyond your control, you can ask the court to reinstate the stay or amend the payment terms.⁶ A reinstated stay applies only to pay periods going forward, not retroactively. You will need to file another affidavit explaining what happened and showing you can resume payments. Reinstatement is discretionary, so do not plan around it.

Interest Keeps Running

Post-judgment interest continues to accrue on the unpaid balance while you make installment payments. For judgments entered in 2026, the Tennessee post-judgment interest rate is 8.75 percent per year.⁷ The rate is locked in when the judgment is entered and does not fluctuate afterward. On a $5,000 judgment, that is roughly $437 in interest over a full year. The longer your plan runs, the more interest piles on top of the original amount, which is another reason to propose the highest payment you can actually sustain.

1
Justia. Tennessee Code 26-2-216 – Installment Payments to Obtain Stay of Garnishment – Service of Garnishment Summons
2
Justia. Tennessee Code 27-5-108 – Appeal From General Sessions
3
Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. Rule 4: Appeal as of Right: Time for Filing Notice of Appeal
4
Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. Court-Approved General Sessions Civil Court Forms
5
Shelby County, TN – Official Website. Schedule of Filing Fees – Circuit Court
6
FindLaw. Tennessee Code Title 26 Execution 26-2-217
7
Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. Tennessee Judgment Interest Rates