Wage garnishment in Las Vegas begins with a court judgment for most consumer debts, and Nevada then limits what a creditor can withhold to 18 percent of your disposable earnings if you gross $770 a week or less, or 25 percent if you earn more. A separate floor protects anyone whose weekly disposable pay is at or below $362.50. Different, stricter rules apply to child support, IRS tax debts, and defaulted federal student loans.
How Much a Creditor Can Take From Your Paycheck
For ordinary debts like credit cards, medical bills, and personal loans, a creditor cannot touch your wages until they sue you in a Clark County Justice Court or District Court, win a money judgment, and get the court to issue a Writ of Garnishment under NRS 31.240.1Nevada Legislature. Nevada Revised Statutes Chapter 31 – Attachment, Garnishment and Other Extraordinary Remedies Only then does your employer receive orders to withhold.
Once a writ is active, NRS 31.295 caps the garnishment at the smallest of three amounts, based on your gross weekly pay on the date the writ was issued:2Nevada Legislature. Nevada Code 31.295 – Garnishment of Earnings: Limitations on Amount
- If you gross $770 a week or less, 18 percent of your disposable earnings for that week.
- If you gross more than $770 a week, 25 percent of your disposable earnings for that week.
- For anyone, the amount by which your weekly disposable earnings exceed 50 times the federal minimum wage.
That $770 threshold matters. A Las Vegas worker earning around $40,000 a year often falls at or under it, and dropping from 25 percent to 18 percent is real money each pay period.
The third calculation acts as a floor. With the federal minimum wage at $7.25, 50 times that rate is $362.50.3U.S. Department of Labor. State Minimum Wage Laws If your weekly disposable earnings are $362.50 or less, nothing can be garnished for a consumer debt. If you have $500 in disposable earnings for the week, the maximum the creditor can take is $137.50, even if 18 or 25 percent of your pay would be higher.
Disposable earnings means what’s left after legally required deductions: federal income tax, Social Security, and Medicare. Voluntary deductions like health insurance premiums or a 401(k) contribution do not reduce the number, so the garnishable amount can be higher than the deposit you actually see.
Child Support, IRS, and Student Loan Garnishments Follow Different Rules
The 18 and 25 percent caps do not apply to support obligations. Nevada tracks federal law at 15 U.S.C. § 1673, which allows up to 50 percent of disposable earnings when you support another spouse or child, and 60 percent when you don’t.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1673 – Restriction on Garnishment Those ceilings rise to 55 or 65 percent when the support order is more than 12 weeks in arrears.2Nevada Legislature. Nevada Code 31.295 – Garnishment of Earnings: Limitations on Amount A support garnishment can take far more than a credit card judgment ever could.
The IRS also skips the courthouse entirely. After sending a notice of intent to levy and a 30-day appeal window, the IRS orders your employer to withhold. Instead of the Nevada percentage caps, the IRS uses exemption tables from Publication 1494. For 2026, a single filer with no dependents keeps only $309.62 per week and the rest goes to the IRS; each dependent adds about $101.92 to what you keep.5Internal Revenue Service. Tables for Figuring Amount Exempt from Levy on Wages, Salary, and Other Income
Defaulted federal student loans work similarly. The Department of Education can garnish up to 15 percent of your disposable income through an administrative order, no lawsuit required. As of early 2026, borrowers who did not enter a rehabilitation or repayment plan by the end of 2025 became subject to this withholding. The $362.50 weekly floor still applies.
Income a Creditor Cannot Touch
Some income is off-limits regardless of the judgment. NRS 21.090 lists property and funds exempt from execution, and federal law separately shields several benefit programs.6Nevada Legislature. Nevada Code 21.090 – Property Exempt from Execution Protected sources include:
- Social Security retirement and SSI disability payments
- Public assistance and unemployment compensation
- Workers’ compensation and disability insurance benefits
- Veterans’ benefits
A creditor with a valid judgment cannot reach these funds for a consumer debt. Child support obligations and federal tax debts operate under separate rules and can reach some benefit types the ordinary creditor cannot.
Bank account freezes are where the exemption often gets tested. When a creditor serves a garnishment order on your bank, 31 CFR Part 212 requires the bank to look back two months, identify federal benefit deposits, and keep that amount accessible to you.7eCFR. Garnishment of Accounts Containing Federal Benefit Payments The protection works cleanly when benefits are direct-deposited. If you deposit checks by hand or mix benefits with other income in one account, tracing which dollars are protected becomes harder, and you may need to claim the exemption through the court process.
Can Your Employer Fire You Because of a Garnishment
No, not for a single garnishment. NRS 31.298 prohibits Nevada employers from firing or disciplining you solely because your wages are being garnished.8Nevada Legislature. Nevada Revised Statutes Chapter 31 – Attachment, Garnishment and Other Extraordinary Remedies – Section: NRS 31.298 Federal law adds a criminal penalty: under 15 U.S.C. § 1674, willfully firing someone because their pay is garnished for any one debt can carry a fine up to $1,000, up to a year in prison, or both.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1674 – Restriction on Discharge From Employment by Reason of Garnishment
Read the federal protection carefully. It covers garnishment for a single debt. Workers dealing with garnishments from multiple separate creditors do not have the same federal shield against termination, though the Nevada statute remains in play.
How to Challenge a Garnishment in Clark County
If the garnishment is wrong, the amount is miscalculated, or your income is exempt, you file a Claim of Exemption in the court that issued the writ. In Las Vegas that is the Clark County Justice Court or District Court.
The clock is short. For a wage garnishment, you have 10 days after each withholding to file the claim and serve it on the sheriff, the creditor, and your employer.10Nevada Legislature. Nevada Code 21.112 – Claim of Exemption: Procedure That 10-day window resets with each paycheck, so missing the first withholding does not close the door. For a one-time levy on property or a bank account, the deadline is 10 days from when the notice of the writ is mailed to you.
Once you file, the creditor has 8 judicial days to object. If they object, the court sets a hearing. If they don’t object in time, the exemption is granted by default. Win the hearing and the court orders your employer to release the withheld funds back to you. Miss a deadline or fail to serve one of the required parties and the claim can fall apart before it’s heard.
Stopping a Garnishment Through Bankruptcy
Filing bankruptcy is the fastest way to stop an active garnishment. The moment a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 petition is filed, the automatic stay under 11 U.S.C. § 362 takes effect and immediately halts collection activity, including wage garnishments, bank levies, and lawsuits.11Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 362 – Automatic Stay No separate motion is required.
What happens next depends on the case. A Chapter 7 discharge wipes out most unsecured consumer debts, so the underlying judgment loses its force and the garnishment cannot restart. Chapter 13 puts you into a three-to-five-year repayment plan; the garnishment stays stopped while you remain current on the plan, and remaining eligible debts may be discharged at the end.
The stay does not cover everything. Child support, alimony, and certain tax collection continue even after you file. If a creditor keeps garnishing your wages after being notified of the bankruptcy, they can be liable for compensatory damages and attorney fees, so keep records of anything that arrives after filing.