Can an ordinary judgment creditor garnish my wages in Texas for a credit-card debt?

For an ordinary judgment debt, current wages for personal service are not subject to garnishment, and the garnishee is discharged as to any debt to the defendant for current wages (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 63.004). The constitutional exceptions are enforcement of court-ordered child support and spousal maintenance (Tex. Const. art. XVI, § 28). Other property and other collection tools follow different rules.

Does that rule also cover child support, taxes, or federal administrative collection?

No. Court-ordered child support and spousal maintenance are the constitutional exceptions (Tex. Const. art. XVI, § 28), and the exemption applies except as otherwise provided by state or federal law (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 63.004). Federal law separately excepts support orders, chapter 13 orders of a U.S. court, and state or federal tax debts (15 U.S.C. § 1673(b)). Federal administrative collection, including student loans, takes separate analysis; this ordinary-judgment discussion does not determine those rights.

Does filing a bankruptcy case stop a Texas garnishment immediately?

Filing a voluntary petition commences the case and constitutes an order for relief (11 U.S.C. § 301), and generally operates as a stay of judgment enforcement and collection without a separate order (11 U.S.C. § 362(a)). It does not reach everything: withholding of income for a domestic support obligation is excepted, the stay ends at the times subsection (c) sets, and a party in interest may seek relief (11 U.S.C. § 362(b)(2)(C), (c), (d)).

What if one earlier bankruptcy case of mine was dismissed in the past year?

Where a single or joint case is filed by or against an individual under chapter 7, 11, or 13, and a single or joint case of that debtor was pending within the preceding 1-year period but was dismissed, other than one refiled under a chapter other than chapter 7 after a § 707(b) dismissal, the stay terminates with respect to the debtor on the 30th day after filing, as to action on a debt, property securing it, or a lease. On a party in interest's motion, the court may extend it after notice and a hearing completed before that 30-day period expires, only on a good-faith showing as to the creditors to be stayed (11 U.S.C. § 362(c)(3)).

What if two or more of my cases were dismissed in the past year?

Where a single or joint case is filed by or against an individual and 2 or more single or joint cases of that debtor were pending within the previous year but were dismissed, other than one refiled under a chapter other than chapter 7 after a § 707(b) dismissal, the stay does not go into effect on the later filing. On a party in interest's request within 30 days after filing, the court may impose it as to any or all creditors, after notice and a hearing, only on a good-faith showing as to the creditors to be stayed, effective when the order is entered (11 U.S.C. § 362(c)(4)).

Can my employer fire me because of a garnishment?

No employer may discharge any employee by reason of the fact that his earnings have been subjected to garnishment for any one indebtedness, and a willful violation carries criminal penalties (15 U.S.C. § 1674). Federal law also leaves in place state laws prohibiting discharge where earnings have been garnished for more than one indebtedness (15 U.S.C. § 1677). That rule concerns firing, not money already withheld.

Wages & debt

Wage Garnishment in Texas: What the Law Says and What Bankruptcy Changes

In Texas, current wages for personal service are not subject to garnishment except to enforce court-ordered child support or spousal maintenance (Tex. Const. art. XVI, § 28), and that exemption applies except as otherwise provided by state or federal law (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 63.004). Filing a bankruptcy petition generally operates as a stay of judgment enforcement and collection (11 U.S.C. § 362(a)), though domestic-support income withholding is excepted and repeat filings or court-ordered relief can narrow it.

Key points

For an ordinary judgment debt, Texas treats current wages for personal service as not subject to garnishment, with court-ordered child support and spousal maintenance as the express constitutional exceptions (Tex. Const. art. XVI, § 28).
That rule governs ordinary judgment collection; support withholding, state and federal taxes, and other collection authorized by state or federal law are governed separately (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 63.004; 15 U.S.C. § 1673(b)).
A writ can issue on any of three statutory grounds; before final judgment it requires a written court order with specific findings after a hearing, which may be ex parte (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 63.001; Tex. R. Civ. P. 658).
Filing a petition commences a case and generally operates as a stay of judgment enforcement and collection, subject to the statute's exceptions, repeat-filing rules, and relief on request (11 U.S.C. § 301; 11 U.S.C. § 362).

If a creditor has sued you or holds a judgment, the question is whether your paycheck can be touched. In Texas that depends on the kind of debt, and whether the money at issue is current wages for personal service or other property.

How much of your pay can be garnished in Texas?

Texas does not set a percentage of pay that an ordinary judgment creditor may take. The Texas Constitution provides that no current wages for personal service shall ever be subject to garnishment, except for the enforcement of court-ordered child support payments or spousal maintenance (Tex. Const. art. XVI, § 28). The statute repeats the exemption and directs that the garnishee be discharged from the garnishment as to any debt to the defendant for current wages, except as otherwise provided by state or federal law (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 63.004).

Federal law sets a ceiling rather than a prohibition: for any workweek, garnishment may not exceed the lesser of 25 percent of disposable earnings or the amount by which those earnings exceed thirty times the federal minimum hourly wage (15 U.S.C. § 1673(a)). The federal subchapter does not annul or affect state laws prohibiting garnishment or allowing more limited garnishment (15 U.S.C. § 1677).

What do Texas statutes require of creditors and courts?

A writ of garnishment is available on any of three alternative grounds: an original attachment has been issued; a plaintiff sues for a debt and makes an affidavit meeting the statute's sworn conditions; or a plaintiff has a valid, subsisting judgment and makes the affidavit the statute describes (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 63.001). Not every writ, then, follows a final judgment.

Before final judgment, a writ may issue only on a written court order after a hearing, which may be ex parte; the order must make specific findings supporting the grounds found to exist and set bond amounts (Tex. R. Civ. P. 658), and the plaintiff files its bond first (Tex. R. Civ. P. 658a). On the judgment ground, the judgment is deemed final and subsisting for garnishment purposes from the date it is signed, unless a supersedeas bond has been approved and filed under the appellate rule that provision names (Tex. R. Civ. P. 657).

Which income and property does Texas law place outside ordinary collection?

Beyond current wages, several Texas statutes place categories of income and property outside ordinary collection, each on its own terms. Several carry no fixed dollar cap at all. Two cautions matter more than the list below. First, these are conditional categories, not a rule that any deposited paycheck or bank balance is beyond reach; once funds sit in an account, whether they remain exempt is decided through the claim procedure described below, not by assumption. Second, most of these statutes carry internal exceptions, so the statute controls rather than a summary. The personal-property categories the Property Code describes also share an aggregate ceiling: $100,000 of value when the property is provided for a family (Tex. Prop. Code § 42.001(a)(1)), and $50,000 when it is owned by a single adult who is not a member of a family (Tex. Prop. Code § 42.001(a)(2)).

Texas exemption categories and their limits
Category	Limit and conditions	Citation
Current wages for personal service	No fixed dollar cap; court-ordered child support and spousal maintenance excepted	Tex. Const. art. XVI, § 28
Homestead	No fixed dollar cap under state law; limited by use and acreage; federal bankruptcy limitations may apply	Tex. Prop. Code §§ 41.001–.002
Unemployment benefits	No fixed dollar cap; received benefits remain exempt when not commingled, subject to the statute's necessaries and conflict provisions	Tex. Lab. Code § 207.075
Workers' compensation benefits	No fixed dollar cap	Tex. Lab. Code § 408.201

What notice must you receive when property is frozen or seized?

Two notices run on different clocks, and neither is a deadline for you to act. The defendant must be served, as provided in Rule 21a or Rule 501.4, with a copy of the writ, the application, accompanying affidavits, and the court's orders as soon as practicable after the writ is served on the garnishee (Tex. R. Civ. P. 663a). The writ's face carries a bilingual notice in at least twelve-point type saying that property has been frozen or seized, that an individual's property may be exempt, and where to find legal aid.

Separately, when a post-judgment order, including a writ of garnishment, turnover order, or writ of execution, freezes or seizes an individual judgment debtor's personal property, the receiver or judgment creditor must serve a Notice of Protected Property Rights, its instructions, and the Protected Property Claim Form within three business days after it has notice of the freeze or seizure, whichever is first (Tex. R. Civ. P. 679b).

The answer dates set in the writ run against the garnishee, the employer or other holder of the money, and are not a debtor's objection deadline (Tex. R. Civ. P. 659).

Which statutory protections may matter when contesting a Texas garnishment?

After those documents are served, a receiver or officer must not sell the personal property or pay proceeds to the judgment creditor for 14 days, or 17 days if service was by mail; a sale may still be noticed for a date after that window (Tex. R. Civ. P. 679b). That suspension is a pause on sale, not a deadline by which a claim must be filed. If the judgment debtor files the Protected Property Claim Form, or another sworn document containing the same information, the court must hold a hearing and the receiver or officer must not sell or distribute until the court determines the claim. At the hearing the judgment debtor must prove the exemption claim and the value of the property claimed exempt, and an unchallenged sworn statement can satisfy that burden. The court must determine the claim within 10 days after it is filed, extendable for good cause, and must order release within three business days if it finds the property exempt.

A defendant whose property or account has been garnished, or an intervening party claiming an interest, may file a sworn motion to dissolve or modify the writ, the order directing its issuance, or both; it must admit or deny each finding in that order, or state why the movant cannot. If the motion rests on personal-property exemptions and supplies the information the approved Personal Property Claim Form requires, the court follows Rule 679b (Tex. R. Civ. P. 664a).
A motion on other grounds is heard promptly after reasonable notice to the plaintiff and determined within ten days after filing unless extended for good cause; filing it stays further proceedings under the writ except orders for the care, preservation, or sale of perishable property, and the writ must be dissolved unless the plaintiff proves the statutory grounds relied on (Tex. R. Civ. P. 664a).

How does filing bankruptcy affect a Texas garnishment?

Filing a voluntary petition commences a case and constitutes an order for relief (11 U.S.C. § 301). The filing generally operates as a stay, applicable to all entities, of judicial proceedings against the debtor on pre-petition claims, of enforcement against the debtor or property of the estate of a judgment obtained before the case began, and of any act to collect a pre-petition claim (11 U.S.C. § 362(a)). The stay arises on filing; no separate order or notice is a precondition to its existence, though notice to the creditor, the issuing court, and the garnishee can matter operationally.

It is not absolute. Withholding of income for payment of a domestic support obligation under a judicial or administrative order or a statute is excepted (11 U.S.C. § 362(b)(2)(C)). The stay ends at the times subsection (c) sets, and a party in interest may seek relief after notice and a hearing (11 U.S.C. § 362(d)). Prior dismissed cases within the year change the analysis; the FAQs below set out those conditions.

Which exemption list applies if you file in Texas?

An individual debtor may exempt property listed in either paragraph (2) or, alternatively, paragraph (3) of 11 U.S.C. § 522(b). Paragraph (2) is the subsection (d) federal list, available unless the state law applicable under paragraph (3)(A) specifically does not authorize it. Paragraph (3) reaches state and local exemptions; separately, property exempt under other federal law outside subsection (d); and qualifying retirement funds.

Paragraph (3)(A) points to the place where the debtor's domicile was located for the 730 days immediately preceding filing or, if not in a single state for that period, for the 180 days immediately preceding those 730 days, or for a longer portion of that 180-day period than anywhere else. If that would leave a debtor ineligible for any exemption, the debtor may elect the subsection (d) list. Confirm with a lawyer which state's law applies and which list fits your case.

What should you ask a lawyer about a Texas garnishment?

A lawyer or legal-aid office can read the court file with you; the notice on the writ lists statewide legal-aid numbers and the State Bar of Texas. Ask whether the money being withheld is current wages for personal service or something else. Ask which of the three statutory grounds the application states, and whether a pre-judgment writ rests on a written order with the findings the rule requires. Ask when the Rule 679b documents were served, whether the suspension period has run, and whether a claim form or a sworn document with the same information has been filed and a hearing set. Ask whether a motion to dissolve or modify fits your facts, and which findings it must admit or deny. Ask how a bankruptcy filing would interact with this writ, whether any earlier case of yours was dismissed in the past year, and which exemption list your domicile points to.

Frequently asked questions

Can an ordinary judgment creditor garnish my wages in Texas for a credit-card debt?: For an ordinary judgment debt, current wages for personal service are not subject to garnishment, and the garnishee is discharged as to any debt to the defendant for current wages (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 63.004). The constitutional exceptions are enforcement of court-ordered child support and spousal maintenance (Tex. Const. art. XVI, § 28). Other property and other collection tools follow different rules.
Does that rule also cover child support, taxes, or federal administrative collection?: No. Court-ordered child support and spousal maintenance are the constitutional exceptions (Tex. Const. art. XVI, § 28), and the exemption applies except as otherwise provided by state or federal law (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 63.004). Federal law separately excepts support orders, chapter 13 orders of a U.S. court, and state or federal tax debts (15 U.S.C. § 1673(b)). Federal administrative collection, including student loans, takes separate analysis; this ordinary-judgment discussion does not determine those rights.
Does filing a bankruptcy case stop a Texas garnishment immediately?: Filing a voluntary petition commences the case and constitutes an order for relief (11 U.S.C. § 301), and generally operates as a stay of judgment enforcement and collection without a separate order (11 U.S.C. § 362(a)). It does not reach everything: withholding of income for a domestic support obligation is excepted, the stay ends at the times subsection (c) sets, and a party in interest may seek relief (11 U.S.C. § 362(b)(2)(C), (c), (d)).
What if one earlier bankruptcy case of mine was dismissed in the past year?: Where a single or joint case is filed by or against an individual under chapter 7, 11, or 13, and a single or joint case of that debtor was pending within the preceding 1-year period but was dismissed, other than one refiled under a chapter other than chapter 7 after a § 707(b) dismissal, the stay terminates with respect to the debtor on the 30th day after filing, as to action on a debt, property securing it, or a lease. On a party in interest's motion, the court may extend it after notice and a hearing completed before that 30-day period expires, only on a good-faith showing as to the creditors to be stayed (11 U.S.C. § 362(c)(3)).
What if two or more of my cases were dismissed in the past year?: Where a single or joint case is filed by or against an individual and 2 or more single or joint cases of that debtor were pending within the previous year but were dismissed, other than one refiled under a chapter other than chapter 7 after a § 707(b) dismissal, the stay does not go into effect on the later filing. On a party in interest's request within 30 days after filing, the court may impose it as to any or all creditors, after notice and a hearing, only on a good-faith showing as to the creditors to be stayed, effective when the order is entered (11 U.S.C. § 362(c)(4)).
Can my employer fire me because of a garnishment?: No employer may discharge any employee by reason of the fact that his earnings have been subjected to garnishment for any one indebtedness, and a willful violation carries criminal penalties (15 U.S.C. § 1674). Federal law also leaves in place state laws prohibiting discharge where earnings have been garnished for more than one indebtedness (15 U.S.C. § 1677). That rule concerns firing, not money already withheld.

By Antonio G. Jimenez, Esq. · Florida Bar No. 21022

Sources verified October 10, 2026 · How we verify

Every figure on this page is drawn from a primary legal source and checked against our canonical legal database before publication. Bankruptcy.law is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.

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