Wage Garnishment in Illinois
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In Illinois, most creditors must sue you and win a court judgment before they can garnish your wages, but some debts, like taxes and child support, can be garnished without a court order. Once the court approves the garnishment, your employer must withhold part of your paycheck, though the law limits how much they can take. Garnishment continues until the full debt, including interest and fees, is paid off. Many people stop garnishment by filing Chapter 7 bankruptcy, which triggers a legal pause on collection efforts and can wipe out the debt entirely.
Written by Upsolve Team.
Updated November 7, 2025
What Is Wage Garnishment?
Wage garnishment happens when money is taken out of your paycheck to pay a debt. In most cases, the creditor must first sue you and win a court judgment. With that court order, they can ask your employer to take a portion of your wages and send it directly to them. This typically continues until the debt is paid off.
Illinois law limits how much of your paycheck can be garnished. The exact amount depends on your income and other legal protections, which we’ll explain later in this guide.
⚠️ Some debts don’t require a court order to be garnished. Government agencies can garnish wages for things like unpaid taxes or federal student loans without suing first. Child support and alimony also follow different rules under state and federal law.
Who Can Garnish My Wages in Illinois?
For most consumer debts, creditors, debt collectors, or debt buyers need to get a court order called a Wage Deduction Order. Then they can garnish your wages.
Consumer debts include things like credit cards, medical bills, and personal loans.
💡 Some loan contracts include something called a wage assignment. This is a voluntary agreement that lets the lender take money directly from your paycheck. Payday lenders sometimes include wage assignments in their loan terms. Wage assignments aren’t the same as wage garnishments because they don’t go through the court.
📌 This guide focuses on court-ordered wage garnishments for typical consumer debts.
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Illinois Wage Garnishment Process
If a creditor wins a judgment against you in Illinois, they can ask the court to start taking money from your paycheck. They begin by sending legal paperwork to your employer and a copy to you.
This paperwork might be called a Citation to Discover Assets or a Wage Deduction Summons, depending on the county. Either way, the process works the same.
📄 Before the hearing, the court asks your employer to verify your employment and for other information, like how much you earn. Once the judge issues a Wage Deduction Order, your employer starts taking money from your paycheck and sending it to the creditor.
✋ You don’t have to go to the hearing, but it’s your only chance to object. Some people go to show that their wages are protected. While regular wages aren’t usually exempt from garnishment, other types of income may be. This includes things like Social Security, unemployment, workers' comp, and public assistance.
❗You can also object if the amount listed in the judgment is wrong. For example, maybe you’ve already made payments that weren’t subtracted from the balance. But keep in mind: You can’t challenge the judgment itself during this hearing — only the remaining balance or whether the income can legally be garnished.
How Much of My Paycheck Can Be Taken by Wage Garnishment?
A creditor with a wage garnishment order can’t take your entire paycheck. Illinois law limits how much they can take each pay period. They’re only allowed to take the smaller of:
15% of your total earnings before taxes
Any amount you take home that's more than 45 times the minimum wage
👉 Illinois’ minimum wage is $15 an hour. If you multiply that by 45, you get $675. That means if your take-home pay (after taxes) is less than $675, your employer can’t take anything. If it’s more than $675, they can only take the amount above that limit — and even then, only if it’s less than 15% of your total paycheck.
💸 Wage garnishment continues until the total judgment is paid off. This includes the debt, any court-approved fees, and interest that builds up after the judgment.
📬 Illinois law also requires creditors to send you and your employer an update on the remaining balance every three months (by January 15, April 15, July 15, and October 15) until the debt is fully paid off.
How To Stop a Garnishment in Illinois
Once wage garnishment starts, stopping it isn’t easy. In some cases, you might be able to contact the creditor and work out a different payment plan. This is rarely successful, since creditors usually only move forward with garnishment after deciding it's their best option. Still, if your wages are low and the garnishment would take a long time to pay off, a creditor might be open to another arrangement.
🛑 Most of the time, there are two ways to stop a wage garnishment:
Pay off the judgment. You can do this in a lump sum if you have the money. Once the debt is fully paid — either through a one-time payment or over time via garnishment — the garnishment ends.
File for bankruptcy. Filing Chapter 7 bankruptcy triggers something called the automatic stay, a legal protection that immediately stops wage garnishment and other collection efforts. Bankruptcy can often erase the debt entirely.
✨ Many people are able to file Chapter 7 bankruptcy on their own without a lawyer using Upsolve’s free filing tool.
Are There Any Resources for People Facing Wage Garnishment in Illinois?
If you’re dealing with a wage garnishment, it may be helpful to consult with a licensed Illinois attorney to discuss your options. Even if you can’t afford to hire an attorney, there are legal aid organizations that may be able to help. These are some of the legal aid resources available in Illinois:
