How to Stop Wage Garnishment in Alabama (2025 Guide)

Alabama lets creditors take up to 25% of your paycheck through wage garnishment. That's among the highest limits in the country. If you're facing a debt lawsuit or already losing wages, you need to act fast.

The good news: wage garnishment doesn't happen overnight. You have windows to stop it before the first dollar leaves your account. Even if garnishment has started, Alabama law gives you tools to challenge it or reduce the amount taken.

What Wage Garnishment Actually Costs You in Alabama

Alabama follows federal wage garnishment limits under Ala. Code § 5-19-15. Creditors with a court judgment can seize whichever is less:

• 25% of your weekly disposable income, or
• The amount your disposable income exceeds 30 times the federal minimum wage ($7.25/hour = $217.50/week)

Your disposable income is what's left after mandatory withholdings like taxes and Social Security. Alabama doesn't count voluntary deductions like health insurance or retirement contributions. Those come out of your disposable income calculation.

Example: You earn $800/week after taxes. A creditor can garnish $200 (25% of $800). If you earn $500/week, they can garnish $125 (25% of $500). The second calculation ($500 - $217.50 = $282.50) is higher, so 25% wins.

If multiple creditors garnish you at once, the 25% cap applies total. One creditor doesn't get to take 25% while another takes more. But that 25% can stretch for months or years until you've paid the full judgment plus interest and court costs.

Income That Can't Be Garnished

Federal and Alabama law protect certain income sources from garnishment:

• Social Security benefits
• Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
• Veterans benefits
• Unemployment compensation
• Workers' compensation
• Most public assistance

If your only income comes from these sources, you're judgment-proof. A creditor can't garnish what the law shields. But they can still sue you and get a judgment that sits on your record for 10 years in Alabama, damaging your credit and hanging over you if your income situation changes.

How Creditors Start Garnishing Your Wages

Wage garnishment isn't automatic. A creditor can't just decide to start taking your paycheck. They must follow this process:

1. They sue you. You'll receive a Summons and Complaint, usually by certified mail or personal service. The Summons tells you how many days you have to respond—typically 30 days in Alabama.

2. They get a judgment. If you don't respond or you lose at trial, the court issues a judgment confirming you owe the debt. This judgment is a legal IOU the creditor can enforce.

3. They request a garnishment order. The creditor files a motion asking the court to order your employer to withhold wages. The court issues a writ of garnishment and sends it to your employer.

4. Your employer withholds your wages. By law, your employer must comply. They'll start deducting the allowed percentage and sending it directly to the creditor or the court.

From lawsuit to garnishment takes 60 to 90 days on average. That's your window to stop it.

Stop Garnishment Before It Starts

Once a garnishment order hits your employer, your options shrink. Your best move is to stop the lawsuit from becoming a judgment. Here's how:

Respond to the Lawsuit

The Summons you receive includes a deadline to file an Answer with the court. In Alabama, you typically have 30 days. Your Answer is a written response that forces the creditor to prove their case.

Most people ignore debt lawsuits. That's a mistake. When you don't respond, the creditor wins by default. Once they have a default judgment, stopping garnishment becomes much harder.

Your Answer doesn't have to be complicated. You can:

• Deny you owe the debt
• Claim the amount is wrong
• Argue the statute of limitations has expired (6 years in Alabama for most debts)
• Challenge whether the creditor has legal standing to sue you

Filing an Answer doesn't mean you'll win at trial. But it buys time and forces the creditor to prove they own the debt and that you owe the amount they claim. Many debt buyers can't produce the paperwork, which weakens their case.

You can explore your legal options while the case is pending. That includes settlement or bankruptcy if needed.

Settle the Debt

Creditors and debt collectors sue because they want paid. They don't enjoy the legal process either. Many will settle for less than you owe if you offer a lump sum or payment plan before trial.

Once you file an Answer, reach out to the creditor's attorney. Offer to settle for 40-60% of the balance if you can pay it all at once. If you need a payment plan, propose monthly amounts you can actually afford. Get any agreement in writing before you send money.

A settlement stops the lawsuit and prevents garnishment. It also gets the creditor off your back permanently. The downside: settled debts can show on your credit report as "settled for less than owed," which is better than a judgment but not as good as "paid in full."

File for Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy stops wage garnishment immediately through something called the automatic stay. The moment you file, creditors must cease all collection activity, including garnishment.

Chapter 7 bankruptcy wipes out most unsecured debts (credit cards, medical bills, personal loans) in about four months. Chapter 13 sets up a 3-5 year repayment plan based on what you can afford, often paying pennies on the dollar.

Bankruptcy has consequences,it tanks your credit for up to 10 years and costs $300-$400 in filing fees plus attorney fees if you hire one. But if you're drowning in debt and garnishment would wreck your budget, it's often the fastest escape route.

Use our bankruptcy screener to see if you qualify and what it would cost.

Stop Garnishment That's Already Started

If garnishment has begun, you're not powerless. Alabama law gives you ways to fight back.

File a Claim of Exemption

Alabama allows you to challenge a garnishment if it causes undue hardship or if the income being garnished is legally exempt. You file a Claim of Exemption with the court that issued the garnishment order.

In your claim, you argue:

• The garnishment takes income that's legally protected (Social Security, disability, etc.)
• The garnishment amount exceeds the 25% legal limit
• The garnishment leaves you unable to pay for basic necessities like rent, utilities, or food

The court will schedule a hearing. Bring proof: bank statements showing your protected income, pay stubs, rent receipts, utility bills, grocery receipts. Show the judge you can't survive if the garnishment continues.

If the court agrees, it can reduce the garnishment amount or stop it entirely. But you need to act fast. File your Claim of Exemption within 30 days of receiving notice of the garnishment.

Negotiate a Payment Plan

Even after garnishment starts, creditors sometimes negotiate. Contact the creditor or their attorney and propose a payment plan that works better for your budget.

Creditors often prefer predictable monthly payments over garnishment, which involves court filings and employer compliance hassles. If you can commit to regular payments,even smaller ones,they may agree to stop the garnishment.

Get the agreement in writing. Make sure it explicitly states the garnishment will cease once you start payments.

File Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy stops garnishment even if it's already underway. Once you file, your employer must stop withholding wages. Any money already garnished in the 90 days before you file may be recoverable, depending on the amount and your bankruptcy chapter.

Chapter 13 is often the better option if you're already facing garnishment. It stops the garnishment and lets you repay the debt over time through a court-approved plan. Your unsecured creditors get paid based on your disposable income, not their original claim amounts.

What Happens to Your Employer

Your employer legally must comply with a garnishment order. They can't refuse or delay without risking penalties. Alabama law prohibits employers from firing you solely because your wages are being garnished for a single debt. But if multiple garnishments pile up, you could face termination.

Employers hate garnishments. They create paperwork and accounting headaches. Once your employer receives that first garnishment notice, they'll know you're in financial trouble. That's one more reason to stop garnishment before it starts.

How Long Garnishment Lasts

Wage garnishment continues until you've paid the full judgment, including interest and court costs. In Alabama, judgments accrue interest at a rate set by law (currently around 7.5% annually). That means the amount you owe grows while you're paying it off.

If you owe $5,000 and the creditor garnishes $200/month, it'll take 25 months to pay off the principal,but longer once you factor in interest. Meanwhile, that $200/month comes out of your budget for rent, groceries, and gas.

Once the debt is satisfied, the creditor files a satisfaction of judgment with the court and notifies your employer. The garnishment stops. But the judgment stays on your credit report for seven years from the date it was entered, even after you've paid it.

Protecting Your Bank Account

Creditors can also garnish your bank account in Alabama. The process works similarly: they get a judgment, request a garnishment order, and the court orders your bank to freeze and turn over funds.

Bank account garnishment hits harder than wage garnishment because it's immediate. One day your account has $1,000. The next day it's frozen, and the bank sends the money to the creditor. If that money was earmarked for rent or car payments, you're in crisis.

The same exemptions apply. If the funds in your account come from Social Security, disability, or other protected sources, you can file a claim of exemption. But you need to act within days, not weeks.

To protect yourself, consider opening an account at a different bank where you don't owe money. Banks can often use a legal right called "setoff" to take funds from your account if you owe them money, even without a court order.

When You Can't Stop It

Sometimes garnishment is unavoidable. If you owe child support, student loans, or unpaid taxes, creditors don't need a court judgment to garnish your wages. Federal law lets the IRS, Department of Education, and state child support agencies garnish without suing you first.

These garnishments follow different rules:

• Child support: Up to 50-60% of your disposable income if you support another child, 60-65% if you don't
• Federal student loans: Up to 15% of your disposable income
• IRS tax debts: Varies based on dependents and income, but can exceed 25%

If these debts are garnishing you, bankruptcy may not help. Child support and most student loans survive bankruptcy. Tax debts can sometimes be discharged, but only if they're old enough and meet strict criteria.

Your best option is to negotiate directly with the agency. The IRS offers installment agreements and hardship programs. Student loan servicers can put loans in deferment or income-driven repayment. State child support agencies can modify payment amounts if your income has dropped.

The Bottom Line

Alabama's 25% wage garnishment limit is harsh, but you're not helpless. Respond to lawsuits, negotiate settlements, or file bankruptcy before a judgment lands. If garnishment has started, file a claim of exemption or push for a payment plan. The sooner you act, the more options you have.