Managing multiple wage garnishments for a single employee creates one of payroll’s trickier situations. In many cases, you’ll get stuck in the middle of competing legal orders, federal limits, and an employee-facing financial hardship.
With total U.S. household debt reaching $18.20 trillion in the first quarter of 2025, an increasing number of employees are struggling with overlapping debts. Small business owners often face a tough decision when they receive that second wage garnishment notice. Which one takes priority? Can you actually garnish more than 25% of someone’s pay?
Key takeaways
- Federal law establishes a clear priority order for multiple wage garnishments
- When garnishments exceed legal limits, employers must prioritize higher-ranking debts
- State laws can provide additional employee protections beyond federal requirements, so research your local garnishment rules
- Creating a written policy for handling multiple orders helps ensure consistent processing and protects both your business and employees
This guide walks you through the federal rules, calculation methods, and practical steps for handling overlapping garnishment orders while staying compliant.
How to manage overlapping wage garnishments legally
Multiple garnishments occur more frequently than you might think. An employee might owe child support, have unpaid taxes, and face a creditor lawsuit simultaneously. Each court or agency sends you a separate garnishment notice, expecting full compliance.
Federal law lays out which debts get paid first. Ignoring this priority system can land you in legal trouble with multiple agencies.
Your biggest risk is treating each garnishment order as completely separate instead of calculating them together. The Consumer Credit Protection Act (CCPA) sets limits on total garnishment amounts, regardless of how many orders you receive.
When employee wage garnishment orders pile up, you need to divide available funds according to federal rules.
Federal rules on garnishment priority
The federal government has established a clear pecking order for debt collection. This hierarchy protects employees from excessive wage garnishments while ensuring the most critical debts get paid first.
In the midst of this process, a collection agency might pressure you to prioritize their garnishment, but federal law determines the actual priority order you must follow.
Child support and alimony come first
Child support and alimony always take priority over other types of debt. In Fiscal Year 2023, the Office of Child Support Services reported that $29.6 billion in total child support collections was distributed, with $28.6 billion going directly to families.
These garnishments can take up to 50% of disposable income if the employee is supporting another spouse or child, or 60% if they’re not. If the employee is more than 12 weeks in arrears (overdue on payments), add another 5% to these percentages. The 5% increase is a punitive measure allowed by the government as punishment for non-payment.
Tax levies follow close behind
Federal taxes come second in the order of priority. The IRS uses a different calculation method than regular garnishments. Instead of taking a percentage, they leave the employee with a specific dollar amount based on their filing status and the number of dependents.
In Fiscal Year 2024, the Treasury Offset Program recovered more than $3.8 billion in federal and state delinquent debts. State income taxes typically follow the same priority as federal taxes.
Consumer debt garnishments come last
Credit cards, medical bills, student loans, and other consumer debts fall into the lowest rung on the ladder. As of April 2025, approximately 25% of the federal government’s student debt portfolio is expected to be in default, meaning more garnishment orders are likely coming.
These creditor garnishments must wait behind support obligations and tax debts. If higher-priority garnishments already max out the employee’s available income, consumer debt garnishments may need to wait until higher-priority obligations get paid off.
Here’s also a table to visualize priority order and limits that you may fine helpful.
| Priority level |
Garnishment type |
Maximum amount |
Special notes |
| 1st priority |
Child support/alimony |
• 50% if supporting spouse/child
• 60% if not supporting others
• +5% if 12+ weeks behind |
Always takes precedence over all other debts |
| 2nd priority |
Federal tax levies |
Based on IRS tables (not percentage) |
Leaves employee with specific dollar amount based on filing status/dependents |
| 2nd priority |
State tax levies |
Varies by state |
Typically follows federal tax priority |
| 3rd priority |
Consumer debts |
25% of disposable income OR amount exceeding 30x federal minimum wage (whichever is less) |
Credit cards, medical bills, personal loans |
| 3rd priority |
Student loans |
15% of disposable income |
Federal student loan garnishments |
Know your garnishment limits
The CCPA protects employees by limiting the amount of their pay that can be garnished. For most consumer debts, you can’t wage garnish more than 25% of disposable income or the amount by which weekly disposable income exceeds 30 times the federal minimum wage, whichever is less.
These limits get complex with multiple garnishment orders. Child support can take up to 50-60% of disposable income. Tax levies use their own calculation method. Student loans are limited to 15% of disposable income.
If child support takes 50% and you receive a consumer debt garnishment order, you can’t take another 25%. The employee has already hit their maximum allowable garnishment.
Voluntary wage assignments that employees agree to in writing aren’t subject to the same restrictions. Neither are garnishments for certain federal debts.
Calculate disposable income correctly
Disposable income isn’t the same as gross pay or take-home pay. It’s gross wages minus legally required deductions, such as federal taxes, Social Security, Medicare, and state taxes.
Voluntary deductions don’t reduce disposable income for garnishment calculations. Health insurance premiums, retirement contributions, and other voluntary deductions come out after you calculate garnishment amounts.
Here’s a simple example:
Sarah earns $800 per week in gross wages. After federal taxes ($120), Social Security ($49.60), Medicare ($11.60), and state taxes ($40), her disposable income is $578.80 per week.
If Sarah has a consumer debt garnishment, you can take 25% of $578.80, which equals $144.70 per week. Her health insurance premium of $50 is deducted from her remaining pay, not before the garnishment calculation, so Sarah’s take-home pay is $384.10.
When garnishments exceed limits
Sometimes, the total of all garnishment orders exceeds what’s legally allowed. When this happens, employers should follow federal priority rules and distribute available funds proportionally among same-priority debts.
Start with the highest priority garnishments first. Pay child support and alimony orders up to their legal limits. Then, move to tax levies, followed by consumer debts.
If multiple garnishments exist at the same priority level, pay them proportionally. Two consumer debt garnishments of equal priority would split the available garnishment amount between them equally.
All this said, be sure to document everything when you can’t fully satisfy all garnishment orders. Send notices to courts or agencies explaining that other higher-priority garnishments prevent full compliance. The garnishee has specific responsibilities under wage garnishment laws.
Pro tip
If a consumer collection company puts pressure on you to pay their garnishment request, but you have higher-priority garnishments, don’t stress. They can’t bully you. Simply notify them that their garnishment will be paid in order of legal priority after higher-priority garnishments have been paid off.
— David Kindness, CPA and OnPay subject matter expert
Address state-specific garnishment laws
Federal law sets the baseline, but states can provide additional employee protections. Some states limit garnishments to amounts less than federal legal limits. Others prohibit certain types of garnishments entirely.
Texas prohibits most consumer debt garnishments except for child support, taxes, and student loans. North Carolina has similar restrictions. Pennsylvania allows garnishments only for child support, taxes, and other specific debts.
Several states require garnishee employers to provide specific notices to employees. Some mandate waiting periods before garnishments can begin.
Research your state’s garnishment laws before processing any wage garnishment orders. When state and federal laws conflict, follow whichever provides greater protection to the employee.
Consider consulting with legal counsel if you’re unsure about whether you can have multiple wage garnishments under your state’s laws.
Simple and seamless
“OnPay is a great company, the customer service is excellent and their team is always extremely helpful to answer any question I have. OnPay saves me time because of the way they process garnishments through their system as well. This is really a great feature and made my job so much easier.”
— Emily Zupanick, Calera Gas
Build a policy for wage garnishment handling
Create written procedures for processing multiple wage garnishment rules. This protects your business, improves clarity, and ensures consistent handling across all employees.
Your policy should address how you’ll verify garnishment orders, calculate disposable income, and prioritize multiple debts. Include specific steps for documenting your actions and communicating with courts, agencies, and employees. Train anyone who handles payroll on garnishment procedures to avoid compliance mistakes.
Establish clear timelines for processing new garnishment orders. Most orders require immediate compliance, but you need time to review calculations and update payroll systems.
Your policy should also address how to handle additional garnishment orders when an employee already has existing deductions. Remember that the type of garnishment determines priority, not the order in which you received them.
Stay compliant with garnishment rules
Managing multiple garnishments requires careful attention to legal requirements, calculation methods, and employee rights. The complexity increases significantly when you’re juggling child support, tax levies, and consumer debt orders for the same employee.
OnPay’s payroll software automatically handles complex garnishment calculations, including multiple orders for the same employee. Our system follows federal priority rules, applies correct percentage limits, and maintains the documentation you need for compliance audits.
Don’t let garnishment complexity overwhelm your payroll process. Get started with OnPay today and let our automated system handle the tricky calculations while you focus on running your business.
