Can a check that is already being garnished for child support ALSO be garnished for a past debt?

Question

I am from Utah. I just have a quick question. If someone has child support taken out of each check by the state can they also be garnished by a creditor at the same time? I heard no but someone told me yes. Which is it? I heard that a check cannot be garnished it is already being garnished by the state. were just curious. Thanks!!

Answer 1

Yes, they are able to garnish your wages.  The federal government determines how much money you will be able to live off of based on your exemptions then they take the anything over that amount.  If they don't garnish your wages they can garnish your back account.  Your friend incurred this debt and while it is unfortunate, the creditors are entitled to be repaid. I wish him the best

Answer 2

Yes it can. I have a friend whose check is being garnished by 3 different creditors. Its not right and should not be legal but it is. If this happens to you you can file bankruptcy and it will stop and they will have to leave you alone.  

Answer 3

I'm ,sure but I think it can be garnish more than once.

Answer 4

According to the link I posted in the source box the only part of wages that are exempt from garnishment it the State of Utah is $142.50 of disposable weekly income.

So as long as there is at least that much left it looks like there can be as many garnishments as there is money to support them.

Answer 5

Yes, although laws on this vary by state. It isn't the number of garnishments, it's the percentage of garnishment that can be deducted from each check.  Usually garnishment cannot be more than 20-30% of each paycheck.  So if there is more than one garnishment it means the amount taken will be smaller each time since they have to compete for a smaller piece of the pie.  

Answer 6

It depends.  There are general limits on how much of the total check can be garnished.  if the total is already in use by the child support, then no, the IRS can't add to it.  If there is still some room left in the legal limit, they can.

Answer 7

Unfortunately, any creditor can go to court and have a garnishment put on ANY of your earnings. Some state and most Federal garnishment followow your SSN. You can go to the court (they MUST notify you of  the date, time and place your case will be heard). It is not unusual for an employee to have 2 or 3 attachments on the earnings. Just ask anyone who works in Payroll in a large corporation!

Answer 8

The laws may vary by state, but I believe in Florida that you can have more than one creditor garnishing your wages at the same time.  As en employer, I remember that one time we had an employee that was being garnished for child support and back taxes (by the IRS), and his already small paycheck was nonexistent.   (He quit soon thereafter, which isn't a great option, because since everything's computerized now, his first paycheck with his next employer will trigger the databases, anyway.)