Texas Wage Garnishment Calculator

Pri Geens

Pri Geens

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Texas Wage Garnishment Calculator

Calculate wage garnishment limits under Texas law. Texas Property Code § 42.001, Texas Family Code § 158.001, 15 U.S.C. 1671-1677. Estimates only.

Rules encoded (VERIFY): Texas is one of the most protective states for wage garnishment. Under Texas Property Code § 42.001, current wages are exempt from attachment, execution, and other seizure for consumer and medical debts. Exceptions exist only for child support, alimony, federal tax debts, and federal student loans. Child support withholding follows CCPA tiers 50/55/60/65% per Texas Family Code § 158.001. Federal student loan AWG uses 15%. Federal tax debts follow IRS Pub 1494. Texas has no state income tax. Post-judgment interest is generally 5% or the contract rate (Texas Finance Code § 304.003).

1. Mode, county and pay date

Stack uses the order boxes in section 3.
Texas uses federal $7.25 minimum wage for garnishment calculations.
District Court venue.
Federal 30x test runs weekly; scaled by 52 / periods.
Select a county to see the venue note and federal floor figures.

2. Gross pay and legally required withholding

Includes bonuses and commissions.
Texas has NO state income tax.
Voluntary 401(k) excluded.
Take-home only; not in the garnishment base.

3. Order type and amounts

0 applies the statutory maximum.
Reduces the 25% aggregate room.
Shares the 25% ceiling.

4. Balance and payoff

Texas post-judgment interest: 5% or contract rate (Texas Finance Code § 304.003 – VERIFY).

How it works

  • Disposable = gross minus legally required withholding; voluntary shown separately.
  • Weekly conversion = 52 / periods (1, 2, 2.1667, 4.3333).
  • Texas Property Code § 42.001 exempts current wages from attachment, execution, and other seizure for consumer and medical debts.
  • Consumer debts = PROHIBITED from wage garnishment in Texas.
  • Support = lesser of ordered and CCPA tier 50/55/60/65% of disposable earnings per Texas Family Code § 158.001.
  • Federal tax = up to 25% of disposable earnings per CCPA (IRS Pub 1494).
  • Student loan AWG = lesser of 15% disposable and above the federal 30x floor.
  • Chapter 13 = the confirmed plan payment, capped at disposable earnings.
  • Stack applies precedence in order.
  • Payoff amortizes at the entered rate and flags non-amortizing or zero-withholding cases.

Sources

  • Texas Property Code § 42.001 (wage garnishment prohibition for consumer debts): statutes.capitol.texas.gov
  • Texas Family Code § 158.001 et seq. (support withholding): statutes.capitol.texas.gov
  • Texas Finance Code § 304.003 (post-judgment interest: 5% or contract rate): statutes.capitol.texas.gov
  • 15 U.S.C. 1671-1677 (Consumer Credit Protection Act): dol.gov
  • DOL Fact Sheet 30 (wage garnishment protections): dol.gov
  • Texas Comptroller (comptroller.texas.gov)
  • IRS Pub 1494 and Form 668-W: irs.gov
  • 20 U.S.C. 1095a, 34 CFR 34.19 (student loan AWG): studentaid.gov

Test cases

TC1 Harris County, 2026, weekly, consumer debt. Gross $1,000.00; required $200.00; disposable $800.00. Texas Property Code § 42.001 exempts current wages from consumer debt garnishment. Withheld $0.00, take-home $800.00.
TC2 Dallas County, 2026, weekly, medical debt. Gross $800.00; required $150.00; disposable $650.00. Medical debts are also exempt from wage garnishment in Texas. Withheld $0.00, take-home $650.00.
TC3 Tarrant County, 2026, biweekly, child support. Gross $2,400.00; required $560.00; disposable $1,840.00. With no second family and no arrears, the CCPA tier is 60% = $1,104.00. Withheld $1,104.00, take-home $736.00.
TC4 Bexar County, 2026, semimonthly, federal student loan AWG. Gross $2,600.00; required $600.00; disposable $2,000.00. The 15% AWG cap is $300.00. Withheld $300.00, take-home $1,400.00.
TC5 Travis County, 2026, monthly, consumer debt. Gross $4,000.00; required $1,000.00; disposable $3,000.00. Consumer debt is prohibited from wage garnishment in Texas. Withheld $0.00, take-home $3,000.00.
Estimates only; not legal advice. All figures VERIFY, including the Texas wage garnishment prohibition under Texas Property Code § 42.001, the CCPA support tiers, the federal student loan 15% cap, and the 5% post-judgment interest rate. Not modeled: contested exemption hearings, automatic stays, self-employment income, bonuses, severance, pensions, unemployment or workers compensation. Consult a Texas attorney or Texas Legal Services. Deploy: replace the block, Update, purge cache, hard refresh; verify document.getElementById(“texas-wage-garnishment-calculator”).getAttribute(“data-js-ready”) returns “true” with no SyntaxError.

What Is a Texas Wage Garnishment Calculator?

A Texas wage garnishment calculator estimates paycheck withholding by subtracting legally required deductions from gross earnings and applying rules for the selected order type. It calculates withholding for consumer debt, medical debt, support orders, federal student loans, federal tax debts, and Chapter 13 plan payments. It can also estimate the combined effect of selected orders.

Wage garnishment occurs when money is withheld from earnings to satisfy a debt or legal obligation. The type of obligation matters because different withholding limits may apply.

The calculator models Texas consumer and medical debt wage garnishment as prohibited, producing a $0.00 withholding result for those categories. It calculates other order types using separate formulas and assumptions.

You can use the calculator to examine one order, compare multiple withholding requests through stacking mode, or estimate how many pay periods a balance might take to repay. All legal rules, exemption amounts, and procedural notes should be independently verified before relying on the results.

How the Texas Wage Garnishment Calculation Works

The calculator begins with disposable earnings. It then applies the calculation associated with the selected order type. Pay frequency affects several limits, and the amount demanded can reduce the calculated withholding.

Step 1: Calculate Disposable Earnings

Disposable earnings are the portion of gross pay remaining after deductions the calculator treats as legally required.

D=G−min⁡(G,R)D=G-\min(G,R)

In this formula, D represents disposable earnings, G is gross pay for the period, and R is the total of legally required deductions. The calculator limits required deductions to gross pay, preventing negative disposable earnings.

Required deductions include federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare, mandatory retirement contributions, and other required withholding. Voluntary deductions, such as health insurance payments, voluntary 401(k) contributions, and dues, are excluded from the disposable earnings calculation. They are instead subtracted when estimating take-home pay.

Step 2: Calculate the Federal Earnings Floor

The calculator uses an encoded federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour and a 30-times multiplier, producing a weekly earnings floor of $217.50.

F=30×7.25×52NF=30\times7.25\times\frac{52}{N}

Here, F is the earnings floor for the selected pay period, and N is the number of pay periods per year.

Pay FrequencyPeriods Per YearCalculated Floor Per Period
Weekly52$217.50
Biweekly26$435.00
Semimonthly24$471.25
Monthly12$942.50

The calculator also displays 25% of disposable earnings and the amount exceeding this earnings floor. These figures help explain the modeled limits, but the actual withholding formula depends on the selected order type.

Step 3: Apply the Order-Specific Withholding Rules

Consumer and medical debt: The calculator assigns $0.00 withholding, regardless of the amount demanded. This reflects its encoded Texas wage exemption treatment.

Child support and alimony: The calculator multiplies disposable earnings by a support withholding percentage.

Wsupport=r×DW_{\text{support}}=r\times D

W is the support withholding ceiling, r is the applicable rate, and D is disposable earnings. The calculator uses a 50% rate when the second-family box is checked and 60% otherwise. Checking the box for arrears 12 weeks or older adds five percentage points, resulting in rates of 55% or 65%.

If a positive amount demanded is lower than the calculated ceiling, the calculator uses that smaller amount. Entering zero for the amount demanded applies the full calculated ceiling.

Federal student loan administrative wage garnishment (AWG): The calculator takes the smaller of 15% of disposable earnings and disposable earnings above the scaled federal floor.

Wstudent=min⁡(0.15D,max⁡(0,D−F))W_{\text{student}}=\min\left(0.15D,\max(0,D-F)\right)

A positive amount demanded below this limit reduces the withholding to that requested amount.

Federal tax debt: The calculator estimates an exempt amount using its built-in figures for the selected year, filing status, dependents, and age-65 or blindness selections.

E=S+(5300×d)+(1600×a)NE=\frac{S+(5300\times d)+(1600\times a)}{N}

E is the estimated exempt amount per pay period, S is the calculator's stored annual standard deduction figure, d is the number of dependents, a is the number of selected age-65 or blindness boxes, and N is the pay periods per year.

The calculation uses stored figures for 2024, 2025, and 2026. A positive exempt-amount override replaces this estimate. The modeled levy is disposable earnings minus the exempt amount, with a minimum of zero. A smaller positive amount demanded further limits the result. The displayed 25% reference figure does not cap this federal tax calculation.

Chapter 13 plan: The calculator converts the monthly plan payment into an amount for the selected pay frequency.

WChapter 13=min⁡(D,12MN)W_{\text{Chapter 13}}=\min\left(D,\frac{12M}{N}\right)

M is the entered monthly plan payment. The resulting amount cannot exceed disposable earnings in the single-order calculation, and a smaller positive amount demanded can reduce it.

Worked Example: Biweekly Child Support Withholding

Suppose a worker enters $2,400 in biweekly gross pay and $560 in total required deductions. For this hypothetical example, the worker does not select second-family support or older arrears, and the amount demanded is zero.

D=2400−560=1840D=2400-560=1840
Wsupport=1840×0.60=1104W_{\text{support}}=1840\times0.60=1104

The calculator estimates $1,104.00 withheld per biweekly pay period. With no voluntary deductions, estimated take-home pay is $736.00. The result reflects the calculator's 60% support tier and should not be treated as confirmation of an actual withholding order.

Step 4: Estimate Debt Payoff Time

In payoff mode, the calculator uses the balance owed, calculated periodic withholding, entered annual interest rate, and number of pay periods per year.

i=APR100Ni=\frac{\text{APR}}{100N}

Here, i is the periodic interest rate. When interest is positive and the payment exceeds the interest accruing on the balance, the calculator estimates the number of payments using:

n=⌈−ln⁡(1−BiP)ln⁡(1+i)⌉n=\left\lceil\frac{-\ln\left(1-\frac{Bi}{P}\right)}{\ln(1+i)}\right\rceil

B is the balance owed, P is the withholding payment per period, and n is the number of whole payment periods, rounded upward. When the entered interest rate is zero, the calculator instead rounds B divided by P upward.

For positive-interest calculations, the displayed total paid equals the number of periods multiplied by the full periodic payment, and displayed interest equals that total minus the original balance. This simplifies the final payment and may overstate the amount needed to settle the balance exactly.

If withholding is zero or a positive-interest payment does not cover the interest accruing each period, the calculator does not produce a payoff timeline. It displays an explanatory message instead.

How to Use the Texas Wage Garnishment Calculator

  1. Choose a calculation mode. Select Single order, Stacking, or Payoff timeline.
  2. Select the pay details. Choose the year wages are payable (2024, 2025, or 2026), a Texas county option, and your pay frequency.
  3. Enter gross earnings. Provide your gross pay for one pay period, including applicable bonuses and commissions.
  4. Enter payroll deductions. Add federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare, mandatory retirement, and other required withholding. Enter voluntary deductions separately.
  5. Choose the order type. Select consumer debt, medical debt, child support, alimony, federal student loan AWG, federal tax debt, or Chapter 13 plan.
  6. Provide order details. Enter the amount demanded and any existing support withholding or other garnishments. For applicable order types, complete the additional support, IRS, or Chapter 13 fields.
  7. Complete mode-specific inputs. In stacking mode, enter the requested amounts for support, federal tax, student loans, and consumer debt. For a meaningful payoff estimate, enter a positive balance and the annual interest rate.
  8. Calculate your result. Check the required acknowledgment and select Calculate. Use Reset if you want to restore the initial field values.

The main result shows estimated withholding for the selected single order. The detailed results show disposable earnings, withholding limits, remaining room, take-home pay, and the percentage of disposable earnings withheld. Stacking mode adds a separate priority waterfall, while payoff mode shows the estimated repayment schedule.

Gross pay must be greater than zero, a county must be selected, and the acknowledgment is required. The calculator also checks numeric input limits and reports field errors when applicable.

What Your Wage Garnishment Result Means

Withholding, Disposable Earnings, and Take-Home Pay

The primary withholding amount is displayed in dollars for one pay period. The calculator also converts that amount into weekly and annual equivalents, using the selected pay frequency.

Estimated take-home pay is gross pay minus required deductions, voluntary deductions, and calculated withholding. If the result is negative, the calculator displays zero instead. This is a simplified paycheck estimate and may differ from actual payroll processing.

The results include a percentage and visual meter showing the share of disposable earnings withheld. The meter is scaled against 65%, with visual color changes at 10% and 25%. These color changes are display settings, not separate legal determinations.

Understanding Stacking Mode

Stacking mode models four requested order categories in this sequence: support, federal tax, federal student loan AWG, and consumer debt. The calculator first applies its support limit, then estimates federal tax withholding from the remaining disposable amount above the estimated IRS exemption. It next calculates student loan withholding using the original disposable earnings and its student loan cap. Consumer debt withholding is zero.

The priority waterfall displays the calculated amount for each category, total withholding, and take-home pay. The main result at the top still describes the separately selected single order, not the waterfall total.

One important limitation is that the stacking calculation does not apply another remaining-pay cap at the student loan step. As a result, its combined withholding figure should be reviewed carefully rather than assumed to represent the legally available amount.

Understanding the 25% Limit and Existing Garnishments

The calculator displays 25% of disposable earnings and calculates remaining room by subtracting entered existing support withholding and other garnishments from that figure, with a minimum of zero.

However, these existing-withholding amounts affect the displayed room figure rather than automatically reducing the actual single-order withholding calculation. The program also uses different limits for support, federal tax, student loans, and Chapter 13 payments. Do not assume the displayed 25% figure controls every order type.

Important Assumptions and Limitations

The county selection supplies a venue note but does not change the calculator's mathematical withholding rules. The year selection affects its stored IRS exemption figures. Federal tax estimates are simplified and may not match the exemption table supplied with an actual levy notice.

The payoff section starts with a 5% annual interest rate, which users can change within the input's 0% to 40% range. This default is not a verified rate for a particular judgment or debt. The calculation also assumes a consistent withholding amount and interest rate across the projected repayment period.

The calculator supplies informational notes about exemptions, employment protections, court venue, and possible challenges. These notes do not establish eligibility, legal protection, or a filing deadline for an individual case. The calculator itself marks its legal assumptions for verification.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can wages be garnished for consumer or medical debt in Texas?

The calculator treats both consumer and medical debt wage garnishment as prohibited in Texas. Selecting either debt type produces a $0.00 withholding result, even when a positive amount is demanded. This reflects the tool's encoded interpretation of Texas wage protections and does not replace a legal review of the particular situation.

What is the difference between gross pay and disposable earnings?

Gross pay is earnings before deductions. Disposable earnings are what remains after deductions the calculator classifies as legally required. Federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare, mandatory retirement, and other required withholding reduce disposable earnings. Voluntary deductions are handled separately when calculating estimated take-home pay.

Why does the child support withholding percentage change?

The percentage changes according to two checkbox selections. The calculator uses 50% when support for a second spouse or child is selected and 60% otherwise. Checking the option for arrears 12 weeks or older adds five percentage points. The resulting modeled percentages are 50%, 55%, 60%, or 65% of disposable earnings.

Does the 25% wage garnishment limit apply to every order?

No. The calculator displays 25% of disposable earnings as a reference but uses separate formulas for the different order types. Support uses percentage tiers, federal student loan AWG uses a 15% calculation and earnings floor, federal tax uses an estimated exempt amount, and Chapter 13 uses a periodic plan payment calculation.

How does the calculator estimate federal tax garnishment?

The calculator uses built-in annual deduction figures for the selected pay year and filing status, adding its specified allowances for dependents and age-65 or blindness selections. It divides that amount by annual pay periods and subtracts the resulting exemption from disposable earnings. You can enter a positive exempt-amount override. This is a simplified model, not an official IRS levy determination.

What happens when multiple garnishment orders are entered?

Stacking mode calculates a priority waterfall for support, federal tax, federal student loan AWG, and consumer debt. It shows the amounts assigned to each category and their combined withholding. This is different from single-order mode, which calculates one selected order. The stacking result should be checked because its implementation has specific assumptions about remaining earnings.

Why does the payoff calculator show no repayment timeline?

The calculator cannot produce a positive payoff timeline when the balance is zero, withholding is zero, or the periodic withholding fails to cover accruing interest. It displays an explanatory message for those conditions. When a payoff calculation is possible, it estimates whole payment periods, calendar time, total paid, and interest using the entered balance and rate.

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