Wage Garnishment vs. Income Deduction in Florida

The threat of reporting a delinquency to the credit reporting bureaus is usually enough motivation to urge a debtor to begin to repay his debts. In cases where a debtor doesn't cooperate with creditors, Florida courts may take action to seize a portion of his paycheck or bank balance from him involuntarily. The court uses two methods to force payment of debt: wage garnishment and income reduction, depending upon the debtor and the type of debt owed.

Wage Garnishment

In Florida, wage garnishment is the primary means used to force a debtor to repay his overdue debts; it may be used by any creditor with a legitimate claim. Creditors must petition the court to receive a writ of garnishment, which is a court order issued to a creditor's employer to withhold an amount out of the debtor's paycheck until the debt is paid --- or in the case of noncustodial parents, until their child is too old to receive child support. The amount ordered by the writ of garnishment is deducted from the paycheck each pay cycle and mailed to the court, which then provides the creditor with the funds.

Wage Garnishment Limitations

Although any creditor in Florida may use wage garnishment, its reach is limited by state and federal law. Creditors who are heads of their household, earners who provide one half of a child's support, must earn at least $500 weekly before garnishment may apply, but non-heads-of-household aren't subject to minimum earning limitations. The first 25 percent of a debtor's disposable income, or 30 times the federal minimum wage --- $217.50 as of July 2011 --- is exempt from garnishments, as housing, food and child support allowances are applied to reduce a debtor's weekly earnings when the court determines his disposable income.

Income Deduction

Income deduction is similar to wage garnishment, but it isn't subject to the limitations of Florida and federal wage garnishment laws. Because of this, debtors may face much more significant reductions in their earnings if they qualify for income reduction. In Florida, only family law court may issue writs of income deduction, and they're set to expire when a child reaches her 18th birthday. As with writs of garnishment, they're served to employers, who pay the Florida Department of Revenue the mandated withholding.

Income Deduction Limits

Florida parents who are subject to income reduction proceedings face much larger deductions of their wages. Income deduction isn't based upon disposable income, but rather gross income, so cost of living allowances don't reduce a debtor's deductible income. A parent with a new dependent triggering the income deduction may have up to 50 percent of her weekly wages withheld to provide for current support, and up to 55 percent if delinquent payments must also be gathered. A parent without new dependents may face income deductions up to 60 percent of her total paycheck, or 65 percent if she has delinquent prior payments due.