Wage Garnishment — Payroll Definition

Wage Garnishment paystub meaning: Court-ordered deduction from your paycheck to pay debts like child support, student loans, or tax liens. Codes: GARN / CS...

Court-ordered deduction from your paycheck to pay debts like child support, student loans, or tax liens.

A wage garnishment is a legal order requiring your employer to withhold a portion of your earnings to pay a debt. Common garnishments include child support (up to 65% of disposable income), federal student loans (up to 15%), IRS tax levies (varies), and creditor judgments (up to 25% under federal law). Garnishments are involuntary — your employer has no choice but to comply, and they cannot fire you for having a single garnishment order.

A deduction can be pre-tax, post-tax, voluntary, or required. Its label alone does not establish how it affects taxable wages, so check the plan document, employee election, payroll policy, and year-to-date amount.

When this term appears on a statement, read its label, current amount, year-to-date amount, pay-period context, and any adjacent rate or hours together. Resolve a mismatch with the original issuer or the cited authority rather than changing a record to force a preferred result.