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IRS Wage Garnishment Calculator

Updated August 15, 2026

By Angeline Balsitis, EA · Reviewed by Melissa Ly, Chief Tax Officer

The IRS doesn't take a percentage like other creditors. It leaves you a fixed exempt amount and takes everything above it. Enter your details to see how much of each paycheck it can levy, using the 2026 Publication 1494 tables. Runs privately in your browser.

Why an IRS wage levy is different

Most wage garnishments are capped at 25% of your disposable pay. The IRS plays by its own rules. Under a federal levy, the IRS leaves you only the exempt amount from Publication 1494 — your standard deduction plus an amount for each dependent, spread across your pay periods — and takes everything else. For a higher earner, that can mean the IRS sweeps the large majority of each paycheck.

It's also continuous: once your employer receives the levy (Form 668-W), it keeps sending your pay to the IRS every period until the IRS formally releases it. That's why waiting rarely helps. The fastest releases usually come from an installment agreement, proving hardship for Currently Not Collectible status, an offer in compromise, or a Collection Due Process appeal. Our wage garnishment release team handles these directly with the IRS.

What this garnishment estimate can’t tell you

An IRS wage levy leaves you an exempt amount based on your filing status and the dependents you claim, and takes essentially everything above it. That is the calculation here. Several things sit outside it.

• What your employer actually does. Timing depends on the payroll cycle and when the notice reached them, so the first affected cheque is often not the one people expect.
• Other orders already in place. Child support and other garnishments interact with a federal levy and change what is left.
• State levies. A state tax agency can levy separately on its own rules. Nothing here covers that.
• Bonuses and irregular pay. Non-standard pay is not always treated the way regular wages are.

If a levy is already active, the date on the notice matters more than the estimate.

What the garnishment amount is calculated from

An IRS wage levy does not take a percentage. It works the other way round: a fixed amount is exempt and everything above it goes to the tax debt, so the garnishment amount rises with your gross earnings rather than staying proportional to them. The exempt figure comes from your filing status and dependants, claimed on the statement your employer gives you when the levy lands.

That is why a raise or a second job can feel as though it changed nothing, and why returning the exemption statement matters more than almost anything else in the first week. If it is not returned, the exempt amount defaults to the lowest possible figure.

Where the exempt figure comes from

The number your employer must leave you is not guesswork on their part. It is read off the IRS wage garnishment table published each year in Publication 1494, indexed by filing status and the number of dependants you claim on the statement the employer hands you. Return that statement and the table gives you the larger exemption. Ignore it and the employer is required to apply the lowest figure on the sheet.

Common questions

Clarity Tax Relief is not affiliated with the IRS or any government agency. This calculator is general information, not individualized tax or legal advice; exact exempt amounts and outcomes depend on individual facts, and no outcome is guaranteed.

More tools: OIC Calculator · CSED Calculator · Penalty & Interest Calculator. Reviewed by Melissa Ly, Chief Tax Officer.

“Part of your wages may be exempt from the levy and the exempt amount will be paid to you.”

— IRS, Information about wage levies

The passage quoted above is from IRS, Information about wage levies.