Wage Garnishment in Hawaiʻi: How Much They Can Take, and How to Stop It
This guide is legal information, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every situation is different, and the right move in your case depends on your facts. For advice about your own situation, start with my free questionnaire or call me at (808) 468-7000.
I work hard to keep this page accurate, but errors or omissions are possible and the law can change. The information here is current only as of the date above.
How much of your paycheck can be garnished in Hawaiʻi?
Less than federal law would allow. For an ordinary judgment debt, Hawaiʻi limits a creditor to 5% of the first $100 you earn in a month, 10% of the next $100, and 20% of everything above $200, figured on what is left after the deductions the law already requires from your pay. The federal ceiling is 25%, and where the two differ the more protective rule applies. Two exceptions sit outside that cap: child support and alimony, which reach a great deal more, and the State of Hawaiʻi collecting its own taxes, which can take 25% of your gross pay. Filing bankruptcy stops all of it except child support and alimony, the day the case is filed.
Losing part of every paycheck to a garnishment is hard on a working person, especially with the cost of living in Hawaiʻi. This is one of the fastest problems bankruptcy solves. The garnishment does not wind down over weeks. It stops on the day the case is filed.
Key Takeaways
- Hawaiʻi and federal law each set a limit, and the one that protects more of your pay is the one that applies. The Hawaiʻi tiers are 5% of the first $100 a month, 10% of the next $100, and 20% above $200. For most paychecks those tiers govern. For someone earning very little, the federal limit protects more.
- The percentages come off what is left, not off gross. They apply to wages remaining after the deductions the law already requires from your check.
- Support is the exception, in both directions. Child support and alimony are not held to that cap, and they are the one kind of garnishment a bankruptcy filing does not stop, in either chapter.
- The State of Hawaiʻi is not held to that limit. Its Department of Taxation can withhold 25% of your gross pay to collect unpaid state tax, and it does not have to go to court first.
- For an ordinary debt, a creditor needs a judgment first. In almost every case, nothing can be taken from your pay until the creditor has sued you and won.
- Filing stops it the same day. Not in a few weeks. The automatic stay takes effect the instant the case is filed.
- Money taken recently may come back. Wages garnished in the 90 days before filing can sometimes be recovered.
How Much of Your Paycheck a Creditor Can Take
For an ordinary debt, Hawaiʻi law sets the maximum a creditor can take from your paycheck well below what federal law would permit, and it writes that maximum as three tiers rather than one flat percentage.
The limit is 5% of the first $100 you earn in a month, 10% of the next $100, and 20% of everything above $200. It works in tiers, the way income tax brackets do, so no single percentage applies to the whole check.
| Of your monthly earnings | The most that can be taken |
|---|---|
| The first $100 | 5% |
| The next $100 | 10% |
| Everything above $200 | 20% |
Those percentages come off what is left after the deductions the law already requires, not off your gross pay.
Federal law sets a second limit, and it is not always the weaker one. The federal ceiling is 25% of disposable earnings, and underneath that percentage sits a floor that protects a minimum amount of pay each week no matter what the percentage would allow. Where the two rules differ, the one that protects more of your paycheck is the one that applies, and they are compared each pay period. For most paychecks that is the Hawaiʻi limit, so the tiers above are what an ordinary judgment creditor here actually works with. For someone earning very little the federal floor protects more, and at the low end it can leave a paycheck untouched.
Child support and alimony are the exception, in both directions. They are not held to the ordinary cap, and federal law allows a much larger share of a paycheck to be taken for them, more than half in some circumstances. They are also the one kind of garnishment that a bankruptcy filing does not stop, in either chapter. What a Chapter 13 does offer is a way to deal with support arrears, by paying them through the plan.
The State of Hawaiʻi collecting its own taxes is the other exception. The Department of Taxation can direct your employer to withhold 25% of your gross salary, wages, or compensation, and it does not have to sue you or obtain a court order first. Gross, not net. That is a larger share, taken from a larger number, and reached faster than any ordinary creditor can manage. If unpaid state tax is what sits behind your garnishment, my guide to tax debt in bankruptcy covers which tax years can be erased and which never can.
How a Wage Garnishment Happens in the First Place
Most wage garnishments do not appear out of nowhere. For an ordinary debt like a credit card, a medical bill, or a personal loan, a creditor almost always has to sue you and win a judgment before it can take money from your paycheck. That is why a garnishment usually follows a collection lawsuit that went unanswered or was lost.
A few kinds of debt work differently. Child support, certain unpaid taxes, defaulted federal student loans, and money owed to a federal agency, including an SBA loan, can reach your wages without going through that same court judgment. Each follows its own rules, and bankruptcy treats each of them differently, which is why the debt behind your garnishment matters as much as the garnishment itself.
How Bankruptcy Stops the Garnishment
The automatic stay comes from Section 362 of the Bankruptcy Code. The moment your case is filed, it halts the garnishment. My office notifies your employer’s payroll department and the creditor, and the deductions stop. For many people, the very next paycheck is whole again. If you have had a bankruptcy case dismissed within the past year, that protection can be much shorter or may not arrive at all, so tell me at the start if you have filed before.
You do not have to go to court or win an argument to make this happen. The protection comes from the filing itself. I cover the stay in more depth in my Chapter 7 guide.
The one carve-out to know: a garnishment for child support or alimony continues. The Bankruptcy Code specifically excepts domestic support obligations from the automatic stay, so that collection keeps running even after you file. Every other kind, a credit card judgment, a medical debt, an old personal loan, has to stop the day you file.
Can You Get Back Money Already Taken?
Sometimes, yes. If a large amount was garnished from your wages in the 90 days before you file, some of it may be recoverable. The law lets you undo certain transfers made shortly before filing, and when the garnished wages are protected by an exemption, that money can come back to you.
Three conditions make this work: the amount taken has to be significant, the timing has to be right, and an exemption has to cover the money. The recovery window is short, so if a garnishment is active, the smartest move is to call before your next payday, not after. Every pay period that passes is money that may be harder to recover.
Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 for a Garnishment?
Both chapters stop the garnishment the day you file, so the real question is what happens to the debt behind it.
- Chapter 7 erases most unsecured debts, including the credit card or medical judgment that led to the garnishment, usually within a few months. For many people garnished on consumer debt, this is the direct route.
- Chapter 13 sets up a three to five year repayment plan. It is the right tool when the garnishment is for a debt that survives bankruptcy, such as certain taxes or support arrears, or when you also need to catch up on a mortgage and save your home. The plan folds those debts into one manageable payment, and the garnishment still stops.
Which one fits depends on your goals, income, expenses, property, and debts. That is exactly what the free questionnaire is built to sort out.
Let’s talk about your options.
I have helped more than a thousand people through this. Tell me what you are dealing with and I will tell you what you may qualify for: Chapter 7, Chapter 13, or another path entirely.
What to Do Right Now if You Are Being Garnished
If money is already being taken from your pay, a few steps protect you:
- Do not ignore it. A garnishment usually means a judgment already exists, and waiting only lets more be taken from each check.
- Save your recent pay stubs. They show how much is being taken from each check, which helps me confirm what may be recoverable.
- Call before payday. The sooner I file, the sooner the deductions stop, and the better the chance of recovering recent withholdings.
I work with people on every island, by phone or video, so where you live does not change what I can do about a garnishment, whether you are on Oʻahu, Maui, Kauaʻi, Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi or Hawaiʻi Island.
You do not need to have everything figured out before you call. Sorting it out is my job.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much can a creditor garnish from my paycheck in Hawaiʻi?
For an ordinary judgment debt, 5% of the first $100 you earn in a month, 10% of the next $100, and 20% of everything above $200. Those percentages apply to what is left after the deductions the law already requires from your pay, not to your gross. Federal law would allow up to 25%, and where the two differ, the rule that protects more of your paycheck is the one that applies.
Can a creditor garnish my wages without suing me first?
For an ordinary debt, no. A credit card company, a medical provider or a personal lender almost always has to sue you and win a judgment before it can take anything from your paycheck. Several kinds of debt skip that step: child support, some unpaid taxes, defaulted federal student loans, and money owed to a federal agency can reach your wages without a court judgment first.
Can the State of Hawaiʻi take more of my pay than a regular creditor?
Yes. The Hawaiʻi Department of Taxation can direct your employer to withhold 25% of your gross salary, wages, or compensation to collect unpaid state taxes, and it does not have to sue you or get a court order first. That is a larger percentage taken from a larger number. Filing bankruptcy stops a state tax garnishment the same way it stops any other.
How quickly does bankruptcy stop a wage garnishment in Hawaiʻi?
It stops the day your case is filed. The automatic stay takes effect the instant the petition is filed, and it halts wage garnishments other than for child support and alimony. Once your employer’s payroll office receives notice, the deductions stop and your next paycheck comes to you whole.
Can I get back money that was already garnished?
Sometimes, yes. If a significant amount was taken from your pay in the 90 days before you filed, some of it may be recoverable as an avoidable transfer, provided the money is protected by an exemption. The window is short and the rules are specific, so the timing of your filing matters. Tell me about any active garnishment before I file.
Which is better for a garnishment, Chapter 7 or Chapter 13?
Both stop the garnishment immediately, so the better choice depends on the debt behind it and the rest of your finances. Chapter 7 erases most unsecured debt in a few months. Chapter 13 sets up a repayment plan and is the right tool when the garnishment is for a debt that survives bankruptcy or when you need to protect a home.
Will my employer know I filed bankruptcy?
Your employer learns only what it needs to stop the garnishment. When the court notice reaches your payroll office, the message is that deductions must stop, not the details of your finances.
Key Terms, Explained
- Garnishment
- A court-ordered deduction taken from your pay by your employer and sent to a creditor, before the money ever reaches you.
- Garnishee
- The party holding money that belongs to you and ordered to hand it over, which in a wage garnishment is your employer.
- Disposable earnings
- What is left of your pay after the deductions the law requires, such as taxes and withholding. Garnishment percentages are figured on this, not on gross pay.
- Judgment creditor
- A creditor that has sued you and won. For an ordinary debt, a creditor has to reach this point before it can take anything from your paycheck.
- Automatic stay
- A federal injunction, meaning a binding legal order, that takes effect the instant a bankruptcy case is filed and halts collection, including wage garnishment.
- Exemption
- A law that protects specific property, or specific money, from creditors. Wages garnished shortly before filing can sometimes be recovered when an exemption covers them.
Sources & Legal Authorities
The authorities behind this guide.
- United States Code. 11 U.S.C. § 362; § 522; § 1306(a)(2); 15 U.S.C. § 1673(a); § 1673(b); § 1677
- Hawaiʻi Revised Statutes. HRS § 652-1(a); § 652-1(b); § 652-1.5
- Other. Hawaiʻi Department of Taxation, Wage Levy for Individuals
