Can Bankruptcy Stop a Wage Garnishment in Massachusetts?

Including how the automatic stay works on filing, what Massachusetts law protects on its own, and which garnishments continue anyway.

Legally reviewed by Attorney Michael Goldstein • Massachusetts Bankruptcy Attorney • Last reviewed: August 4, 2026

We are a debt relief agency. We help people file for bankruptcy relief under the Bankruptcy Code. (Required disclosure under 11 U.S.C. §528.)

When this may not apply: This is general information, not legal advice for your situation. Whether the stay stops a particular garnishment depends on your prior filing history, the type of debt behind the attachment, and the posture of the state-court case. If a prior bankruptcy was dismissed within the last year, the timeline changes significantly — talk to a Massachusetts bankruptcy attorney before relying on the general rule.

§1 How quickly does a wage garnishment stop after bankruptcy is filed?

The automatic stay takes effect the instant the bankruptcy petition is filed — no hearing, no judge’s signature, no waiting period.

The automatic stay is a federal court order that arises by operation of law the moment a bankruptcy case is filed. It halts a broad range of collection activity against you, your property, and property of the bankruptcy estate, including wage attachment.

In practice the sequence runs like this:

1. The petition is filed and a case number issues. The stay is effective at this moment.
2. The creditor and your employer’s payroll department are notified of the filing.
3. Payroll stops withholding.

How long that takes depends on your payroll cycle and how notice reaches your employer. A paycheck already in process when notice arrives may still be affected.

If a creditor keeps collecting after learning of the filing, that is a separate problem with its own remedy. Under 11 U.S.C. §362(k), an individual injured by a willful violation of the stay may recover actual damages, including costs and attorney’s fees, and in appropriate circumstances punitive damages. The District of Massachusetts states in its debtor FAQs that parties who violate the automatic stay can, under certain circumstances, be held liable for damages and may be held in contempt of court.

§2 How much of your paycheck can be garnished in Massachusetts?

Massachusetts protects the greater of 85% of your gross wages or 50 times the greater of the federal or the Massachusetts hourly minimum wage. With the Massachusetts minimum wage at $15.00 per hour, that second figure is $750 per week.

A note on terminology: Massachusetts law doesn’t use the word “garnishment.” Chapter 246 of the General Laws is titled Trustee Process, and §28 describes wages being attached and held in the hands of the trustee — the trustee being your employer. What most people call wage garnishment is what Massachusetts calls trustee process or wage attachment.

Because the exemption is the greater of the two amounts, an ordinary judgment creditor can never reach more than 15% of gross wages, and often reaches nothing at all.

Illustration only. These figures apply to ordinary creditor attachment through Massachusetts trustee process, not to support withholding or federal collection.

Worked example: a worker grossing $1,000 per week. Eighty-five percent of gross is $850, which exceeds the $750 floor, so $850 is protected and $150 is available to the creditor each week.

This makes Massachusetts one of the more protective states for wage attachment. The federal baseline under the Consumer Credit Protection Act is the lesser of 25% of disposable earnings or the amount by which disposable earnings exceed 30 times the federal minimum wage — $217.50 per week. The two formulas use different bases, since Massachusetts measures gross wages while the federal limit measures disposable earnings after legally required deductions, so the comparison is directional rather than exact. Where state law protects more, federal law doesn’t displace it. See the Department of Labor’s explanation of the federal limits.

Three limits on the Massachusetts wage exemption

Section 28 also covers pensions. Amounts held by a trustee for you in a pension are exempt from attachment, and the statute defines pension broadly to include ERISA plans, Keogh plans, SEPs, 403(b) annuity plans, and IRAs. But contributions to an individually maintained plan during the five years before a bankruptcy filing or entry of judgment, to the extent they exceed 7% of your total income for that period, fall outside the protection.

The writ must disclose the exemption. Section 28 requires every writ of attachment to state the amount exempted and to direct the trustee to pay that amount over to you, in the same manner and at the same time as if no attachment had been made. This is something you can check on your own paperwork.

Section 28 governs state trustee process. What you may claim as exempt inside a bankruptcy case is a separate question that depends on whether the Massachusetts or the federal exemption system is elected. Massachusetts exemption law protects far more than wages — see will I lose everything if I file bankruptcy.

Section 28 also doesn’t apply to attachment for a divorce, separate maintenance, or child support order, including trustee process to enforce a support order under M.G.L. ch. 208, §36A. Federal support-withholding limits apply in those proceedings instead.

§3 Which wage garnishments are not stopped by bankruptcy?

Bankruptcy doesn’t stop wage withholding for child support or alimony, and it offers only limited protection — or none — to certain repeat filers. The main exceptions:

• Child support and alimony. Covered below.
• Related support enforcement. The stay doesn’t stop suspension or restriction of a driver’s, professional, occupational, or recreational license for support arrears (§362(b)(2)(D)), or interception of a tax refund for support (§362(b)(2)(F)).
• Repeat filings. A prior case dismissed within the past year can cut the stay short or prevent it entirely.
• Criminal proceedings. Section 362(b)(1) excepts the commencement or continuation of a criminal action or proceeding against the debtor.

Does bankruptcy stop child support garnishment?

No. Under 11 U.S.C. §362(b)(2)(C), the automatic stay does not stop the withholding of income for payment of a domestic support obligation under a judicial or administrative order or a statute. This is a categorical exception, not a discretionary one, and it applies whether the income is your property or property of the bankruptcy estate — which means support withholding continues in both Chapter 7 and Chapter 13.

In Massachusetts, income withholding for support runs under Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 119A, §12. Every support order must include a provision for immediate income withholding, which takes effect without any hearing unless the court makes written good-cause findings or the parties agree in writing to direct payment.

Because support obligations continue straight through a bankruptcy case, they sit at the top of the list of payments to protect while a filing is prepared — see which bills you should keep paying before filing bankruptcy.

Does bankruptcy stop an IRS or Massachusetts DOR wage levy?

Yes. This is a point many national articles get wrong. Section 362(b)(9) lets a taxing authority conduct an audit, issue a notice of tax deficiency, demand tax returns, and make an assessment during a bankruptcy case. Levy is not on that list. A tax wage levy is stayed like any other garnishment, even though the underlying tax debt may not be dischargeable.

Massachusetts DOR levies on wages under M.G.L. ch. 62C, §53, and such a levy is continuous from the date it’s first made until the liability is satisfied or becomes unenforceable. DOR levies carry their own exempt-amount rules under §55A and 830 CMR 62C.55A.1 — not the ch. 246 §28 formula above.

If tax debt drove the collection action, the discharge question is separate from the collection question. See our discussion of tax workouts and offers in compromise.

§4 Does the automatic stay still protect Massachusetts repeat filers after 30 days?

In Massachusetts, no — the First Circuit has held that the entire automatic stay terminates on the 30th day for a second-time filer, including as to property of the bankruptcy estate. This is one of the few areas where a generic national answer is actively wrong for a Massachusetts resident.

The mechanics start with 11 U.S.C. §362(c)(3)(A). If you file a Chapter 7, 11, or 13 case and had another case pending and dismissed within the preceding year, the stay terminates on the 30th day after the new filing. The rule doesn’t apply to a case refiled under a chapter other than Chapter 7 after a dismissal under §707(b). If two or more prior cases were dismissed within that year, §362(c)(4) provides that the stay never goes into effect at all.

Courts split on how far that 30-day termination reaches. Most held it ended the stay only as to the debtor and the debtor’s own property, leaving property of the bankruptcy estate protected. In Smith v. Maine Bureau of Revenue Services (In re Smith), 910 F.3d 576 (1st Cir. 2018), the First Circuit adopted the minority view and held that §362(c)(3)(A) terminates the entire stay — as to actions against the debtor, the debtor’s property, and property of the bankruptcy estate. The Fifth Circuit reached the opposite result in Rose v. Select Portfolio Servicing, 945 F.3d 226 (5th Cir. 2019), creating a split that remains unresolved.

Massachusetts sits in the First Circuit, so the Smith rule governs here. The practical consequence is direct: if your prior case was dismissed within the past year and you don’t obtain an extension, the garnishment can resume without the creditor needing relief from the bankruptcy court. Whether withholding restarts automatically depends on the status of the underlying state-court trustee process.

The District of Massachusetts hears these matters in Boston, Worcester, and Springfield, and its guidance on the effect of repeat filing notes that a hearing is likely and the debtor will probably have to appear.

§5 Can you recover wages garnished shortly before filing?

Sometimes. Wages garnished within the 90 days before filing may be recoverable as a preferential transfer, but several conditions have to line up and the analysis is specific to each case.

Section 547(b) allows avoidance of a transfer made to a creditor, on account of a debt owed before the transfer, while you were insolvent, within 90 days before filing, where the transfer let that creditor receive more than it would have received in a Chapter 7 distribution. A wage garnishment can satisfy all five. Insolvency during the 90-day period is presumed under §547(f), so that element usually isn’t the obstacle.

Two limits matter most. Under §547(c)(8), in a case filed by an individual whose debts are primarily consumer debts, a transfer aggregating less than $600 is not avoidable. And the funds have to be recoverable by you rather than the trustee: sections 522(g) and 522(h) let a debtor pursue avoidance where the trustee doesn’t, but only where the transfer was involuntary, you didn’t conceal the property, and the funds could have been claimed as exempt. Which exemption applies depends on whether the Massachusetts or the federal exemption system is elected.

Recovery is not automatic. It may require a demand or an adversary proceeding, and whether pursuing it makes economic sense depends on the amount at stake. Because the filing date is one of several facts that determine what can be recovered, it’s worth reviewing before a case is filed rather than after.

§6 Can your employer fire you over the garnishment or the bankruptcy?

No. Federal law prohibits an employer from terminating you because you filed bankruptcy, and separately prohibits discharge because your wages were garnished for a single debt.

Section 525(b) bars private employers from terminating employment, or discriminating with respect to employment, because a person has filed bankruptcy or has been insolvent. Separately, 15 U.S.C. §1674(a) provides that no employer may discharge an employee because earnings have been subjected to garnishment for any one indebtedness.

Two limits are worth understanding.

The garnishment protection covers one debt. It doesn’t extend to a second, separate garnishment from a different creditor — which is one reason multiple garnishments tend to create an employment problem alongside the financial one.

The bankruptcy protection covers existing employment, not hiring. Section 525(a) applies to governmental units and expressly reaches denial of employment. Section 525(b), which governs private employers, omits that language, and several federal appellate courts have held it doesn’t prevent a private employer from declining to hire someone because of a past bankruptcy. The protection is narrower for job applicants than for current employees.

Employers do learn of a bankruptcy filing in garnishment cases, because payroll has to be notified for withholding to stop.

§7 What if the garnishment is for a defaulted student loan?

The automatic stay stops administrative wage garnishment for federal student loans, even though the loan itself usually isn’t dischargeable. These are two separate questions, and conflating them is the most common error on this topic. The stay halts collection; it doesn’t by itself eliminate the debt.

Administrative wage garnishment for defaulted federal student loans can reach up to 15% of disposable pay under 20 U.S.C. §1095a, and unlike a creditor garnishment it doesn’t require a court judgment first. The Massachusetts trustee-process limits described above don’t apply to it — federal administrative garnishment is governed by its own federal cap.

§8 Can you stop a wage garnishment in Massachusetts without filing bankruptcy?

Sometimes. Bankruptcy isn’t the only route, though it’s the only one that stops collection immediately and by operation of federal law.

The alternatives generally fall into three categories. You may be able to raise the ch. 246 §28 exemption in the state-court trustee process if the amount being withheld exceeds what the statute allows — worth checking, since the writ itself must state the exempt amount. You may be able to negotiate directly with the judgment creditor, since most will consider a payment arrangement in place of continued attachment. And where the debt load is smaller or the circumstances unusual, settlement may resolve the underlying judgment — see Massachusetts debt settlement as an alternative to bankruptcy.

None of these carries the automatic stay’s immediate stopping power, and none stops other creditors from pursuing their own remedies. If more than one creditor is already garnishing, that difference is usually decisive.

§9 Does Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 stop a garnishment faster?

Neither is faster. Both chapters trigger the same automatic stay, so a garnishment stops either way. What differs is what happens to the underlying debt, which determines whether the garnishment can come back.

In a Chapter 7 case, a dischargeable debt is eliminated and the discharge injunction under 11 U.S.C. §524(a)(2) permanently bars further collection of it from you personally. A discharge doesn’t by itself remove a judgment lien from property, which is a separate question requiring a separate motion. See Chapter 7 bankruptcy in Massachusetts.

In a Chapter 13 case, the debt is addressed through a repayment plan running three to five years under §1322(d). That’s often the better structure when the debt isn’t dischargeable — support arrears and certain tax debts, for example — or when there’s property to protect. See Chapter 13 bankruptcy in Massachusetts.

Chapter 13 also offers one protection Chapter 7 doesn’t: under §1301, filing generally stays collection against a co-debtor on a consumer debt, which matters if a co-signer’s wages are also being attached. And it handles a garnishment and a mortgage problem at the same time — see using Chapter 13 to stop a foreclosure.

When might bankruptcy not stop your wage garnishment?

The answer above describes the ordinary case. It may not hold if:

• A prior bankruptcy case was dismissed within the last 12 months
• The garnishment is for child support, alimony, or criminal restitution
• A creditor already obtained relief from the automatic stay in a prior case
• Wages are being withheld for something other than a judgment — a voluntary wage assignment, or an employer recouping an overpayment
• The underlying debt isn’t dischargeable, so collection may resume after the case ends
• Your income is a pension distribution rather than wages, which follows different rules
• You haven’t been sued yet, and no judgment or attachment exists

Which of these applies depends on facts that don’t appear in a general article — your dismissal history, the nature of the debt, and the posture of the state-court case. Chapter selection turns on the same facts; see how much you can make before filing Chapter 7 or Chapter 13.

The bottom line

Three things to know before your next paycheck

• The stay works on filing, not on notice. Protection is legally effective the moment the petition is filed, but payroll usually stops withholding only once it’s notified — so one more check may still be affected.
• Massachusetts already protects most of your paycheck. The greater of 85% of gross wages or $750 per week is exempt from ordinary creditor attachment, which means an ordinary judgment creditor never reaches more than 15% of gross.
• Support withholding and repeat filings are the two big exceptions. Child support and alimony continue regardless of a filing. And in the First Circuit, a second filing within a year loses the stay entirely on day 31 unless the court extends it first.