Oregon Claim of Exemption
File an Oregon claim of exemption to protect wages from garnishment. Learn the Challenge to Garnishment form, the 120-day window, and what income is exempt.
Introduction
An Oregon claim of exemption is a request you file to protect some or all of your wages or bank funds from a garnishment. An exemption is money the law says a creditor cannot take. After a creditor wins a judgment, it can serve a writ of garnishment on your employer or bank and pull money from what you have. In Oregon you push back with the Challenge to Garnishment form. If you want to claim wages or salary as exempt, you have 120 days after you receive the Notice of Exempt Property to mail or deliver that form to the court administrator shown on the writ. Oregon protects the greater of 75 percent of your disposable earnings or a set weekly minimum, and some income like Social Security is off limits entirely. Money can be held while the challenge is decided, so act quickly. DocDraft prepares an Oregon claim of exemption from your details, and attorney review is available before you file.
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Key Things to Know
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An Oregon claim of exemption, filed as the Challenge to Garnishment, is a form you send to the court to protect some or all of your wages or bank funds from garnishment. It tells the court the money is exempt, meaning a creditor cannot take it.
- 2
To claim wages or salary as exempt, you have 120 days after you receive the Notice of Exempt Property to mail or deliver the Challenge to Garnishment form. This challenge window for wages is unusually long compared with most states.
- 3
Oregon protects more of your pay than the federal floor. Under ORS 18.385 the exempt amount is the greater of 75 percent of your disposable earnings or a set weekly minimum, which is 400 dollars a week for pay periods from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027.
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The deadline is much shorter for a bank account. If a creditor garnishes property other than wages, such as funds in your account, you generally have only 30 days after you receive the notice to challenge it, so do not wait.
- 5
Some income is exempt no matter the debt. Social Security, disability, veterans benefits, and many pensions and public benefits are protected, and the Challenge to Garnishment is how you free those funds if a bank has frozen them.
- 6
Money can be held while your challenge is pending. Because a garnishment keeps pulling from your pay or account until the court resolves the challenge, filing quickly limits what you lose.
- 7
Filing gets you a prompt hearing. When you file the Challenge to Garnishment, the court administrator sets a hearing date right away, and the creditor has to justify keeping the money you say is exempt.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Claim of Exemption in Oregon, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The Claim of Exemption guide walks through them.
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Oregon Requirements for Claim of Exemption
Oregon Filing Deadline and Office
File the Oregon claim of exemption with the correct office, the court or the levying officer as Oregon directs, within the state's window after the garnishment is served. Money is usually held until the claim is decided, so filing late can forfeit wages the law would otherwise protect.