Tennessee Claim of Exemption
File a Tennessee claim of exemption to protect wages from garnishment. Learn the 20-day motion to stop garnishment, what pay is exempt, and the child exemption.
Introduction
A Tennessee 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 garnishment on your employer and take part of each paycheck. In Tennessee you push back by applying to the court, at the clerk's office named on the garnishment, for a motion to stop the garnishment. If your employer is withholding too much, you have 20 days from any improper withholding to apply. Tennessee protects at least 75 percent of your disposable earnings and adds an exemption for each dependent child under 16, and some income like Social Security is off limits entirely. The court clerk must give you the forms you need to file. DocDraft prepares a Tennessee 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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A Tennessee claim of exemption, filed as a motion to stop the garnishment, is a request you make 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
You have 20 days to act on improper withholding. Under Tenn. Code Ann. 26-2-216, if your employer is taking too much money from your wages, you may apply to the court within 20 days from any improper withholding for a motion to stop the garnishment.
- 3
Tennessee protects most of your pay. Under Tenn. Code Ann. 26-2-106, a creditor can take only the lesser of 25 percent of your disposable earnings for the week, or the amount by which those earnings exceed 30 times the federal minimum wage, so at least 75 percent is protected.
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Supporting children adds an exemption. Tennessee exempts an extra 2.50 dollars per week for each dependent child under 16 who is a Tennessee resident, so a larger family keeps more of each paycheck.
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Some income is exempt no matter the debt. Social Security, disability, veterans benefits, and many pensions and public benefits are protected, and a motion to stop the garnishment is how you free those funds if a bank has frozen them.
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The court clerk must give you the forms. By statute the clerk's office provides the forms you need to file a motion to stop the garnishment or set up a payment plan, and money is withheld while the motion is pending, so act quickly.
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Filing puts the question before the court. Your motion asks the court to find the wages or funds exempt and to stop or reduce the garnishment, and the creditor must justify keeping any money you say is protected.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Claim of Exemption in Tennessee, 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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Tennessee Requirements for Claim of Exemption
Tennessee Filing Deadline and Office
File the Tennessee claim of exemption with the correct office, the court or the levying officer as Tennessee 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.