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Wisconsin Claim of Exemption

File a Wisconsin claim of exemption to protect wages from garnishment. Learn the CV-424 Debtor's Answer, the 80 percent exemption, and how to stop it.

Introduction

A Wisconsin claim of exemption is how you 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 earnings garnishment forms on your employer to take a share of each paycheck. In Wisconsin you claim your exemption on the Earnings Garnishment Debtor's Answer, form CV-424, and you deliver or mail it to your employer, the garnishee, rather than to the court. You can file the answer at any time before or during the period the garnishment is in effect, so act quickly. Wisconsin exempts 80 percent of your disposable earnings, and if the garnishment would drop your household income below the federal poverty line it is limited to the amount above that line. Exempt income like Social Security is off limits no matter the debt. DocDraft prepares a Wisconsin claim of exemption from your details, and attorney review is available before you file.

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Key Things to Know

  1. 1

    A Wisconsin claim of exemption is how you tell that some or all of the wages being garnished are exempt, meaning the law does not let a creditor take them. In Wisconsin you raise it on the Earnings Garnishment Debtor's Answer, form CV-424.

  2. 2

    You file with your employer, not the court. Under Wis. Stat. section 812.37 you deliver or mail the Debtor's Answer to the garnishee, your employer, who must then accept the claimed exemption as true and stop or reduce the withholding, pending any court order.

  3. 3

    There is no fixed filing deadline. You may file the answer at any time before or during the effective period of the earnings garnishment, so act as soon as you get the forms to protect more of your pay.

  4. 4

    Wisconsin exempts 80 percent of your pay. Under Wis. Stat. section 812.34, 80 percent of your disposable earnings are exempt from garnishment, so a creditor can reach only the remaining share.

  5. 5

    A poverty-line limit can protect all of your pay. If the garnishment would drop your household income below the federal poverty line, the garnishment is limited to the amount of household income above that line.

  6. 6

    Some income is exempt no matter the debt. Social Security, disability, veterans benefits, and many pensions and public benefits are protected, and a claim of exemption is how you free those funds if a bank has frozen them.

  7. 7

    A hearing happens if the creditor objects. If the creditor disputes your answer, it may file a motion for a hearing with the court, which must be scheduled as promptly as practicable.

Key decisions before you file

Before you file a Claim of Exemption in Wisconsin, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The Claim of Exemption guide walks through them.

Open the Claim of Exemption guide

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CLAIM OF EXEMPTION (WISCONSIN - EARNINGS GARNISHMENT DEBTOR'S ANSWER)

Filed as an Earnings Garnishment Debtor's Answer (form CV-424) under Wis. Stat. chapter 812, subchapter II, including sections 812.34 and 812.37. The judgment debtor claims that some or all of the earnings being garnished are exempt and asks that the withholding be stopped or reduced.

  1. CASE Court that issued the earnings garnishment: [COURT NAME] Case number: [CASE NUMBER]

  2. PARTIES Creditor: [CREDITOR NAME] Debtor (you): [DEBTOR NAME] Debtor address: [DEBTOR ADDRESS] Garnishee (employer): [EMPLOYER NAME]

  3. WHAT IS BEING GARNISHED [ ] Wages from my employer Approximate amount being taken each pay period: $[AMOUNT]

  4. EXEMPTION CLAIMED I claim that my earnings are exempt for the following reason(s): [ ] 80 percent of my disposable earnings are exempt under Wis. Stat. section 812.34. [ ] The garnishment would drop my household income below the federal poverty line, so it must be limited to the amount of household income above that line. [ ] The funds come from an exempt source: [SOCIAL SECURITY / DISABILITY / VETERANS BENEFITS / PENSION / OTHER]. Amount I claim as exempt each pay period: $[AMOUNT CLAIMED EXEMPT]

  5. SOURCE OF THE FUNDS Describe where the money comes from: [DESCRIPTION OF WAGES OR DEPOSITED FUNDS]

  6. HOUSEHOLD AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT Monthly household take-home income: $[INCOME] Monthly necessary expenses: $[EXPENSES] Number of people in my household I support: [NUMBER OF DEPENDENTS]

  7. WHAT I AM ASKING I ask my employer to accept this exemption as claimed and to stop or reduce the withholding, pending any court order.

  8. VERIFICATION I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of Wisconsin that the statements above are true and correct.

Debtor signature: [SIGNATURE] Printed name: [NAME] Date: [DATE]

Note: Deliver or mail this Earnings Garnishment Debtor's Answer (form CV-424) to your employer, the garnishee, not to the court or the creditor. You may file it at any time before or during the effective period of the garnishment. Confirm the current form and procedure, or have this reviewed by an attorney, before you file.

Wisconsin Requirements for Claim of Exemption

Wisconsin Filing Deadline and Office

File the Wisconsin claim of exemption with the correct office, the court or the levying officer as Wisconsin 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.

Frequently Asked Questions

A Wisconsin claim of exemption is how you protect wages from a garnishment. You complete the Earnings Garnishment Debtor's Answer, form CV-424, and deliver or mail it to your employer, the garnishee. It tells that some or all of the money is exempt, meaning the law does not let a creditor take it, and the employer must then stop or reduce the withholding pending any court order.

An objection challenges whether the garnishment is proper, such as a wrong amount or a defect in the paperwork. A claim of exemption accepts that the debt exists but says the specific wages are legally protected. In Wisconsin the Debtor's Answer form lets you claim an exemption or assert a defense at the same time, and you deliver it to your employer rather than the court.

Under Wis. Stat. section 812.34, 80 percent of your disposable earnings are exempt, so a creditor can reach only the remaining 20 percent. Disposable earnings are what is left after legally required deductions. On top of that, if the garnishment would drop your household income below the federal poverty line, it is limited to the amount of household income above that line.

Wisconsin does not set a strict deadline. You may file the Debtor's Answer at any time before or during the effective period of the earnings garnishment. Because withholding continues until you file, do not wait; deliver or mail the CV-424 to your employer as soon as you get the earnings garnishment forms so more of your pay is protected.

Social Security, Supplemental Security Income, disability, veterans benefits, and many pensions and public benefits are exempt from garnishment for ordinary debts, no matter how much you owe. For wages, Wisconsin exempts 80 percent of disposable earnings, and a poverty-line rule can protect all of your pay. If exempt benefits are frozen in a bank account, a claim of exemption is how you get them released.

Wisconsin does not add a separate head-of-household wage exemption, but its poverty-line rule looks at your whole household. If the garnishment would drop your household income below the federal poverty line, it is limited to the amount above that line, which can protect all of your pay. Exempt income such as Social Security and disability stays protected regardless.

You deliver or mail the Earnings Garnishment Debtor's Answer, form CV-424, to your employer, the garnishee, not to the court or the creditor. Your employer must accept the claimed exemption as true and stop or reduce the withholding, pending any court order. Keep a copy for your records in case the creditor later disputes your answer.

After you deliver the Debtor's Answer, your employer must accept the claimed exemption as true and stop or reduce the withholding, pending any court order. If the creditor disputes your answer, it may file a motion for a hearing with the court, which must be scheduled as promptly as practicable. At the hearing you show the money is exempt and the creditor must justify the garnishment.