California Writ of Garnishment
California issues no writ of garnishment. A judgment creditor stacks a $40 writ of execution with an Earnings Withholding Order issued by the levying officer, capped at 20 percent of disposable earnings. Attorney review available.
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Introduction
Search California's codes for a writ of garnishment and you will not find one. The phrase returns zero hits across both the Wage Garnishment chapter and the Execution chapter, and a creditor who files papers calling themselves that collects nothing. What California gives you instead is a two-instrument stack with two different issuers. The clerk of the court that entered your judgment issues a Writ of Execution, Judicial Council form EJ-130, for a $40 fee under Government Code Section 70626(a)(1), directed to the levying officer of one single county. Then you apply not to a judge but to the sheriff, marshal or constable of that county on form WG-001, and under Code of Civil Procedure Section 706.102(a) that levying officer, not the court, promptly issues the Earnings Withholding Order, form WG-002, and serves it on the employer for a statutory $50. Section 706.021 is explicit that a levy on an employee's earnings is made by service of that order on the employer, and Section 706.020 closes every other door: apart from an earnings assignment order for support, no employer can be required to withhold wages for a debt by any other judicial procedure. The ceiling is California's own and it is tighter than the federal floor. Section 706.050(a) caps the order at the lesser of 20 percent of that week's disposable earnings, or 40 percent of the amount by which those earnings exceed 48 times the state minimum hourly wage, and where the employee works under a higher local minimum wage, the local figure is used, so the same employer can owe a different protected floor in different cities. Service does not start money moving either. It starts a clock. DocDraft builds your California garnishment papers from your facts, with attorney review available before you file.
Key Things to Know
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In California the instrument is called an Earnings Withholding Order, not a writ of garnishment, and Code of Civil Procedure Section 706.021 provides that a levy of execution upon an employee's earnings is made by service of that order on the employer.
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It takes two papers and two issuers. The clerk of the court that entered the judgment issues a Writ of Execution, form EJ-130, for $40 under Government Code Section 70626(a)(1), and it must go to the county where the employer will be served.
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The levying officer issues the order, not the judge. Under Section 706.102(a) the creditor files an application, form WG-001, with the sheriff, marshal or constable of that county, who shall promptly issue the Earnings Withholding Order, form WG-002, and serve it for a statutory $50 fee.
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California caps the order at the lesser of 20 percent of the employee's disposable earnings for the week, or 40 percent of the amount by which those earnings exceed 48 times the state minimum hourly wage, substituting the local minimum wage where the employee works under a higher one (Section 706.050(a)).
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Nothing is withheld immediately. Section 706.022(a) starts the withholding period on the 30th day after the order is served on the employer, and moves it to the 45th day if the employee files a claim of exemption and the employer gets actual notice before the close of business on the 29th day.
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The employer's duties are statutory, not just printed on the form: deliver the order and the exemption packet to the judgment debtor within 10 days of service, and mail the Employer's Return, form WG-005, to the levying officer by first-class mail within 15 days of service, even if that person no longer works there (Section 706.104).
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California is strictly one ordinary creditor at a time. Section 706.023 requires the employer to comply with the first order served, and an order served while an earlier one is still in effect is ineffective rather than merely second in line, so a junior creditor withholds nothing at all.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Writ of Garnishment in California, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The Writ of Garnishment guide walks through them.
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California Requirements for Writ of Garnishment
Writ of Execution EJ-130, $40 to Issue
The earnings order rides on a writ of execution. The clerk of the court that entered the judgment issues Judicial Council form EJ-130, Writ of Execution (Money Judgment), an optional form revised July 1, 2026, for $40 under Government Code Section 70626(a)(1). It must be issued to the county where the employer will be served.
Application to the Levying Officer on WG-001
California prescribes form WG-001, Application for Earnings Withholding Order (Wage Garnishment), adopted for mandatory use under Section 706.121. It is filed with the sheriff, marshal or constable of the county, not with the court, because Section 706.102(a) makes the levying officer the issuer of the order.
The Order Served on the Employer: WG-002
The instrument served on the employer is form WG-002, Earnings Withholding Order (Wage Garnishment), a mandatory form revised January 1, 2026, and the levying officer charges a statutory $50 to issue and serve it. The judgment debtor's Social Security number goes on form WG-035 rather than on the order.
Ceiling: 20 Percent, or 40 Percent of the Excess
Withholding is capped at the lesser of 20 percent of the judgment debtor's disposable earnings for the week, or 40 percent of the amount by which those earnings exceed 48 times the state minimum hourly wage, with the local minimum wage substituted where the debtor works under a higher one (Section 706.050(a)). Tighter than the federal floor, so do not calculate on 25 percent.
Current Balance and the 10-Year Outer Limit
The total the levying officer collects toward: unpaid principal, interest accrued to a stated date, recoverable post-judgment costs, less everything already collected. The order cannot be enforced past the judgment's 10-year enforceable life under Section 683.020 unless the judgment is renewed under Section 683.120(c).
The 30-Day Wait, or 45 Days on a Claim
Nothing is withheld for any pay period ending before the 30th day after the employer is served. Where the judgment debtor files a claim of exemption and the employer has actual notice before the close of business on the 29th day, the withholding period commences on the 45th day instead (Section 706.022(a)).
Employer Return Within 15 Days of Service
Section 706.104 gives the employer two deadlines measured from service: 10 days to deliver the order and the exemption packet to the judgment debtor, and 15 days to mail the Employer's Return, form WG-005, to the levying officer by first-class mail, even if the debtor no longer works there. Withheld sums then go to the levying officer by the 15th of the month after each payday.
First Order Served Wins, Later Orders Are Void
The employer complies with the first earnings withholding order served, and under Section 706.023(c) an order served while an earlier one is still in effect against the same employee is ineffective rather than second in line. A support withholding order outranks all of them. Where an employer fails to withhold or pay over, Section 706.154(a) gives the creditor a direct civil action for that amount.