Guide · by the Garnishment Calc Editorial Team · updated
IRS wage levy: the 2026 exempt amount
An IRS levy on wages is not limited to 25%. Instead the IRS leaves you a fixed exempt amount based on your filing status and dependents, and everything above it goes to the IRS until the levy is released.
How a levy differs from a garnishment
Federal garnishment limits do not apply to “any debt due for any State or Federal tax” (15 U.S.C. § 1673(b)(1)(C)). For a federal tax levy the protected amount comes from IRS Publication 1494, whose 2026 tables “show the amount of an individual’s income (take home pay) that is exempt from a notice of levy used to collect delinquent tax in 2026.” Take-home pay is what is left after taxes and the payroll deductions already in place when the levy arrives.
2026 exempt amounts with no dependents
| Filing status | Weekly | Every two weeks | Twice a month | Monthly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single | $309.62 | $619.23 | $670.83 | $1,341.67 |
| Married filing jointly / qualifying surviving spouse | $619.23 | $1,238.46 | $1,341.67 | $2,683.33 |
| Head of household | $464.42 | $928.85 | $1,006.25 | $2,012.50 |
| Married filing separately | $309.62 | $619.23 | $670.83 | $1,341.67 |
| Each dependent adds | $101.92 | $203.85 | $220.83 | $441.67 |
| Filing status | Weekly | Every two weeks | Twice a month | Monthly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single or head of household | $39.42 | $78.85 | $85.42 | $170.83 |
| Any other filing status | $31.73 | $63.46 | $68.75 | $137.50 |
Two worked levies
Single, three dependents, paid weekly. Gross $900.00, taxes $160.00: take-home $740.00. The exempt amount is $615.38 — the same $615.38 figure Publication 1494 uses in its own first example — so the levy takes $124.62 each week.
Married filing jointly, two dependents, both spouses 65+, paid every two weeks. Gross $4,200.00, taxes $900.00, an existing $150.00 payroll deduction: take-home $3,150.00. Exempt: $1,646.16 plus 2 × $63.46 = $1,773.08, matching the publication’s fourth example. The levy takes $1,376.92 per check.
Using the calculator for a levy
Choose “IRS levy”, then enter the filing status, dependents and 65/blind boxes from the statement you returned to your employer. If your employer has already figured the exempt amount from Form 668-W, enter it under “Exempt amount from your levy notice” and it replaces the table.
These tables cover levies on wages paid in 2026. For pay dated in 2027 the calculator asks for the exempt amount from your notice until the IRS publishes the 2027 Publication 1494, usually in December.
State tax levies are separate
A state revenue department collecting state income tax follows its own statute, not Publication 1494, and state limits on creditor garnishment often do not apply to it either. Ask the agency named on the order which exemption it uses.