Garnishee Order South Australia — Redirect Wages and Bank Funds to Pay Your Judgment

What a Garnishee Order Does

A garnishee order is a court directive that forces a third party — the debtor's employer, bank or business customer — to pay money they owe the debtor directly to you instead. Under section 6 of the Enforcement of Judgments Act 1991 (SA), three targets are available:

• Bank accounts — attaches the balance held at the moment the order is served on the bank
• Wages and salary — deducts an ongoing amount from the debtor's pay before they receive it
• Trade debts and rent — intercepts money owed to the debtor by clients, customers or tenants

Social security payments are absolutely inalienable while payable under section 60 of the Social Security (Administration) Act 1999 (Cth). For a garnishee order on a bank account receiving those payments, section 62 excludes the account's "saved amount": the payments credited during the four weeks before the order, less withdrawals from the account during that period.

The 2023 Wage Reform

Before 18 September 2023, South Australia was unusual — you needed the debtor's written consent before the court could garnish their wages. Legislative amendments repealed that requirement. The Magistrates Court can now order wage attachment without the debtor agreeing to it.

To prevent hardship, the law sets a floor: the debtor's net weekly pay (after tax) cannot drop below 90% of the national minimum wage. Employers who dismiss or discriminate against an employee because of a garnishee order face statutory fines.

How to Apply

You may ask for an interim garnishee order without notice to the debtor. The supporting affidavit must explain why, and the Court may make an order nisi if it considers that appropriate. If an order nisi is not sought or made, the application, affidavit and draft order must be served on the debtor and garnishee (UCR rule 203.11). Advance warning can give the debtor time to move funds.

The process through CourtSA:

1. File an application under the Enforcement tab of your case
2. Specify the third party (bank branch, employer, trade debtor) and the account or payment stream you want to attach
3. Pay the court filing fee (added to the recoverable judgment debt)
4. If the Court makes an interim order nisi, it restrains the garnishee from dealing with the attached money until the debtor and garnishee have had an opportunity to be heard
5. The Court adjourns to a hearing and serves the relevant documents on the debtor and garnishee
6. After considering evidence and representations, the Court may confirm, vary or revoke the order; if confirmed, the garnishee pays the attached funds to you

The garnishee (employer or bank) can retain a small court-authorised administration fee from the attached funds.

Bank Account Specifics

A bank garnishee attaches money in the bank's control for the judgment debtor when the order takes effect. Only the debtor's money may be attached; if the account is joint with a non-debtor, their respective interests must be distinguished and the co-owner may contest an attempt to attach their funds.

To identify the protected saved amount, keep statements showing social security payments and withdrawals during the four weeks before the garnishee order. Older payments are not included in section 62's saved-amount calculation.

Deciding Whether a Garnishee Is Right

A garnishee order works well when you know the debtor has a steady income or a bank account with funds. It works poorly when the debtor is self-employed with irregular income, when you do not know which bank they use, or when their only income is Centrelink.

For an individual judgment debt of $12,000 or less that did not arise from the debtor's business, rule 203.2 generally requires an investigation hearing resulting in a payment order, or the debtor's failure to appear at an investigation summons hearing after due service, before another enforcement process such as a garnishee order may issue, unless the Court orders otherwise. The debtor's financial disclosure at an investigation hearing can identify their employer, bank accounts and income.

Our SA Judgment Enforcement Guide includes a decision matrix that matches each enforcement tool to the debtor's asset profile — so you know whether a garnishee order, warrant of sale or charging order gives you the best chance of recovery before you spend money on filing fees.

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