Ohio Wage Garnishment Exemptions Under ORC 2329.66

Not Everything Can Be Garnished

Ohio's exemption statutes under ORC 2329.66 draw a hard line around what judgment creditors can reach. Whether you're filing a wage garnishment, freezing a bank account, or levying on personal property, certain assets and income are legally off-limits. Understanding these protections matters from both sides — creditors need to know what's collectible before spending money on enforcement, and debtors need to know what the law shields.

Wage Garnishment Caps

Federal and Ohio law together limit how much of a debtor's paycheck can be garnished. The maximum per pay period is the lesser of:

• 25% of disposable earnings — what's left after mandatory tax withholdings (FICA, federal, state, and local income taxes)
• The amount by which disposable earnings exceed 30 times the federal minimum wage ($7.25/hour)

The federal minimum wage floor translates to these protected amounts by pay frequency:

If a debtor's weekly disposable earnings are $230, only $12.50 can be garnished — the amount above the $217.50 floor — even though 25% of $230 would be $57.50. The statute takes the lesser amount to protect lower-income earners.

Note that Ohio's state minimum wage ($11.00/hour for 2026) does not affect the garnishment calculation. The exemption floor is pegged to the federal minimum wage of $7.25/hour under ORC 2329.66(A)(13).

Property Exemptions

ORC 2329.66 also shields specific categories of personal property from execution and levy:

These amounts are adjusted every three years by the Ohio Judicial Conference to account for inflation.

The motor vehicle exemption is particularly relevant for small claims creditors considering a property levy. If the debtor's car has less than $5,025 in equity (market value minus any car loan balance), you can't touch it. Given that many vehicles depreciate below this threshold, personal property execution on cars is often impractical.

Fully Protected Income

Certain income sources are completely exempt from garnishment and attachment, regardless of amount:

• Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
• Veterans Affairs benefits
• Workers' compensation
• Unemployment compensation
• Disability and sickness benefits
• Child support and spousal support necessary for maintenance
• Earned Income Tax Credits
• Qualified tax-exempt retirement plans and IRAs

If these funds are direct-deposited into a bank account, federal law (31 CFR Part 212) requires the bank to automatically protect them when processing a garnishment order. The bank looks back two months for federal benefit deposits and shields those amounts before freezing anything.

What This Means for Your Collection Strategy

Before spending money on enforcement — garnishment filing fees run $75 to $125, and property execution deposits can exceed $500 — evaluate whether the debtor has non-exempt assets worth pursuing. A debtor who earns just above the minimum wage floor, drives a car worth less than $5,025, and rents their home may be effectively "judgment proof" for the time being.

That doesn't mean the judgment is worthless. Circumstances change — debtors get better jobs, accumulate assets, or buy property. The judgment accrues interest at the statutory rate (7% for 2026), and you have five years before dormancy. Sometimes the best strategy is recording a judgment lien against any real property they own and revisiting enforcement when their financial picture improves.

The Ohio Small Claims Judgment Collection Guide includes an exemption worksheet for evaluating the debtor's collectible assets and a strategy framework for timing enforcement around these protections.

See more Ohio guides →