California · Official court form
Fill out form EJ‑160 yourself
EJ-160 · Rev. January 1, 2026 · Judicial Council of California
Claim of Exemption (Enforcement of Judgment), used for a bank levy or other property, not for wage garnishment. You type every answer. We put your words, exactly as you typed them, into the official form and make a PDF on your device.
We are not connected with the California courts. You choose the form and every answer. The PDF is the Judicial Council’s form EJ-160, Rev. January 1, 2026, with its text unchanged.
The form says: “NOT FOR WAGE GARNISHMENT” (for wages there is form WG-006). Return it to the levying officer; do not file it with the court. Deadline: the court’s guide says to file your claim with the sheriff no later than 15 days after you are served with the notice of levy, or within 20 days if you are served by mail. Court guide.
Your EJ-160 is ready. What to do next
Do this by hand after you print:
- Attach a completed Financial Statement (form WG-007/EJ-165).
- Attach a page labeled Attachment 5.
- Attach a page labeled Attachment 6.
- Attach a page labeled Attachment 7.
- Attach a page labeled Attachment 8.
- Attach a page labeled Attachment 9 (label each part with its letter).
- Sign page 2 by hand.
- Check and sign
Open the PDF and read both pages. If something is wrong, fix it here and download again. Sign page 2 by hand. You sign under penalty of perjury, so everything must be true.
- Attach the Financial Statement if needed
If you checked item 4, the form says you must attach a completed Financial Statement (form EJ-165). Fill it out here: Financial Statement (WG-007/EJ-165), or get the blank form. Attach any pages labeled Attachment 5–9 you said you would.
- Make copies
The court’s guide says: make 2 copies of your completed forms and keep 1 copy for yourself. The form says to give the levying officer the original and one copy.
- Give it to the levying officer before the deadline
Take or mail the original and one copy to the levying officer identified in the upper right-hand corner of the Notice of Levy, usually the sheriff. Do not file it with the court. The guide says: no later than 15 days after you are served with the notice of levy, or within 20 days if you are served by mail. It adds: “If the notice of levy is enforcing a judgment for personal debt, you can file a claim of exemption more than 20 days after you are served with the notice of levy, but the money or property described in the notice of levy can be given to the judgment creditor at any time after the 20-day period ends.” Court guide
- Wait to see if the claim is opposed
The guide says the judgment creditor or debt collector has 10 days to respond. If they don’t, your claim is granted and the sheriff will return your money. If they oppose it, you will be mailed a Notice of Opposition and a Notice of Hearing with the date, time and place. You won’t have access to the levied money while you wait, but it will be returned if you win.
- If there is a hearing
The guide says a reply is optional; if you file one, file it at least 5 court days before the hearing (you can use form MC-030 and MC-031), serve a copy on the debt collector, ask the clerk whether your court uses tentative rulings, and bring evidence such as paychecks, bank statements and bills. Black out account numbers on documents you attach.
Good to know
- The court’s guide says a bank levy is a one-time action, but the creditor or collector can return to court to request it again.
- The guide says: if you have a federal benefit (such as Social Security) direct deposit account and the balance is less than 2 months of benefits, a bank is supposed to reject the levy except for levies for government-ordered child support or from the federal government.
Sources: California Courts Self-Help Guide: Make a claim of exemption for a bank levy · EJ-160 form page · form EJ-160.