After a debt judgment in Ohio: garnishment, bank levy, exemptions

What can be taken from your pay and bank account, and how to claim exempt money.

Checked against official sources: Oct 24, 2026.

Short answer

After a judgment, the creditor can take part of your pay or freeze your bank account. Some money is protected. You have 5 business days (work days) after you get the notice to ask for a hearing. Fill in the request-for-hearing form that came with the notice. Take it to the court clerk. If you miss the 5 days, the money goes to the creditor.

From your pay
Up to 25% of take-home pay
Example: take-home pay of $600 a week, up to $150 a week can be taken.
How long it lasts
5 years
Interest after the judgment
See the rule
Exemption form
The request-for-hearing form comes with your notice. If you don't have it, ask the court clerk for it.

Claiming what the law protects in Ohio

Fill out the request-for-hearing form that comes with the garnishment notice (it has a postage-paid envelope or postcard) and deliver it to the clerk of court no later than the end of the fifth business day after you receive the notice. You can list why the money is exempt. The hearing covers only how much money can be taken, not whether you owe the judgment. If you do not ask for a hearing in time, the money will be paid to the creditor.

Law: R.C. 2716.06 (wages); R.C. 2716.13 (bank accounts and other property); R.C. 2329.66

The request-for-hearing form comes with your notice. If you don't have it, ask the court clerk for it.

Count your deadline to claim an exemption

The date is counted in your browser.

Read the notice you got from the court, your bank or your employer.

An estimate from our state data, not legal advice. Court holidays and local rules can change a deadline. File early, and ask the court clerk if you are not sure.

Exemption claim cover letter

Interest and how long the judgment lasts in Ohio

Interest after the judgment

The judgment earns interest at the rate in your written contract, if it sets one. If not, it earns the Ohio statutory rate in effect on the date of the judgment, which stays the same until it is paid. The statutory rate is set each October 15 by the Ohio Tax Commissioner for the next year: the federal short-term rate, rounded to a whole percent, plus 3%.

How long it lasts

A judgment becomes dormant if the creditor does not take a collection step (execution, judgment lien, garnishment or debtor exam) within 5 years of the judgment or the last such step. Each step restarts the 5 years. A dormant judgment can be revived within 10 years after it became dormant; no interest is added for the dormant period.

Law: R.C. 1343.03(A), (B); R.C. 5703.47; R.C. 2329.07(B)(1); R.C. 2325.18

Judgment interest and how long a judgment lasts, by state

When a creditor freezes your account in Ohio

The creditor asks the court for an order of garnishment of property other than personal earnings and serves it on your bank. You cannot move the money once you get the notice. Social Security, SSI, unemployment, workers' compensation, veterans' benefits and certain pensions are protected. $625 in cash and bank deposits (other than earnings) is exempt from April 1, 2025 to March 31, 2028. (R.C. 2329.66(A)(3), (B))

Your bank must protect up to two months of Social Security, SSI, VA and some other federal benefits that were paid into your account by direct deposit. You don't have to ask.

Law: 31 CFR 212.5, 212.6

How much of your pay can be taken in Ohio

Federal limit applies: you keep the greater of 75% of disposable earnings or 30 times the federal minimum wage per week (60 times biweekly, 65 times semimonthly, 130 times monthly). (R.C. 2329.66(A)(13)) You get a notice with a request-for-hearing form; to get a hearing you must deliver the request to the clerk within 5 business days after you receive the notice. (R.C. 2716.06)

These garnishment limits are from our sister site, which checks them against official sources: Debt Collector Map: Ohio

For an ordinary debt, a creditor can take at most 25% of your take-home pay, or the part above 30 times the federal minimum wage if that is less. Many states protect more.

Law: 15 U.S.C. 1673(a)

Protecting your pay and bank in Ohio

  1. Watch for notices

    Each notice may start a short deadline, so read it right away.

  2. Find where your money comes from

    Proof of where the money came from, like award letters, wins exemption claims.

  3. Ask the court to protect your money

    How it works in Ohio: Fill out the request-for-hearing form that comes with the garnishment notice (it has a postage-paid envelope or postcard) and deliver it to the clerk of court no later than the end of the fifth business day after you receive the notice.

  4. Attend the hearing

    A judge decides disputed claims; bring every paper.

Free legal help in Ohio

Questions about collection after a judgment in Ohio

How much interest does a judgment add in Ohio?

The judgment earns interest at the rate in your written contract, if it sets one. If not, it earns the Ohio statutory rate in effect on the date of the judgment, which stays the same until it is paid. The statutory rate is set each October 15 by the Ohio Tax Commissioner for the next year: the federal short-term rate, rounded to a whole percent, plus 3%.

When does a judgment expire in Ohio?

A judgment becomes dormant if the creditor does not take a collection step (execution, judgment lien, garnishment or debtor exam) within 5 years of the judgment or the last such step. Each step restarts the 5 years. A dormant judgment can be revived within 10 years after it became dormant; no interest is added for the dormant period.

Can a creditor take my paycheck in Ohio?

Federal limit applies: you keep the greater of 75% of disposable earnings or 30 times the federal minimum wage per week (60 times biweekly, 65 times semimonthly, 130 times monthly). (R.C. 2329.66(A)(13)) You get a notice with a request-for-hearing form; to get a hearing you must deliver the request to the clerk within 5 business days after you receive the notice. (R.C. 2716.06)

What is a bank levy in Ohio?

The creditor asks the court for an order of garnishment of property other than personal earnings and serves it on your bank. You cannot move the money once you get the notice. Social Security, SSI, unemployment, workers' compensation, veterans' benefits and certain pensions are protected. $625 in cash and bank deposits (other than earnings) is exempt from April 1, 2025 to March 31, 2028. (R.C. 2329.66(A)(3), (B))

What is the deadline to claim an exemption in Ohio?

Fill out the request-for-hearing form that comes with the garnishment notice (it has a postage-paid envelope or postcard) and deliver it to the clerk of court no later than the end of the fifth business day after you receive the notice. You can list why the money is exempt. The hearing covers only how much money can be taken, not whether you owe the judgment. If you do not ask for a hearing in time, the money will be paid to the creditor.

Keep reading about Ohio

Sources

Sources

Last checked: Oct 24, 2026.

Federal sources