Wage Garnishment Limits in Mississippi
At a glance
| Governing law | Wage garnishment cap and 30-day grace period, Miss. Code § 85-3-4; multiple-garnishment priority, § 11-35-24; garnishment procedure chapter, §§ 11-35-1 et seq. |
|---|---|
| Maximum that can be garnished | After an initial 30-day period in which wages are fully exempt from the date of service (§ 85-3-4(1)), the lesser of 25% of disposable earnings or the amount by which earnings exceed 30x the federal minimum hourly wage (§ 85-3-4(2)) — the plain federal formula, restated directly in Mississippi's own statute |
| State rule vs. federal floor | Section 85-3-4(2) uses the same 25%/30-times formula as 15 U.S.C. § 1673(a); § 85-3-4(1) separately exempts wages for 30 days after service |
| Minimum-wage protected floor | 30 times the federal minimum hourly wage, currently $217.50 a week at $7.25 an hour (Miss. Code § 85-3-4(2)(a)(ii); 29 U.S.C. § 206(a)(1)(C)) |
| Support, tax & student loan debts | Support orders and state or local tax debt fall entirely outside the ordinary cap and the 30-day grace period (§ 85-3-4(3)(a)); support garnishments instead follow the federal support tiers — 50% (55% with 12+ weeks of arrears) if supporting another spouse or child, 60% (65% with arrears) if not |
| Head-of-household/family exemption | Section 85-3-4 states no separate head-of-household wage tier; § 85-3-1(a)'s $10,000 tangible-property exemption addresses listed property, not a distinct wage percentage |
| Multiple garnishments at once | First-in-time, with two refinements: a garnishee served with more than one garnishment on the same employee satisfies them in the order served; if two arrive the same day, the smaller amount is paid first; a child-support garnishment always has first priority regardless of when it arrived or whether an earlier garnishment is already in effect (Miss. Code § 11-35-24) |
| Protection from being fired | Federal law bars discharge because of garnishment for one indebtedness (15 U.S.C. § 1674(a)); Mississippi also bars discharge, discipline, and refusal to hire because of a child-support withholding duty, with a fine of up to $50 (Miss. Code §§ 93-11-111(9), 93-11-117(2)) |
Requirements one by one
Governing law
Mississippi's wage-garnishment cap and its distinctive 30-day grace period both live in one section, Miss. Code § 85-3-4. The procedural garnishment chapter begins at § 11-35-1 and includes its own rule for resolving competing garnishments at § 11-35-24.
Maximum garnishment amount
For the first 30 days after a writ of attachment, execution, or garnishment is served, wages can't be touched at all (§ 85-3-4(1)). After that, the maximum that can be withheld is the lesser of 25% of disposable earnings or the amount by which earnings exceed 30 times the federal minimum hourly wage (§ 85-3-4(2)) — the same formula federal law sets, simply written into Mississippi's own code.
Federal floor comparison
Mississippi's § 85-3-4(2) and 15 U.S.C. § 1673(a) use the same 25% and 30-times calculations. Section 85-3-4(1) adds an exemption from seizure for 30 days after service of a writ; the federal calculation alone does not state that waiting period.
Minimum wage protection floor
Section 85-3-4(2)(a)(ii) says "thirty (30) times the federal minimum hourly wage." At the $7.25 rate in 29 U.S.C. § 206(a)(1)(C), that is $217.50 for a workweek. The statute also provides a calculation for pay periods other than a week in § 85-3-4(2)(b).
Priority debt exceptions
Court-ordered support and state or local tax debt are excluded from both the ordinary percentage cap and the 30-day grace period entirely (§ 85-3-4(3)(a)). Support garnishments instead follow the percentage tiers in § 85-3-4(3)(b): up to 50% of disposable earnings if the debtor is supporting another spouse or child (55% if arrears are 12+ weeks old), or up to 60% if not (65% with old arrears).
Head-of-household exemption
Section 85-3-4 does not state a separate wage percentage for a household head. The $10,000 limit in § 85-3-1(a) applies to listed tangible personal property, including household goods, vehicles, and tools of the trade.
Multiple garnishments priority
Mississippi uses first-in-time priority with two refinements. A garnishee served with more than one garnishment against the same employee must satisfy them in the order served; if two writs arrive the same day, the smaller amount is paid first. Child support always wins regardless: a court-ordered child-support garnishment has first priority even over an earlier ordinary garnishment already in effect (§ 11-35-24).
Employee termination protection
The federal rule bars discharge because of garnishment for one indebtedness (15 U.S.C. § 1674(a)). Mississippi also bars a payor from discharging, disciplining, or refusing to hire someone because of a child-support income-withholding duty, backed by a court fine of up to $50 (§§ 93-11-111(9), 93-11-117(2)).
What trips people up
The 30-day period runs from service of the writ, not the date of the judgment or the first paycheck after service (§ 85-3-4(1)). For several writs against one employee, § 11-35-24 makes the service order matter, subject to the child-support priority and same-day smaller-writ rule.
Common questions
If my wages are garnished in Mississippi, when does the withholding actually start? Section 85-3-4(1) exempts wages from seizure for 30 days from service of the writ. The ordinary percentage limit in subsection (2) applies after that period.
Does the formula work for a pay period longer than one week? Yes. Section 85-3-4(2)(b) directs an equivalent multiple of the federal minimum wage based on the number of workweeks or fractions in that period.
Does an employer face a state penalty for firing someone over child-support withholding? Section 93-11-117(2) authorizes a court fine of up to $50 after notice and hearing for conduct prohibited by § 93-11-111(9).
Statutes and sources
- Miss. Code § 85-3-4: "The wages, salaries or other compensation of laborers or employees, residents of this state, shall be exempt from seizure under attachment, execution or garnishment for a period of thirty (30) days from the date of service of any writ of attachment, execution or garnishment." https://unicourt.github.io/cic-code-ms/transforms/ms/ocms/r78/gov.ms.code.title.85.html#t85c03s85-3-4 (accessed 2026-10-07)
- Miss. Code § 11-35-24: "However, in every case, garnishments issued pursuant to court ordered child support shall have first priority, even if previous garnishments are in effect or pending." https://unicourt.github.io/cic-code-ms/transforms/ms/ocms/r78/gov.ms.code.title.11.html#t11c35s11-35-24 (accessed 2026-10-07)
- Miss. Code § 93-11-111(9): "No payor shall discharge, discipline, refuse to hire or otherwise penalize any obligor because of the duty to withhold income." https://unicourt.github.io/cic-code-ms/transforms/ms/ocms/r78/gov.ms.code.title.93.html#t93c11s93-11-111 (accessed 2026-10-07)
- Miss. Code § 93-11-117(2): "the court, upon due notice and hearing, shall fine the payor in an amount not to exceed Fifty Dollars ($50.00)." https://unicourt.github.io/cic-code-ms/transforms/ms/ocms/r78/gov.ms.code.title.93.html#t93c11s93-11-117 (accessed 2026-10-07)
- Miss. Code § 85-3-1(a): "Tangible personal property of the following kinds selected by the debtor, not exceeding Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00) in cumulative value" https://unicourt.github.io/cic-code-ms/transforms/ms/ocms/r78/gov.ms.code.title.85.html#t85c03s85-3-1 (accessed 2026-10-07)
- 15 U.S.C. § 1673(a): "(1) 25 per centum of his disposable earnings for that week, or" https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2024-title15/html/USCODE-2024-title15-chap41-subchapII-sec1673.htm (accessed 2026-10-07)
- 15 U.S.C. § 1674(a): "No employer may discharge any employee by reason of the fact that his earnings have been subjected to garnishment for any one indebtedness." https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2024-title15/html/USCODE-2024-title15-chap41-subchapII-sec1674.htm (accessed 2026-10-07)
- 29 U.S.C. § 206(a)(1)(C): "$7.25 an hour, beginning 24 months after that 60th day;" https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2024-title29/html/USCODE-2024-title29-chap8-sec206.htm (accessed 2026-10-07)
- Miss. Code § 11-35-1: "it shall be the duty of the clerk of such court to issue a writ of garnishment" https://unicourt.github.io/cic-code-ms/transforms/ms/ocms/r78/gov.ms.code.title.11.html#t11c35s11-35-1 (accessed 2026-10-07)
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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