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Administrative Wage Garnishment for Employers

 

 

***IMPORTANT EXECUTIVE ORDER (EO) 14247 UPDATE***

EO 14247, Modernizing Payments To and From America’s Bank Account, stipulates that payments made to the federal government should be processed electronically. Employers can submit garnishments to the Bureau of the Fiscal Service by:

  • ACH files (CCD+ or CTX file format): This option makes sense if your company has many garnishments to manage or currently uses ACH files to make payments. Note: this option requires some initial technical setup. To get started, please e-mail aob@fiscal.treasury.gov to get supporting documentation.
     
  • Pay.gov Employer form: This online payment platform is a good choice if your company only has a few employees being garnished and your company does not currently use ACH files to make payments. The Pay.gov form is located at bit.ly/fsawg or https://www.pay.gov/public/form/start/1234541539.
     

Administrative Wage Garnishment (AWG) is a debt collection process that allows a federal agency to order a non-federal employer to withhold up to 15 percent of an employee's disposable income to pay a delinquent non-tax debt owed to the agency. (Not an employer? Click for administrative wage garnishment information for individuals or for agencies.)

Executing AWG

Upon receipt of an AWG order, federal law requires an employer to:

  • Verify an employee’s employment.
  • Complete and return the Wage Garnishment Worksheet, SF-329C and the Employer Certification, SF-329D, (pages 8 and 9).
  • Employers may use this Wage Garnishment Computation Calculator to calculate the wage garnishment amount to be deducted from the debtor's disposable pay.
  • Deduct the wage garnishment amount from the employee's wages on the first payday after receipt of the order.
  • Continue deductions until an employer receives notification from the creditor agency, the Bureau of the Fiscal Service, or the Private Collection Agency (PCA) to suspend or discontinue deductions.

  • To pay electronically, employers can:

    o    E-mail aob@fiscal.treasury.gov to set up an ACH file connection (either CCD+ or CTX). This option is best for employers managing many garnishments and who already use ACH files. CCD+ and CTX are governed by NACHA standards to ensure ACH credit transactions are processed in an encrypted file. 
    o    Use the Pay.gov form listed at bit.ly/fsawg or https://www.pay.gov/public/form/start/1234541539. Employers that are garnishing wages for more than one employee must complete a separate Pay.gov form for each employee.
     

Terminating AWG:

  • Creditor Agencies may terminate an AWG order by sending Standard Form 329E (Notice of Termination of Wage Garnishment Order) to the debtor’s employer.  Once a Wage Garnishment Order for an employee is terminated, the employer must discontinue deductions immediately. 
  • The Notice of Termination of Wage Garnishment Order applies only to the Wage Garnishment Order issued by the Creditor Agency with the assigned Creditor Agency Tracking Number referenced in the Notice.

Failure to Comply

An employer who fails to comply with an AWG order is liable for amounts that the employer fails to withhold, plus possible penalties and fees. Noncompliance with an AWG order, including failure to honor a Notice of Termination of Wage Garnishment Order, may result in legal action.  

If you are unable to comply with the electronic payment provision of Executive Order 14247, you may send payments to the address listed in the wage garnishment order within three days of withholding. Note: it may be addressed to a Private Collection Agency (PCA).

For questions related to employer noncompliance, contact the Bureau of the Fiscal Service using the information provided below:

Bureau of the Fiscal Service Contact Information

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