Kentucky garnishment: your wages sit in escrow for fifteen days, and an objection keeps them there
Kentucky procedure · Last verified August 17, 2026
Kentucky's wage garnishment rule builds in a pause that most states leave to the debtor to create.
Money taken from your paycheck does not go to the creditor when the employer sends it. The creditor's attorney — or the clerk, where there is no attorney — must hold it in escrow for fifteen days from the date of the employer's garnishment check.
File an objection inside that window and "the funds shall continue to be held until the court rules upon the objection."
The fifteen-day escrow
Ky. R. Civ. P. 69.02(2):
Except for child support arrearages, where wages are garnisheed, the attorney for the party in whose behalf the order of wage garnishment was issued, or the clerk of the court if such party has no attorney of record, shall safely hold the garnisheed funds in escrow for a period of fifteen (15) days from the issuance date of the employer's garnishment check. If the debtor files an objection within that period, the funds shall continue to be held until the court rules upon the objection. If an exemption is asserted and a hearing held, the attorney or clerk of the court shall disburse the garnisheed funds as ordered by the court. If no exemption is asserted the attorney or clerk of the court shall after the fifteen (15) day period disburse the funds to the party in whose behalf the order of garnishment was issued.
| Applies to | wage garnishments |
| Excluded | child support arrearages |
| Who holds | the creditor's attorney, or the clerk if none of record |
| How long | 15 days from the issuance date of the employer's check |
| If you object in time | funds held until the court rules |
| If you do not | disbursed to the creditor after the fifteen days |
Four things follow.
The clock runs from the employer's check, not from service of the garnishment order and not from your payday. That is the date to ask for.
The escrow is automatic. You do not apply for it; the rule directs the holder to keep the money.
An objection extends it indefinitely. There is no second deadline — the funds stay put until the court rules.
Child support arrearages are carved out. Those funds move without the escrow period.
The practical consequence is that a wage garnishment in Kentucky is reversible for a short time after it happens. If you learn of it only when your pay is short, you may still be inside the window.
How a garnishee is served
CR 69.02(1):
Service of post-judgment orders of attachment or garnishment upon third-party garnishees, such as employers and financial institutions, shall be served as prescribed in Rule 4 or, at the option of the plaintiff, may be directed by the plaintiff to the garnishee by regular first class or certified mail, or may be personally served by any person authorized to serve a subpoena pursuant to Rule 45.03. Expenses shall be recoverable as costs.
| Route | Detail |
|---|---|
| Formal | service as prescribed in Rule 4 |
| Or, at the plaintiff's option | regular first class or certified mail |
| Or | personal service by anyone authorized to serve a subpoena under Rule 45.03 |
| Cost | recoverable as costs against you |
That a garnishment order may reach your employer or bank by ordinary first class mail is worth absorbing. There is no requirement of formal process, and the choice belongs to the plaintiff.
The garnishee's answer, and where the money goes
Also in CR 69.02(2):
Upon receiving a post-judgment order of garnishment, the garnishee shall answer within the time required by Rule 12.01, and unless otherwise ordered by the court shall make payments directly to the attorney for the party in whose behalf the order of garnishment was issued. If such party has no attorney of record, as, for example, in the instance of a "small claim," payments by the garnishee shall be made to the clerk of the court.
The garnishee answers within the Rule 12.01 period — the same window a defendant has to respond to a complaint.
Payments go directly to the creditor's attorney, not through the court. Many states route garnished funds through the clerk; Kentucky does so only where the creditor has no attorney of record.
That is why the escrow provision matters as much as it does. The money is in a private lawyer's hands during the fifteen days, and the rule is what obliges them to hold it.
The execution itself
CR 69.03:
Process to enforce a judgment for the payment of money shall be a writ of execution, unless the court directs otherwise. The procedure on execution, in proceedings supplementary to and in aid of a judgment, and in proceedings on and in aid of execution shall be in accordance with the Kentucky Revised Statutes. In aid of the judgment or execution, the judgment creditor, or his successor in interest when that interest appears of record, may obtain discovery from any person, including the judgment debtor, in the manner provided in these Rules.
The instrument is a writ of execution. The procedure belongs to the Kentucky Revised Statutes, which is where exemptions and levy mechanics live.
The discovery is governed by the rules, and reaches "any person, including the judgment debtor", at the instance of the creditor or a successor in interest whose interest appears of record.
Because it is ordinary discovery, a refusal is met with an ordinary compel motion. Kentucky spreads that practice across five separate rules. See the Kentucky motion to compel.
Where this connects
If the judgment itself is the target, Kentucky offers two routes with very different clocks. CR 59.05 gives you ten days to alter, amend or vacate — see Kentucky's ten days. CR 60.02 carries six grounds, three of which expire in a year — see vacating a Kentucky judgment.
For the case itself, see the Kentucky motion to dismiss and Kentucky summary judgment.
How Kentucky compares
| Kentucky | Missouri | Nebraska | Federal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Garnished wages held before release | 15 days in escrow | — | — | — |
| Held by | the creditor's attorney | court or attorney | — | — |
| Objection extends the hold | yes, until the court rules | — | written objection | — |
| Clock runs from | the employer's check | — | — | — |
| Child support carved out | yes | — | — | — |
| Garnishee served by ordinary mail | yes, at the plaintiff's option | no — sheriff | no — sheriff | — |
| Garnishee's answer deadline | the Rule 12.01 period | — | 10 days | — |
A short checklist
- Find the issuance date of the employer's garnishment check. The fifteen days run from there.
- File your objection inside that window. It keeps the funds held until the court rules.
- Assert any exemption in the objection — the rule contemplates a hearing on it.
- Check who is holding the money. It is the creditor's attorney unless there is none of record.
- If the garnishment is for child support arrearages, the escrow does not apply.
- Check how the garnishee was served. First class mail is permitted, so there may be no formal return.
- Expect the service expenses to be added as costs.
Where these rules live
- Ky. R. Civ. P. 69.02 — Post-judgment garnishment
- Ky. R. Civ. P. 69.03 — Execution
- Ky. R. Civ. P. 12.01 — When presented
- Ky. R. Civ. P. 60.02 — Relief by motion on grounds of mistake, newly discovered evidence, fraud, etc.
This page explains what the rules say. It isn't legal advice, and which earnings are exempt is governed by statutes this site doesn't cover.