When an officer has received money under execution, if any surplus remain in his hands after satisfying the execution, such surplus shall be repaid to the debtor; and if the debtor, or his personal representative, obtain an injunction or supersedeas to an execution, in whole or in part, before money received under it, or any part of it, is paid over to the creditor, the officer shall repay such debtor the money so received and not so paid over, or so much thereof as the injunction or supersedeas may extend to, unless such process otherwise direct.
§ 8.01-495.When money received by officer under execution to be repaid to debtor.
Chapter 18. Executions and Other Means of Recovery · Article 4. Enforcement Generally · Last amended 1977 · Last verified July 16, 2026
In one sentenceOnce an officer collects money under an execution and satisfies the judgment, any surplus goes back to the debtor, and if the debtor obtains an injunction or supersedeas before the money is paid over to the creditor, the officer must return whatever amount that injunction or supersedeas covers, unless the process directs otherwise.
Full Text of § 8.01-495
Plain-English Summary
Execution sales and levies sometimes produce more money than the judgment requires. Section 8.01-495 makes sure that extra money is not kept by the creditor or the officer — any surplus remaining after the execution is satisfied goes back to the debtor.
The section also protects a debtor who manages to halt collection after the money has already been collected but before it reaches the creditor. If the debtor, or the debtor’s personal representative, obtains an injunction or supersedeas against the execution — in whole or in part — before the officer pays the money over, the officer must repay the debtor whatever amount the injunction or supersedeas covers, unless the injunction or supersedeas itself directs some other outcome.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens to surplus money left after an execution is satisfied?
The surplus shall be repaid to the debtor.
What if the debtor obtains an injunction after the officer collects the money but before it is paid to the creditor?
The officer must repay the debtor the money received and not yet paid over, or so much of it as the injunction or supersedeas extends to.
Who besides the debtor can obtain this kind of relief?
The debtor’s personal representative may also obtain an injunction or supersedeas covered by this section.
Is there an exception to the officer’s duty to repay under an injunction or supersedeas?
Yes, unless the injunction or supersedeas process otherwise directs.
Does this section apply if the money has already been paid to the creditor?
The repayment duty applies to money not yet paid over to the creditor; the text conditions it on the injunction or supersedeas arriving before payment over.
Amendment History
Code 1950, § 8-424; 1977, c. 617.
Source & verification. Section text and amendment history are
reproduced verbatim from the Code of Virginia, published by the
Code of Virginia, Virginia Division of Legislative Automated Systems. Last verified July 16, 2026.
· Official source
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