Wage Garnishment and Child Support

 Posted on May 10, 2026 in Child Support

Despite the fact that child support payments are mandated by law, people still fall behind sometimes. This may be because of a change in employment that makes it more difficult to meet the support orders. They may lose track of their finances and fail to realize they’ve fallen behind. In some cases, people stop because they just don’t want to pay anymore.

Whatever the reason, children must have adequate financial support from both their parents. If unpaid support goes unresolved, Illinois courts can take measures to make sure that orders are fully paid. One possible solution is wage garnishment. This may be an option for you to pursue if your co-parent is failing to pay their support obligation. A Naperville, IL family law attorney can help you find out if it is.

What Is Wage Garnishment and How Does It Work in Illinois?

Wage garnishment is one of the most widely used debt collection tools in the country. Wage garnishment involves a person’s employer withholding a portion of the person’s paycheck. It is then sent to the receiving parent.

Illinois child support payments in 2026 are generally set up so that child support is deducted directly from the paying parent's paycheck before they even see it. This is called automatic withholding. Since the passage of the federal Family Support Act, every child support order in Illinois must come with an automatic income withholding order. Garnishment usually becomes necessary when that automatic withholding breaks down. This could happen if the paying parent loses their job, changes employers without updating the withholding order, or is self-employed.

If you need to start the garnishment process, Illinois requires you to notify the state's Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS) about the overdue support. Once you do, the department will typically move to begin collection proceedings against the paying parent.

Do You Need a Court Order To Garnish Wages for Child Support in Illinois?

For most types of debt, a separate court order is required before garnishment can begin. Child support is different. In Illinois, child support is one of the very few obligations for which a separate court order is not required to initiate garnishment. If there's already a support order in place and payments have stopped, the process of collecting through garnishment can begin without going back to court for a new order.

It's also worth knowing that having an existing garnishment order on wages for something else, like a credit card debt, doesn't protect a paying parent from a child support garnishment. Garnishment orders can stack unless the existing garnishment already accounts for the maximum amount of the person's total wages that can be garnished.

How Much of a Paycheck Can Be Garnished for Child Support in Illinois?

For non-support debts, the limit to garnishment is generally around 15 percent of gross wages. Support orders are treated differently. Up to 60 percent of disposable earnings can be garnished for child support or spousal maintenance if the paying parent has no other dependents. If they support another spouse or child, up to 50 percent may be garnished. An additional 5 percent can be added on top of either figure if payments are more than 12 weeks overdue. These steep percentages are a reflection of how seriously Illinois courts take support obligations.

What Happens if Someone Refuses To Pay Child Support?

Ignoring a support order can become a criminal offense. Illinois's Non-Support Punishment Act (750 ILCS 16/15) outlines how someone can be charged for not paying child support. These charges include:

• A Class A misdemeanor for a first offense

• A Class 4 felony for repeated offenses

• Fines as high as $25,000 for long-standing unpaid obligations

• Jail time for ongoing, willful non-payment

If a support order exists and someone hasn't paid, Illinois courts presume that they are able to pay and simply chose not to. The burden falls on the non-paying parent to show by clear and convincing evidence that they genuinely couldn't meet the obligation. The paying parent should seek a formal modification to the order before payments lapse if they’ve had a drop in income. They should not wait until after payments are late.

Call a DuPage County, IL Family Law Attorney Today

Whether you're struggling to collect the support your family is owed or you're a paying parent facing wage garnishment, our Naperville, IL family law lawyer can advise you on what to do next. Attorney Don Pesce brings almost two decades of legal experience to every case he handles. He is also court-approved in DuPage County to serve as a mediator for custody and visitation matters. Call Pesce Law Group, P.C. at 630-352-2240 today for a free consultation.