Does Garnishment of Wages Show Up On Credit Report

Reader Question: Does garnishment of wages show up on your credit report?

Yes, it will appear in the "Public Records" section of your credit report. In most cases, garnishing of wages has to be approved by a court. So it's a form of legal action against you, and thus it is also part of the public record. So a legal judgment associated with a wage garnishment can show up on your credit report, and it can also do damage to your credit score.

So yes, it's legally possible for garnishing to appear on your file. Whether or not it actually does show up is another question entirely. That depends on whether or not it gets reported to the credit reporting agencies (Experian, TransUnion and Equifax).

When it does appear on your report, it will include the following information: the court where the case was tried, the case number, the amount of debt that is owed, the current status of the case, the plaintiff and defendant, and other relevant data.

Like most negative information, a wage garnishment can stay on your report for a period of up to seven years. After that, it has to be removed. This is in accordance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

Definition: For readers who aren't familiar with the term, garnishment is the process through which a creditor collects part of your wages to settle your unpaid debts. It's usually a last resort among creditors, and it must be approved through a court.