A Modification Request Doesn’t End Your Collection
When a debtor files to modify your income execution, you still have rights — and we know exactly how to protect them across the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island. We’ve been enforcing judgments in NYC’s civil courts for over 35 years, and we don’t let a modification motion become the end of your case.
What Makes This Office Different
Mayor-Appointed, DOI-Vetted Marshal
Edward F. Guida Jr. holds Badge #14 — a formal city appointment backed by a $100,000 public officer’s bond and full Department of Investigation oversight.
Serving NYC Since 1988
The Guida name has been in NYC marshal service for over 35 years, with the same experienced staff carrying institutional knowledge and relationships across the five boroughs.
All Five Boroughs, One Office
We enforce income executions across every borough — Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island — without restriction by office location or court jurisdiction.
Active Case Management, Not Just Filing
We track employer responses, monitor payment status, and re-serve executions when debtors change jobs — so your collection doesn’t quietly stall while you’re waiting for the next payment.
Income Execution Modification NYC
What Actually Happens When a Debtor Files to Modify
An income execution — what most people call a wage garnishment — is one of the most effective tools for collecting a civil court judgment in New York. Once it’s in place, a portion of the debtor’s wages is withheld by their employer and forwarded to us for distribution to you.
New York law caps that amount at 10% of the debtor’s gross wages, which is actually more protective for debtors than the federal standard of 25% of disposable earnings. But here’s what most creditors don’t expect: the debtor can file a motion to modify that income execution at any time under CPLR § 5231(i). When that happens, many creditors assume the garnishment is over. It isn’t.
The modification process is a legal proceeding — one that you have every right to respond to — and how it’s handled from this point forward determines whether you keep collecting or lose momentum entirely. We coordinate with the courts in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island to make sure your interests are represented.
Modify Wage Garnishment NYC Rights
What You Keep When You Work With Us
A modification motion is the beginning of a negotiation, not the end of your judgment — here’s what staying engaged actually looks like.
- You’ll know immediately when a modification motion is filed, not weeks later when payments stop arriving.
- Your right to respond to the debtor’s motion is preserved — we coordinate with the court so nothing goes unanswered.
- If the court adjusts the garnishment amount, we recalculate and continue collecting under the modified order without starting over.
- When a debtor changes employers mid-execution, we re-serve the income execution on the new employer so payments don’t stop.
- Your judgment continues accruing interest at 9% per year — the longer enforcement continues, the more total recovery you’re entitled to.
- You get direct access to our office — not a call center — when you need a straight answer about where your case stands.
Garnishment Maximum Limit New York
The Numbers Behind Every Income Execution
New York’s income execution cap is set by CPLR § 5231 and is more protective of debtors than federal law. The maximum that can be withheld is 10% of the debtor’s gross wages — before taxes and deductions. Federal law allows up to 25% of disposable earnings, but in New York, the lower gross-income cap controls.
There’s also a floor. If the debtor’s weekly disposable earnings fall below 30 times the federal minimum wage — currently $217.50 per week — no deduction is permitted at all. For workers in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island, where New York City’s minimum wage is $17 per hour (effective January 1, 2026), that protected floor is closer to $510 per week in disposable earnings. That’s a meaningful number in any modification hearing.
These limits matter because modification motions almost always hinge on them. A debtor arguing financial hardship will point to their income, their household expenses, and the protected floor. Understanding exactly where the numbers land — and how to respond — is something we’ve been doing in NYC’s civil courts for decades.
Marshal Income Modification Process NYC
What the Modification Process Actually Looks Like
When a debtor wants to modify an income execution in New York City, they file an order to show cause at the civil court in their borough. The Bronx court sits on Grand Concourse, Brooklyn on Livingston Street, Queens on Sutphin Boulevard, Manhattan at Centre Street, and Staten Island on Castleton Avenue.
They’ll typically submit a financial disclosure affidavit detailing their income, expenses, and household obligations. The court may instruct us to suspend deductions while the motion is pending. That doesn’t mean you’ve lost. It means there’s a hearing scheduled, and you have the right to appear and contest the modification.
If the court grants a reduced garnishment, the execution continues at the adjusted amount. If the court denies it, deductions resume at the original rate. Throughout this process, our office stays active. We don’t file the paperwork and disappear. We track the motion, communicate with the court, and keep you informed so you’re not left guessing about what’s happening with your judgment.
Disposable Earnings Garnishment NYC Steps
From Judgment to Collection — Here’s the Process
Submit Your Judgment
You provide us with your civil court or Supreme Court judgment, and we open your case and prepare the income execution paperwork.
We Serve the Debtor and Employer
The income execution is served on the debtor first, giving them a 20-day window to pay voluntarily before we serve their employer.
Deductions Begin and Continue
Once the employer receives the execution, withholding starts. We monitor payments, handle modifications, and re-serve if the debtor changes jobs.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an income execution modification and when can a debtor file one?
Under CPLR § 5231(i), a judgment debtor in New York can file a motion to modify an income execution at any time — there’s no deadline. They do this by filing an order to show cause at the civil court in their borough, along with a financial affidavit showing their income and expenses. The debtor’s argument is typically that the garnishment creates an undue hardship given their household obligations. The court then decides whether to reduce the garnishment amount, leave it as-is, or in rare cases, temporarily suspend it. As the creditor, you have the right to appear at that hearing and present your side. A modification doesn’t automatically stop your collection — it’s a legal process, and the outcome depends on the facts presented.
Does a modification motion automatically stop my wage garnishment in NYC?
Not automatically, no. When a debtor files for modification, the court may issue a temporary order instructing us to suspend deductions while the motion is pending — but that’s a court decision, not an automatic consequence of the filing. Even if deductions are temporarily paused, the income execution itself remains in place, and the judgment continues accruing interest at 9% per year during that time. Once the court rules, deductions either resume at the original rate or continue at a modified amount. The key is making sure your interests are represented at the hearing, which is something we help coordinate across the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island courts.
How much of someone’s wages can actually be garnished in New York City?
New York caps income executions at 10% of the debtor’s gross wages — that’s before taxes and deductions are taken out. This is actually stricter than the federal limit, which allows up to 25% of disposable earnings. On top of that, there’s a protected floor: if the debtor’s weekly disposable earnings are below 30 times the federal minimum wage (currently $217.50 per week), no deduction is allowed at all. In New York City, where the minimum wage is $17 per hour as of January 2026, that floor is closer to $510 per week in disposable earnings. For workers in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, or Staten Island, these numbers come up directly in modification hearings, and knowing exactly where the calculation lands matters.
What happens to my income execution if the debtor changes employers?
This is one of the most common ways a garnishment quietly falls apart. When a debtor leaves a job, the income execution against that employer becomes unenforceable — deductions stop, and if no one follows up, months can pass without a payment. In our office, we monitor for employer changes and re-serve the income execution on the debtor’s new employer. The execution doesn’t expire just because the debtor switched jobs. It stays active, and once we have the new employer’s information, we serve them and deductions resume. If you’re working with a marshal office that doesn’t actively track this, you may not find out about the gap until long after it starts.
Can a debtor completely stop a wage garnishment in New York City?
A debtor can file for modification under CPLR § 5231(i), but completely eliminating the garnishment is difficult. The court applies a standard of whether the execution is “burdensome for the debtor or the debtor’s family,” and it typically results in a reduced amount rather than a full stop. A debtor can also vacate the underlying judgment if they were never properly served in the original lawsuit — something that comes up more frequently in immigrant communities across the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens, where residents may not have received notice of the original case. If a bankruptcy is filed, an automatic stay does halt enforcement immediately. Outside of those scenarios, the income execution generally continues until the full judgment balance — principal, interest at 9% per year, and the 5% poundage fee — is collected.
How is the total amount owed on a NYC civil judgment calculated during an income execution?
The total amount collected through an income execution isn’t just the original judgment. It includes the principal (what the court awarded), interest accruing at 9% per year from the date of judgment — calculated daily — plus a 5% poundage fee on the amount collected, plus applicable filing fees. The poundage fee is paid by the debtor as part of the total balance, not separately by you. This means the longer a judgment goes uncollected, the larger the total balance grows — which is actually one reason to move quickly on enforcement. The 9% interest rate is fixed by law for NYC civil judgments and applies regardless of what the original debt was for. When we open your case, we calculate the current balance including accrued interest so the income execution reflects the full amount you’re owed.
Call us at (718) 779-2134 or email us at gu*****@**********14.com to see how we can help you.