Form 668-W has a long official name: Notice of Levy on Wages, Salary, and Other Income. Your employer probably calls it something shorter. You may too, once you see your next paycheck.
This form is how the IRS reaches your pay. It is served on your employer, not on you. Once your employer has it, the law requires the employer to pay the IRS the non-exempt part of your wages every pay period until the IRS releases it. Let’s walk through what the form does and what you should do in the first few days.
Why the IRS uses a separate form for wages
The IRS has a general levy form, Form 668-A, used for bank accounts and most other property. Wages get their own form because wages are treated differently. IRM 5.11.2 directs IRS employees to use Form 668-W to levy an individual’s wages, salary (including fees, bonuses, commissions and similar items) or other income. The same form is used for benefit and retirement income.
The difference is legal, not cosmetic. Most levies only reach property that exists on the day the levy is served. IRC 6331(b) says so. A wage levy is the big exception. IRC 6331(e) makes a levy on salary or wages continuous until it is released. One form, served once, reaches every future paycheck.
The other difference is the exemption. Because Form 668-W is used when an individual may be entitled to the minimum exemption in IRC 6334(a)(9), it comes with a statement you fill out to claim that exemption. IRM 5.11.5.4.1 describes it as a Statement of Dependents and Filing Status.
What is on the form
A notice of levy identifies you, your taxpayer identification number, the tax periods and the amount the IRS says you owe as of the date of the levy. It names the employer it is served on. It tells the employer what to do and where to send the money.
Read the tax periods carefully. IRM 5.11.5.5 says levy payments are applied to the periods listed on the levy, generally to the oldest assessment first. You do not get to choose how levy money is applied, because it is not a voluntary payment. If you see a period you believe is wrong or already paid, that is worth raising right away.
Who gets which part
Form 668-W comes in parts. The employer keeps its copy and gives you the parts meant for you. Publication 1494, which the IRS sends with the levy, refers to Parts 3, 4 and 5 of the levy as the place where you claim filing status, dependents and the additional standard deduction for age or blindness. IRM 5.11.2 says the IRS keeps Part 6 for its file.
The employer is also supposed to receive Publication 1494, the tables for figuring the exempt amount. IRM 5.11.5.4.1 confirms that Pub. 1494 is sent with the levy for that purpose. If payroll did not give you a copy, ask for it, or read our 2026 Publication 1494 guide.
Your three-day clock
Here is the deadline that costs people money. Under IRM 5.11.5.4.1, the employer gives you the statement to complete and return within three days. If it is not received by then, the exempt amount is figured as if you are married filing separately with no dependents. The Code says the same thing about the default in IRC 6334(d)(4)(D).
Missed it? Do it anyway. The same IRM section says you can give the statement to your employer later to change the exempt amount. The statement is signed under penalty of perjury, so it needs to be accurate. Our step-by-step guide to the statement covers each line.
What your employer must do
Your employer does not get a vote. IRC 6332(a) requires any person in possession of property subject to levy to surrender it on demand. For wages, that means paying over the non-exempt portion each pay period. An employer that refuses can be held personally liable for the amount it should have paid, plus costs and interest, under IRC 6332(d)(1). If it refuses without reasonable cause, IRC 6332(d)(2) adds a penalty of 50 percent of that amount.
In return, IRC 6332(e) discharges an employer that honors the levy from any obligation to you for the amounts it paid to the IRS. That is why HR will not hold the money back because you asked nicely. The law protects them for paying and punishes them for not paying. For the employer side in detail, see the employer guide to IRS wage levies.
One more practical point from IRM 5.11.2: a levy on wages is not paid until your usual pay day. The levy does not reach back to wages paid to you before it was served. Treasury Regulation 301.6334-2(b) makes the same point about the exemption: only wages payable after the levy is made qualify.
What the form does not do
- It does not let your employer fire you over a single debt. See can your employer fire you over an IRS levy.
- It does not end on its own after a set number of paychecks. It ends when the IRS releases it.
- It does not take your whole check. The exempt amount stays with you, and by IRS policy the levy generally reaches only your usual take-home pay. IRM 5.11.5.4.5 explains that policy.
Your first-week checklist
- Get a complete copy of everything your employer received, including the statement and Pub. 1494.
- Complete and return the statement to your employer. Keep a copy.
- Check the tax periods and balances against your IRS notices or your online IRS account.
- Pull together pay stubs, rent or mortgage statements, utility bills, insurance, car payment and medical costs.
- Figure out which release ground fits. Start with how to stop an IRS wage garnishment.
If you want background on levies in general before you dig into the wage-specific rules, here is an overview of what an IRS levy is.
Form 668-W is one piece of paper served once. Its effect is continuous. Your response should be quick.