When the IRS levies your wages, the law does not let it take everything. IRC 6334(a)(9) exempts a minimum amount of wages, salary and other income. IRC 6334(d) says how to compute it. And every year the IRS turns that formula into a set of tables called Publication 1494.
The current version is Publication 1494 (Rev. 12-2025). It states that its tables show the amount of take-home pay exempt from a notice of levy used to collect delinquent tax in 2026. Those are the figures on this page.
Where the numbers come from
The formula is in the Code. For years in which the personal exemption amount is zero, IRC 6334(d)(4) says the weekly exempt amount equals the standard deduction plus a per-dependent amount, divided by 52. The per-dependent figure started at $4,150 and is adjusted for inflation each year.
For 2026, Rev. Proc. 2025-32 sets the pieces:
| 2026 item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Standard deduction, single or married filing separately | $16,100 |
| Standard deduction, head of household | $24,150 |
| Standard deduction, married filing jointly | $32,200 |
| Amount per dependent under IRC 6334(d)(4)(B) | $5,300 |
| Additional standard deduction, age 65+ or blind (unmarried) | $2,050 |
| Additional standard deduction, age 65+ or blind (married) | $1,650 |
Divide by the number of pay periods in a year and you get the Pub. 1494 figures. Treasury Regulation 301.6334-3(d)(2) uses 260 for daily pay, 52 for weekly, 26 for biweekly, 24 for semimonthly and 12 for monthly.
2026 base amounts with no dependents
| Filing status | Weekly | Biweekly | Semimonthly | Monthly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single | $309.62 | $619.23 | $670.83 | $1,341.67 |
| Married filing separately | $309.62 | $619.23 | $670.83 | $1,341.67 |
| Head of household | $464.42 | $928.85 | $1,006.25 | $2,012.50 |
| Married filing jointly | $619.23 | $1,238.46 | $1,341.67 | $2,683.33 |
Source: IRS Publication 1494 (Rev. 12-2025), for levies served in 2026.
Add this much per dependent
| Pay period | Added per dependent (2026) |
|---|---|
| Daily | $20.38 |
| Weekly | $101.92 |
| Biweekly | $203.85 |
| Semimonthly | $220.83 |
| Monthly | $441.67 |
Pub. 1494 prints columns for zero through five dependents and then gives a formula for more than five: the base amount plus the per-dependent figure for each dependent. The 2026 publication works an example: a single taxpayer paid weekly who claims three dependents has $615.38 exempt. That is $309.62 plus three times $101.92.
Age 65 or blind
Treasury Regulation 301.6334-3(b) includes the additional standard deductions for age or blindness in the exempt amount. Pub. 1494 has a separate table for this. For 2026, each box claimed adds $39.42 per week for a single or head-of-household filer, and $31.73 per week for any other filing status. The publication’s example adds $39.42 to the $615.38 above for a total of $654.80. Details are in the age 65 and blind guide.
A worked example
Maria is head of household with two dependents. She is paid every two weeks and her usual take-home pay is $2,100.
- Base, head of household, biweekly: $928.85
- Two dependents at $203.85: $407.70
- Exempt amount: $1,336.55
- Sent to the IRS each payday: $2,100.00 minus $1,336.55 = $763.45
If Maria never returned her statement, her employer would use married filing separately with no dependents: $619.23. The IRS would get $1,480.77 a paycheck instead. That gap is why the statement matters. Run your own numbers in the exempt amount calculator.
Three rules people miss
The year of the levy controls
Treasury Regulation 301.6334-3(e) says the exempt amount is based on the figures in effect in the year the original notice of levy is served. It stays the same in later years unless you submit a new verified statement. If your levy was served years ago, you may be living on old numbers. See updating an old wage levy.
Child support can be added
IRC 6334(a)(8) separately exempts wages needed to comply with a court judgment for support of minor children entered before the levy. That is on top of the table amount, with one catch: IRM 5.11.5.4 says a child counted for support cannot also be claimed as a dependent. Read wage levies and child support.
Other income can wipe out the exemption
If you have a second job or another source of income that the IRS did not levy, and it pays at least the exempt amount, the IRS can tell the levied employer to allow no exemption at all. That is Treasury Regulation 301.6334-2(c)(1). See wage levies with two jobs.
Daily, irregular and one-time pay
Not everyone gets a regular paycheck. The regulation handles that too. If you are paid daily on an established schedule, Treasury Regulation 301.6334-3(d)(2) divides by 260, which is why Pub. 1494 has a daily column: $61.92 for a single filer in 2026, plus $20.38 per dependent.
If you are paid on a one-time or irregular basis that is not tied to a regular payroll calendar, Treasury Regulation 301.6334-3(d)(3) uses a different method. The weekly exempt amount is multiplied by the number of full weeks the payment is attributable to, up to 52. The regulation’s own example: a worker with a $100 weekly exempt amount earns a $1,500 flat fee for a job that took 10 weeks. The exempt amount is $1,000, and $500 is subject to levy. That rule matters for commissions, project fees and severance. See bonuses, commissions and severance.
Why your stub may not match the table to the penny
A few reasons. Pub. 1494 rounds each figure to the cent, so its totals can differ from the raw formula by a penny or two. Your employer may apply the exemption to take-home pay after deductions it was already taking when the levy arrived. IRM 5.11.5.4.5 explains that the levy legally attaches to gross income minus the exempt amount, but by policy the IRS generally limits it to your usual take-home pay. Voluntary deductions can be stopped if they are large enough to defeat the levy. See wage levies and payroll deductions.
How to check your employer’s math
- Find your filing status, dependents and pay period on the statement you returned.
- Look up the base and per-dependent figures above, or in the copy of Pub. 1494 that came with the levy.
- Compare to the levy deduction on your stub. Your usual take-home pay minus the exempt amount should roughly equal what was sent.
- If it is off, give payroll the numbers in writing. Payroll mistakes on a new levy are common and usually fixable.
For the broader picture of what happens next, my firm keeps a guide to stopping IRS wage garnishment.
Publication 1494 is the floor, not the ceiling. It tells you what the IRS cannot touch. Getting the rest back takes a release.