Owe back local taxes? Treasurers can take at most 25% of your pay

If you fall behind on local taxes or charges in Virginia, your local treasurer or tax collector can put a lien on your wages, which means your employer sends part of each paycheck to the collector. Wage-garnishment rules for regular debts didn’t cover these liens, so before this law a lien could reach all of your disposable earnings—the pay left after taxes and other deductions required by law. Since July 1, 2026, a covered lien can take no more than 25% of your disposable earnings each pay period.

The cap applies if the adjusted gross income reported on your most recent income tax return is no more than 250% of the federal poverty guideline for your household size. The lien issuer checks tax-return information maintained by the state Tax Commissioner. If your income has dropped since that return, you can show the treasurer your current situation, and once the treasurer verifies it, the 25% limit applies. The cap doesn’t apply if a court finds you’re likely to flee or improperly disposing of assets to avoid paying, or if the money owed is tax collected and held for the locality, such as meals or lodging tax.

Del. Phil Hernandez carried the bill in the House, and Sen. Lashrecse Aird carried an identical bill in the Senate. Gov. Abigail Spanberger asked for changes, and both chambers accepted them on April 22, 2026, which made both bills law.