Will bankruptcy stop or delay an IRS wage garnishment?

Filing for bankruptcy will stop an IRS wage garnishment, at least temporarily. When you file for bankruptcy, a court order called the automatic stay goes into effect immediately. The stay prohibits most creditors from taking any action against you to collect debts, including filing a lawsuit, repossessing property, and garnishing your wages. The stay also stops wage garnishments already in place, including IRS wage garnishments. 

However, once your bankruptcy case is over, the stay no longer protects you. If the debt that resulted in the garnishment was discharged in your bankruptcy case, you don't owe it any longer and the creditor can't garnish your wages. The situation is different for tax debts, however: Most tax debts aren't discharged in bankruptcy. You still owe them when your case is over. This means the relief offered by filing for bankruptcy is only temporary. 

If you file for bankruptcy under Chapter 13, you will have to repay your tax debt through your repayment plan. This gives you a way to pay back the debt over time, a little bit each month, for the three to five years your plan is in effect. If you pay the debt off in full, you will no longer owe it when your case is complete, and you won't have to worry about IRS wage garnishments.