Short answer: if your wages or bank account have been garnished and you believe some or all of it is exempt, you assert that by filing Form DC-454, “Request for Hearing — Garnishment/Lien Exemption Claim,” with the clerk of the court that issued the garnishment summons. You generally have seven business days from the date you file to get a hearing, but you must act before the garnished funds are turned over to the creditor — recording a homestead deed and filing this form are two different steps that often need to happen together.
What Triggers This Form
When a creditor with a judgment against you garnishes your wages or places a lien on a bank account, the garnishee (your employer or bank) is required to send you a notice — Form DC-454, “Notice to Judgment Debtor: How to Claim Exemptions from Garnishment and Lien” — explaining which exemptions apply automatically and which ones you have to affirmatively claim.
Some exemptions are automatic. Financial institutions must exempt certain federal and state benefit payments without you having to file anything, including Social Security and SSI, veterans’ benefits, federal civil service retirement benefits, and Railroad Retirement Board benefits, along with a minimum protected balance under Va. Code § 34-4.2. But receiving an automatic exemption does not limit your right to also claim additional exemptions — including the homestead exemption — which do require you to file the request.
How to File the Request for Hearing
The Request for Hearing is printed on the reverse side of Form DC-454. To claim the homestead exemption specifically, you check the box for exemption item 11 on the form (“Homestead exemption… not exceeding $50,000 in value,” under Va. Code § 34-4) and, if applicable, item 12 for the additional disabled-veteran exemption under § 34-4.1. You’ll need to provide your address and phone number so the court can notify you of the hearing, sign the form, and file it with the clerk of the court that issued the garnishment.
Critically, checking the homestead exemption box on Form DC-454 is not a substitute for recording an actual homestead deed. The exemption claim form asserts, in this specific garnishment case, that a homestead exemption applies — but under Va. Code §§ 34-6 and 34-14, the homestead deed itself is the separate, recorded writing that legally sets the property apart as exempt in the first place. Most people dealing with a garnishment need to do both: record the homestead deed, and file the DC-454 exemption claim referencing it.
The Deadline You’re Actually On
You have a right to a hearing within seven business days from the date you file your claim with the court. But the more important deadline is upstream of that: you need to file the claim before the garnished funds or wages are turned over to the creditor. If the garnishment is for wages, the summons itself shows how the exempt portion is calculated, and you don’t need to file a claim just to get that automatic wage exemption — only if you believe the wrong amount is being withheld or you’re claiming an additional exemption like the homestead exemption.
DC-454 vs. DC-407: Use the One That Matches Your Process
Virginia’s district courts use two related but distinct exemption-claim forms. DC-454 is specifically for garnishment and lien cases — the scenario nearly everyone reading this page is dealing with. DC-407 covers a different, broader set of creditor processes: an Attachment Summons, a Writ of Fieri Facias, a Warrant of Distress, or a Detinue action. If the paper you received is specifically a Summons in Garnishment or a Notice of Lien, DC-454 is the form that applies to you.
Related reading: Where to File Your Homestead Deed · Homestead Deed vs. Bankruptcy
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to file Form DC-454 if my garnished funds are Social Security or veterans’ benefits?
Generally no — those particular federal benefit payments are automatically exempted by the financial institution without a filed claim. You would still file DC-454 to claim additional exemptions the bank isn’t required to apply automatically, such as the homestead exemption.
Does filing Form DC-454 by itself protect my property under the homestead exemption?
Filing DC-454 asserts the claim in this specific case, but the homestead exemption itself is created by recording a homestead deed under Va. Code §§ 34-6 or 34-14. In most garnishment situations, you need both: the recorded homestead deed and the DC-454 exemption claim.
How long do I have to request a hearing after I file my claim?
You have a right to a hearing within seven business days of filing your claim with the court, but you must file the claim itself before the garnished funds are released to the creditor — don’t wait for the return date on the summons.