Generally, the IRS will attempt to contact you several times before resorting to such a measure, but if the IRS has out-of-date contact information, you may not learn about your tax debt until your employer notifies you that they received a notice from the IRS. These notices sent to your employer, tells them they are legally obligated to withhold a portion of your wages and send it to the IRS.

When your employer receives the wage garnishment notice, they must provide you with a copy. The back side of the notice will have a worksheet asking you to list your exemptions. If you do not complete it and return it to the IRS, they will assume you have no dependents and require your employer to withhold most of your check.

Once the IRS garnishes your wages, it will usually continue until your taxes are fully paid or until the collection period for your back taxes expire. To try and get the garnishment released before then, you or your tax professional should try to get your tax debt resolved through other means. You may want to consider borrowing money to pay off your entire tax debt all at once, if possible. Or, if you haven't already done so, you can try to set up an installment agreement with the IRS. If none of these options are feasible, you may be able to convince an IRS collections officer that withholding your wages will cause you undue hardship.

Remember that while a wage garnishment may be a new and confusing circumstance for you, tax professionals have dealt with several tax situations just like yours and may be able to provide you with options that haven't occurred to you. While no reputable tax professional can guarantee they can get you released from a wage garnishment, a tax pro may be able to provide you with invaluable expertise.