Kansas debt: if your account was sold, the buyer cannot garnish your wages

If a creditor sells or assigns an account to another person or a collection agency, the new owner is not entitled to wage garnishment (K.S.A. 60-2310(d)). The exceptions cover child support assignments, accounts assigned to the state's director of accounts and reports, and court restitution collections, not ordinary consumer debts. A creditor that only places an account with an agency, without selling it, keeps the right.

So the first question for a Kansas paycheck is who owns the debt. If a debt buyer is suing you, a judgment would not let it take your wages, although other collection steps may still be possible.

Already facing a garnishment in Kansas? Our wage garnishment guide covers exemption claims, hardship and how long a garnishment lasts.

Five years on any agreement, contract or promise in writing (K.S.A. 60-511) and three years on a contract not in writing, including open accounts (K.S.A. 60-512). Whether a credit card gets three years or five depends on whether it is treated as an open account or a written contract, and sources disagree.

Whether a payment would restart the 3-year limit is covered, state by state, in our page on time-barred debt.

Limits vary a lot between states: by comparison, Minnesota sets 6 years and Ohio sets 6 years for similar debts.

Not sure a Kansas collector is genuine? Check our guide to fake debt collectors, then ask for validation in writing.

National collectors active in Kansas include Cavalry SPV and ConServe; our guides list their official dispute addresses.

If you have been served in Kansas, our guide to responding to a debt lawsuit explains how to answer and which defenses to raise.

If you cannot work for more than two weeks because you or a member of your family is ill, and you show this by affidavit, wage garnishment cannot be used against you until two months after recovery (K.S.A. 60-2310(c)). No creditor may issue more than one wage garnishment against the same person in any 30-day period (K.S.A. 60-2310(b)). For other garnishments, Kansas follows the federal limit (K.S.A. 60-2310). Social Security benefits and pensions cannot be garnished for consumer debt (K.S.A. 60-2308).

The Kansas Consumer Protection Act (K.S.A. 50-623 and following) protects consumers from deceptive and unconscionable practices, and claims under it must be brought within three years. A written dispute inside the validation period makes a collector stop until it mails verification.