Michigan
Death Laws & End-of-Life Guide

At a Glance

The 72-hour rule.

In Michigan, a licensed funeral director must certify the death record and file it with the local registrar of the district where the death occurred within 72 hours after the death. The funeral director also has to obtain authorization for final disposition within 72 hours and before the body is buried or cremated. (MCL 333.2843(3), MCL 333.2848(1))

Who files it.

The funeral director who first assumes custody of the body reports the death through the state's web-based death registration system. The medical certification portion has to be completed and certified no later than 48 hours after death by the physician in charge of the decedent's care or a physician acting for that physician. For a death in an institution, the attending physician does it, and if the attending physician is absent the institution's chief medical officer or a pathologist can. When the county medical examiner has to investigate the death, the examiner certifies it within 48 hours after taking charge of the case. (MCL 333.2843(1), 333.2844, as amended by 2026 PA 3)

Who can order copies.

Michigan death records aren't restricted. Anyone can request a search, and a certified copy is issued if the record is found.

• -Michigan DHHS Vital Records: michigan.gov/mdhhs
• -Cost: $34 base fee, which covers a one-year search plus one certified copy. Additional certified copies ordered at the same time are $16 each.
• -Rush processing is $12 extra. VitalChek handles online and phone orders and charges its own fee on top.

Who can order a death certificate in Michigan?

Death records are not restricted in Michigan. Anyone can request a search with a completed, signed application and the fee; no photo ID is required for a death record. Certified copies come from Michigan's Division for Vital Records and Health Statistics, Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, in Lansing, online or by phone through VitalChek, by mail, by drop box, or in person by appointment on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

How do I get a death certificate in Michigan?

Order certified copies from Michigan's vital records office; this section's source link is the official process. The funeral home or cremation provider usually orders the first copies for you. Ask each bank, insurer, court, and agency whether it needs its own certified copy before you decide how many to order.

How much does a death certificate cost in Michigan?

$34 per certified copy in Michigan, as shown above. Additional-copy pricing varies; the official source linked in this section has the current fee schedule.

At a Glance

When probate is required.

Michigan has two small-estate shortcuts, and both use the same dollar cap. 2024 PA 1 raised the base figure from $15,000 to $50,000, and MCL 700.1210 adjusts it for inflation every year. For deaths in 2026 the cap is $53,000. Under MCL 700.3982 the probate court can order a small estate turned over to the surviving spouse or heirs once funeral and burial expenses are covered. Under MCL 700.3983 a successor can collect personal property with a sworn statement 28 days after the death, with no court order, as long as the estate holds no real property. When real property is in the estate, up to $264,000 of the debt secured by it comes off the value for 2026 before you test the cap.

If you die without a will.

Michigan intestate succession (MCL 700.2102) determines who inherits. The dollar figures below are the 2026 inflation-adjusted amounts:

• -Surviving spouse only (no descendants or parents): gets everything
• -Spouse + parents, no descendants: spouse gets the first $301,000 plus three-quarters of the remainder; parents take the rest
• -Spouse + descendants all from that spouse: spouse gets the first $301,000 plus half the remainder; descendants split the rest
• -Spouse + descendants from a prior relationship: spouse gets the first $301,000 plus half the remainder if some of the children are joint, or the first $201,000 plus half if none of them are
• -No spouse, descendants survive: descendants inherit by representation
• -No spouse or descendants: parents, then parents' descendants, then grandparents and their descendants

What goes through probate.

Only assets owned solely by the deceased without beneficiary designations. Joint tenancy property, accounts with named beneficiaries, and life insurance pass outside probate automatically.

Handwritten wills.

Michigan accepts a handwritten will with no witnesses if it's dated and the signature and the material portions (the parts that say who gets what and who's in charge) are in the person's own handwriting (MCL 700.2502(2)). A court can also accept a document that misses a formality on clear and convincing evidence that the person meant it as their will (MCL 700.2503). A will valid where it was signed, or where the person lived when they signed it or died, is valid here (MCL 700.2506).

Source: MCL 700.2502 (Michigan Legislature) ↗Source: MCL 700.2503 ↗

How long does probate take in Michigan?

A straightforward Michigan probate typically runs 5-12 months, as shown in this section. Contested wills, missing heirs, or real property in other states stretch it well past that.

What is the small-estate limit in Michigan?

$53,000. Estates under that figure can use the simplified process or affidavit covered above instead of full probate.

Do I need a probate attorney in Michigan?

Not always. If the estate qualifies for the simplified process covered above, many people handle it without a lawyer. Hire one for full probate, a contested will, or property in more than one state. Before you hire anyone, know the fee structures: hourly, flat, and (in a few states) statutory percentages. Our probate attorney cost guide covers what each should run you.

Does Michigan allow transfer-on-death deeds?

No. Michigan has no transfer-on-death deed statute. Michigan has no statutory TOD deed, but Lady Bird deeds are well established in Michigan title practice (Land Title Standard 9.3) and do the same probate-avoidance job; a living trust or joint ownership also works.

Source: legislative record ↗

Time off work after a death in Michigan

Michigan doesn't require a private employer to give bereavement leave, paid or unpaid. Whatever you get is your employer's policy, and it can be changed or refused.

Who it covers. No bereavement mandate for any private employer or employee.

How much. None required.

Paid or unpaid. Not applicable, no mandate.

Michigan requires no bereavement leave from private employers, paid or unpaid. ESTA hours (40 a year at employers with 10 or fewer employees, 72 at 11 or more) can only be spent on the reasons the act lists, and a death in the family isn't one of them, though a survivor's own health condition is. State classified employees are the exception, under Michigan Civil Service Commission Regulation 5.10: "In the event of the death of an employee's spouse, child, parent, or sibling, the employee will be allowed 8 hours of funeral leave on the day of the funeral to attend the service." That's a civil service rule for state government workers, not a law binding private employers. No Michigan statute covers pregnancy loss leave. Federal FMLA doesn't require bereavement leave either. DOL Fact Sheet #28 (dol.gov/agencies/whd/fact-sheets/28-fmla) lists the qualifying reasons as the employee's own serious health condition, care for a family member with one, birth or placement and bonding, and military family and caregiver leave. Bereavement appears nowhere in it, though FMLA can apply if grief becomes a serious health condition under treatment.

Source: Earned Sick Time Act, 2018 PA 338 as amended (MCL 408.961 et seq.); Michigan LEO Wage and Hour ESTA poster WHD 9911 (rev. 2/27/2025); Mich. Civil Service Commission Regulation 5.10 (state employees only) ↗

Can I leave money to care for my pet in Michigan?

Yes. Michigan enforces pet trusts under Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.7408, so money you set aside for an animal is legally binding on whoever you put in charge of it. The trust ends when your animal dies, or when the last of them dies if you covered more than one, and Michigan sets no year limit on it. Whoever you name in the trust enforces it, and if you name nobody a court appoints someone. Anyone who cares about your animal can also ask the court to appoint an enforcer or to remove one who isn't doing the job. A judge can cut the amount back if it holds more than your animal's care requires. Unless your trust says where the extra should go, it comes back to you if you're living, and otherwise to whoever inherits from you. Michigan rewrote this law in February 2024 and moved it into the Trust Code, so any form or advice pointing at MCL 700.2722 is out of date. The wording covers a designated domestic pet or animal, so name your animals in the trust rather than writing something general, and name a caretaker and a backup; Michigan won't pick them for you.

Source: Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.7408

How to set one up, and what it costs →

Die without a will in Michigan and this law picks your heirs.

If you die intestate (without a valid will) in Michigan, Mich. Comp. Laws §§ 700.2101 to 700.2114; 700.1210 (dollar amounts inflation-adjusted annually; 2026 figures per Treasury notice of Jan. 30, 2026) decides who inherits everything a will would have covered. The shares depend on exactly who survives you: spouse, children, parents, siblings. What you told people you wanted doesn't matter. Only a signed will changes these defaults.

What your spouse gets.

What your spouse inherits depends on who else survives you. The four common family shapes:

• -Spouse only (no descendants or parents): the entire estate
• -Spouse + parents (no descendants): first $301,000 plus 3/4 of the balance (2026)
• -Spouse + joint descendants: first $301,000 plus 1/2 of the balance (2026), never the whole estate
• -Spouse + blended family: first $301,000 plus 1/2 (some children joint) or first $201,000 plus 1/2 (none joint) (2026)
• -Source: Mich. Comp. Laws §§ 700.2101 to 700.2114; 700.1210

Children's shares.

The descendants take everything by representation.

No spouse, no children: the line of succession.

With no spouse or descendants, the estate goes to parents, then to parents' descendants, then half to each of the paternal and maternal grandparents' lines and their descendants, and with no takers it passes to the state (§ 700.2105).

At a Glance

Michigan Patient Advocate Designation.

Michigan recognizes a Patient Advocate Designation (MCL 700.5506) that designates an agent to make medical decisions when you can't. The patient advocate must sign an acceptance.

Michigan Living Will.

Michigan doesn't have a traditional living will statute. Instead, your healthcare wishes are documented in the Patient Advocate Designation. You can specify your wishes for life-sustaining treatment within the designation document.

MI-POST (Michigan Physician Orders for Scope of Treatment).

Michigan's portable medical order for seriously ill patients is the POST form, authorized by Part 56B of the Public Health Code (MCL 333.5671 et seq., added by 2017 PA 154 and effective February 6, 2018). It's a signed medical order covering CPR and other treatment decisions, and it travels with the patient across care settings. It isn't a substitute for the Patient Advocate Designation.

Where do I get Michigan's advance directive form?

Start with MCL 700.5506 et seq. (Michigan Patient Advocate Designation), linked as this section's source. Use the current form or sample that the official source provides or identifies. Form authority and execution requirements vary by state, so confirm the source before signing and get legal help if your situation or the instructions are unclear.

Does Michigan require a notary or witnesses for an advance directive?

Michigan requires 2 adult witnesses; notarization isn’t required. Anyone 18 or older of sound mind can make one.

At a Glance

Cremation regulations.

Michigan sets no waiting period before cremation. What it requires is an authorization for final disposition, on a form prescribed by the state registrar and signed by the local or state registrar, obtained within 72 hours after death and before the body is disposed of. When the disposition is cremation, the medical examiner of the county where the death occurred also has to sign that authorization. (MCL 333.2848(1), (3)) Funeral establishments and mortuary science licensees are licensed by the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs.

Right of disposition.

MCL 700.3206 sets the order: a designated person under federal military rules if the decedent was a service member, then the funeral representative the decedent named in writing, then the surviving spouse, then, in order, the decedent's children, grandchildren, parents, grandparents, siblings, and more distant descendants of the decedent's parents and grandparents.

Green burial.

Green burial is permitted in Michigan. Natural burial is allowed at cemeteries that permit it. Ask the cemetery directly; no state list of green burial grounds exists.

Who decides what happens to the body in Michigan

Michigan sets this order by statute. The first person on the list who is available and willing decides, and a funeral home takes its instructions from them.

1. military designee (person named to direct disposition under federal statute or DoD regulation, if the decedent was a service member)
2. funeral representative designated in writing under MCL 700.3206(2)
3. surviving spouse
4. decedent's children (18+)
5. decedent's grandchildren (18+)
6. decedent's parents (18+)
7. decedent's grandparents (18+)
8. decedent's siblings (18+)
9. descendant of the decedent's parents who first notifies the funeral establishment
10. descendant of the decedent's grandparents who first notifies the funeral establishment
11. guardian, if the decedent was under a guardianship at the time of death (subsec. (7)); subsecs. (6) and (8) both apply only 'if subsection (7) does not apply,' so the guardian outranks the personal representative
12. personal representative or nominated personal representative, where no guardianship applied (subsec. (6)), either before or after appointment
13. special fiduciary appointed under MCL 700.1309 or special personal representative appointed under MCL 700.3614(c), where the decedent died intestate and no guardianship applied (subsec. (8))
14. county medical examiner where the decedent was domiciled, or the Director of the Department of Corrections (or the director's designee) if the decedent was incarcerated in a state correctional facility at death (subsec. (9)); this backstop also applies when someone above exists but fails to act within 14 days after the death

Naming someone in advance. Funeral representative designation, MCL 700.3206(2). A separate form is not required: the designation may sit inside the declarant's will, patient advocate designation, or any other writing. It must be in writing, dated, and signed voluntarily by the declarant (or by a notary on the declarant's behalf under MCL 55.293), and it must either be signed in the presence of and by two witnesses or be acknowledged before a notary. If it is in a will, the will does not have to be admitted to probate for the designation to work. MCL 700.3206a allows a successor funeral representative and requires acceptance by signature or by acting. Funeral-home, cemetery, crematory, and treating-health-professional personnel cannot serve unless they are the spouse or a relative.

When the same tier disagrees. MCL 700.3206(5): where two or more individuals share the rights, they are exercised as decided by a majority of those who can be located after reasonable efforts; if a majority cannot agree, any of them may file a petition under MCL 700.3207.

A tier loses its turn if its members cannot be located after a reasonable effort, decline, or fail to act within 72 hours of the pronouncement of death under the determination of death act (1992 PA 90, MCL 333.1031 to 333.1034), and the rights pass down in the same order. Below the family tiers the statute is conditional rather than a flat list, which is what makes the tail order easy to get wrong: subsection (7) gives the right to the guardian if the decedent was under a guardianship at death, and both subsection (6) (personal representative or nominated personal representative) and subsection (8) (special fiduciary under MCL 700.1309 or special personal representative under MCL 700.3614(c), where the decedent died intestate) apply only 'if subsection (7) does not apply.' A guardian at death therefore outranks the personal representative. Subsection (9) is the backstop: the medical examiner for the county of domicile, or the Director of the Department of Corrections or the director's designee if the decedent was incarcerated in a state correctional facility, acts when nobody under (3) to (8) exists or when a person under (3) to (8) fails to act within 14 days after the death. Under subsection (10) an attempt to locate someone in (3) or (4) is sufficient if a family member, personal representative or nominated personal representative, or a health or veterans facility that treated the decedent during the final illness made a reasonable good faith attempt at the person's last known address, telephone number, or email address. Anyone criminally charged with intentionally killing the decedent cannot exercise the right while the charges are pending (subsec. (12)), and whoever exercises it must ensure payment through a trust, insurance, a commitment by another person, a prepaid contract under 1986 PA 255, or other effective and binding means, or be personally liable for the cost, which does not apply to a person acting under (8) or (9) (subsec. (13)). The section does not void an anatomical gift made under part 101 of the public health code (subsec. (11)). As of August 9, 2026, the section's page states 'MCL Complete Through PA 20 of 2026' and its history line ends at Am. 2022, Act 157, Imd. Eff. July 19, 2022.

Source: Mich. Comp. Laws § 700.3206 (Estates and Protected Individuals Code, 1998 PA 386; § 3206 added by 2006 PA 299 and last amended by 2022 PA 157, Imd. Eff. July 19, 2022); companion §§ 700.3206a, 700.3206b, 700.3207 ↗

If you can't afford the funeral in Michigan

Three separate pots of money, on three different agencies' websites, collected nowhere. A family that qualifies for all three usually claims none of them.

1. When nobody can pay. State Emergency Relief (SER) burial assistance Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. Apply through MI Bridges or your local MDHHS office. This is a statewide program, not a county one.

What it pays. Maximums effective 10/1/2025, from the MDHHS burial services table: burial with a memorial service $875 total ($615 to the funeral director, $160 to the cemetery or crematory, $100 for a vault); burial without a memorial service $610; cremation with a memorial service $640; cremation without a memorial service $390; a fetus or infant under one month $240; disposition of an unclaimed body $960; cremation permit fee for an unclaimed body $80; transportation of a donated or unclaimed body being cremated at $.34 per mile up to $176; and where a certified irrevocable funeral agreement (form 8A) exists, $260. To qualify for the memorial service rate the funeral director has to be at the service.

What disqualifies you. The deadline is the thing that trips families up: the application has to be made no later than 20 business days after the burial, cremation, or donation takes place. The remains have to be in Michigan, and MDHHS won't pay to bring someone back to Michigan. Who can apply: any relative, the person named in the will to arrange burial, a funeral representative the person designated, a special administrator or legal guardian appointed by the probate court, someone who held durable power of attorney at the time of death, or a funeral director holding written authorization from a relative who is incapable or unable. On assets, if there's a surviving group member you get a $15,000 cash exclusion plus a $15,000 non-cash exclusion, but a deceased adult with no surviving spouse gets no exclusion at all, and the application is denied if countable assets exceed the burial payment maximum. Death benefits come off the top: life insurance where a responsible relative is the beneficiary, a Social Security lump sum death payment if there's a surviving spouse, VA burial benefits, Soldiers and Sailors Fund benefits, fraternal or social organization donations, and prepaid funeral contracts. Friends and relatives may add up to $6,000 for extra services, and contributions over $6,000 get the application denied.

The official page ↗

2. If the death was caused by a crime. $8,000 per victim, plus up to $500 more for a grave marker. MCL 18.361(5): an award for funeral expenses "must not exceed $8,000.00 for each victim," and "An award under this subsection must not exceed an additional $500.00 for a grave marker for each victim." The aggregate award is capped at $45,000 per claimant under MCL 18.361(1). Michigan's rule excludes "Expenses for flowers, gravestones, catering services, or other personal and family accommodations not directly related to the funeral service and disposition of the body" (Mich Admin Code R 18.358(2)), which sits alongside the newer $500 grave marker allowance in the statute. The cost of transporting the body is inside the burial benefit, and travel costs for family members aren't counted (R 18.359(1)). Where funeral expenses would have been paid from other public funds, the award can't exceed what those sources normally pay (R 18.358(3)). File within five years of the crime or its discovery, waivers may apply. The program is a payer of last resort, and the application asks whether you'll suffer a minimum out-of-pocket loss of $200.

Michigan crime victim compensation ↗

3. Money the person was already owed. Search Michigan's unclaimed property before you borrow anything. Searching and claiming are free.

Michigan unclaimed property ↗

Do this in order, and watch the clock. Michigan pays SER burial money after the fact, but you only get 20 business days from the burial, cremation, or donation to apply. Miss that and there's nothing to appeal. Tell the funeral home you're applying for SER before you choose anything, because the payment maximums are low and specific: $875 for a burial with a memorial service, $610 for a burial without one, $640 for a cremation with a service, $390 for a cremation without one. Friends and family can put in up to $6,000 on top for extra services, but if contributions go over $6,000, MDHHS denies the whole application. Apply through MI Bridges or your local MDHHS office. Bring an itemized statement of goods and services signed by the funeral home, and be ready to document life insurance, any Social Security lump sum, VA benefits, and any prepaid funeral contract, because each of those comes off the payment. If there's a surviving spouse who lived with the person, MDHHS needs written confirmation of the Social Security lump sum before it approves anything. If nobody claims the body, that's a different track. The county medical examiner or the person the medical examiner designates applies, not the funeral director, and the body first has to be offered to the University of Michigan, Michigan State, or Wayne State depending on the county. Second, if the person was killed in a crime, call the Crime Victim Compensation Program's victim line at 877-251-7373 or email MDHHS-MichiganCrimeVictim@michigan.gov. Funeral expenses go up to $8,000 with up to $500 more for a grave marker. You have five years from the crime or its discovery. Third, search https://unclaimedproperty.michigan.gov/, the Treasury's own site, under the person's name.

At a Glance

No Michigan estate tax.

Michigan doesn't impose a state estate tax. Michigan's estate tax equaled the federal credit for state death taxes, and when the 2001 federal tax law phased that credit out and eliminated it in 2005, Michigan's estate tax ended with it.

Source: Michigan Senate Fiscal Agency, State Notes (Sept/Oct 2001) ↗

Michigan's inheritance tax reaches back only to deaths before October 1993.

Nobody inheriting from someone who died recently owes Michigan inheritance tax. The Department of Treasury still runs an Inheritance Tax Section, though, because the tax stays in effect for people who inherited from a person who died on or before September 30, 1993. That matters in one situation: an old estate gets reopened because an asset turns up that nobody knew about. Then Treasury wants a letter within 90 days of finding it, with the date of discovery, the type of asset, its date-of-death value, and copies of the petition, the inventories, the will or trust, and the final inheritance tax order.

Source: Michigan Department of Treasury: Inheritance Tax Frequently Asked Questions ↗

Federal estate tax.

Michigan residents are still subject to the federal estate tax. The federal exemption is $15 million per individual in 2026.

Does Michigan have an estate tax?

No. Michigan has no state estate tax. Only the federal estate tax applies, and only to estates over $15 million per person (2026), $30 million for a married couple.

Does Michigan have an inheritance tax?

No. Michigan doesn’t tax inheritances. Heirs owe no state tax on what they receive.

What is the federal estate tax exemption for 2026?

$15 million per person, $30 million for a married couple, indexed for inflation. The Working Families Tax Cuts Bill (Public Law 119-21, 2025) made the higher exemption permanent. Estates below the threshold owe no federal estate tax.

At a Glance

The Michigan Donor Registry.

The Michigan Department of State maintains the Michigan Organ Donor Registry. Gift of Life Michigan, the state's authorized organ recovery organization, may access the registry when a transplant is pending.

Keep your decision current and tell the people close to you.

Under the Michigan Anatomical Gift Act, a registered donor's decision is legally binding. Nobody else can make, amend, or revoke the gift after your death (MCL 333.10108(1)). One exception: if the donor is an unemancipated minor, a parent who is reasonably available can revoke or amend the gift (MCL 333.10108(7)). Organ procurement organizations still consult families in practice, so keep the registry entry current and tell the people close to you what you decided.

How to register.

Register online through Michigan Secretary of State Online Services, by mail with an eligible renewal, at a self-service station, or during a Secretary of State office visit.

• -Online through Michigan Secretary of State Online Services
• -By mail with a driver's-license or ID renewal
• -At a Secretary of State self-service station or office