For complete results, select the county where you live or where your case is filed:
Common Questions about Emancipation
Contents
These are common questions about emancipation.
Questions about Emancipation
Emancipation is releasing a minor from the care and control of the minor’s parents, guardians, or custodians. It gives the minor many of an adult’s rights and responsibilities. Emancipation can happen by operation of law or by a court order. Read the article What is Emancipation? to learn more.
An emancipated minor has many of an adult’s rights and responsibilities. They can:
-
Live on their own
-
Keep the money they earn
-
Register for school
-
Get married
-
Make a will
-
Authorize their own medical, dental, and mental health care
-
Enter contracts, including leases
-
Conduct business
-
Sue someone or be sued by someone
-
Apply for medical assistance, such as Medicaid
-
Apply for other assistance, such as cash or food assistance
-
Make decisions for their own child
An emancipated minor still can’t vote or consume alcohol.
Emancipation is a serious decision. If you are emancipated, you must act like an adult. You will have many of an adult’s rights and responsibilities. For example, if you’re emancipated you can live on your own. You can register yourself for school. You must also support yourself and pay your debts.
If you can’t handle these rights and responsibilities, emancipation may not be right for you.
The emancipation process starts when you file a petition for emancipation in the family division of the circuit court where you live. You can use the Do-It-Yourself Emancipation tool to create your petition. Read this checklist to understand the entire process. To learn more about getting emancipated, read the article I Want to Be Emancipated.
Yes. You must be a resident of the State of Michigan to be emancipated in Michigan. File your petition for emancipation in the family division of the circuit court where you live.
Some courts consider the county your parents, guardian, or custodian live in to be your residence until you are emancipated. Call the court clerk to see if this is true in your county.
You must be 16 or 17 years old to file a petition for emancipation.
You must pay a $175 filing fee when you file your petition. There might also be fees for certified copies of the judgment or the cost of the investigation the court may do. If you can’t afford to pay the filing fee, you can ask the court to waive your fees. Use the Do-It-Yourself Fee Waiver tool to prepare your Fee Waiver Request. Your case will not start until you pay the filing fee or the court waives the fee.
To learn more about how to get emancipated, read the article I Want to Be Emancipated.
With your petition for emancipation, you must submit:
-
A $175 filing fee or approved fee waiver
-
A certified copy of your birth certificate
-
A signed affidavit from a physician, nurse, member of the clergy, psychologist, family therapist, certified social worker, school administrator, school counselor, teacher, law enforcement officer, or regulated child provider testifying that emancipation is in your best interest
Some courts have other forms they want you to file with your petition. Call the court clerk’s office to find out if you need to fill out an extra form.
You need a certified copy of your birth certificate to file with the petition.
You may be able to order a certified copy of your birth certificate from the vital records office of the county where you were born. In some counties you need a photo ID to order a certified copy of your birth certificate. Other counties will accept other forms of ID. Check your county’s vital records office’s website or call to see what kind of ID you need. In most counties, you can order your copy in person, by mail, by fax, or online. The cost of ordering a certified copy of your birth certificate varies from county to county, from $10 per copy to more than $50.
You can also order a certified copy of your birth certificate from the Michigan Office of Vital Records. You can order it online, by mail, or in person at the Office of Vital Records in Lansing. To learn more about ordering a copy by mail, read this page on the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) website. Ordering it through the mail or in person costs $34. If you order it online from the VitalChek website, it will cost $46.
Ordering online requires a credit or debit card to pay the fees. If you order it by mail, you can pay with a money order or certified check. Some counties might also take personal checks. If you order it in person, you can pay with cash.
Yes. As long as you are a resident of the State of Michigan, you can file a petition for emancipation in the family division of the circuit court in the county where you currently live. While some jurisdictions require you to live in your county for one year prior to filing a petition, other courts do not. You should call your local court to determine the proper residency requirements.
No. You are automatically emancipated only if:
-
You are legally married;
-
You turn 18;
-
You are on active duty in the Armed Forces of the United States;
-
You are in the custody of law enforcement, your parent can't be located quickly, and you need nonsurgical medical care or emergency medical treatment. In this situation, you are emancipated only for the purpose of giving your consent to medical treatment. The emancipation ends as soon as the medical treatment ends or when law enforcement releases you, whichever happens first; or
-
You are a prisoner in a correctional facility, your parent can't be located quickly, and you need preventive health care or medical care including surgery, dental care, or mental health care. You are emancipated only for the purpose of consenting to medical care.
Otherwise, you must file a petition for emancipation.
You must have your papers served. To learn more, read the Checklist – How to Ask the Court to Emancipate You.
You must also read and understand the law of emancipation in Michigan, attend your emancipation hearing, and be prepared to testify if required by the judge.
You must have each parent, guardian, or custodian served with the petition, any attachments to the petition, and a Summons. You must also have a Notice of Hearing served on the affiant (the person who completed the affidavit for you), unless the affiant checked the box in front of number four in the Affidavit part of the petition.
If you filed a Fee Waiver Request, you must also have a copy of that form and a copy of the court's decision served on the other party or parties.
Some courts will serve the papers for you. If so, you may have to pay a fee. Ask the clerk’s office if they serve the petition for you.
If the court is not going to serve these papers, you will need to arrange for service. You cannot serve these papers yourself. Ask an adult you trust to serve the papers. The server can personally give the papers to each person who needs to be served.
The server can also mail the papers. If the papers are mailed, they must be sent by certified or registered mail with a return receipt requested and delivery restricted to the addressee. This type of service only works if the person receiving the papers signs the return receipt (a green card) and returns it through the mail. The return receipt must be attached to the Proof of Service.
The judge will order the emancipation if they decide it’s in your best interests AND all of the following are true:
-
Your parents/guardian don't object (or if they do object, they are not financially supporting you)
-
You are at least 16 years old
-
You are a Michigan resident
-
You can manage your own financial affairs
-
You can manage your personal and social affairs
-
You can understand your responsibilities as an emancipated person
The emancipation timeline varies from court to court. You can generally expect a hearing date 4-6 weeks after you file your petition for emancipation.
If your parents don’t want you to be emancipated, it will be harder to prove to the judge that you should be emancipated. You will have to prove the following:
- Your parents are not financially supporting you;
-
You can manage your own financial, personal, and social affairs;
-
You understand your responsibilities as an emancipated person.
Usually yes. But, if you can’t support yourself anymore, you may be able to end emancipation. You may also end it if it no longer makes sense because your parents are supporting you or you move back in with them.
To end an emancipation, file a Petition to Rescind Order of Emancipation in the court where you were emancipated.
If one of your parents has died, put that parent’s name in the appropriate line in your petition. Put “Dead” or “Deceased” in the address space for that parent.
The court may want a certified copy of the parent’s death certificate. You can get a certified copy of a death certificate from the vital records office of the county where your parent died. In most counties, you can order a copy in person, by mail, by fax, or online. The cost of ordering a certified copy of a death certificate varies from county to county, from $10 per copy to more than $50.
You can also order a certified copy of a death certificate from the Michigan Office of Vital Records. You can order it online, by mail, or in person at the Office of Vital Records in Lansing. To learn more about ordering a copy by mail, read this page on the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) website. Ordering it through the mail or in person costs $34. If you order it online from the VitalChek website, it will cost $46.
Ordering online requires a credit or debit card to pay the fees. If you order it by mail, you can pay with a money order or certified check. Some counties might also take personal checks. If you order it in person, you can pay with cash.
You can appeal the court’s decision if you disagree with it. So can your parents or guardian. An appeal must be filed with the Michigan Court of Appeals. Appealing a court’s decision is complicated. You may want to hire a lawyer to help you. You can use the Guide to Legal Help to find lawyers and legal services in your area.
To learn more about filing an appeal, read the Michigan Court of Appeals manuals on the Michigan One Court of Justice website.
You can hire a lawyer to help you with your emancipation.
If you need a lawyer and have low income, you may qualify for free legal help. Whether you have low income or not, you can use the Guide to Legal Help to look for legal help in your area.
The court may also appoint a lawyer for you.
The original court order stays in the court’s file. You can get certified copies of the order from the court. You will probably have to pay for the certified copies. In most courts it costs $10 – $15, but if you get more than one copy at a time the extra ones may be much less.
You can show a certified copy of the court order to prove you’re emancipated.
You can object to the petition. You can object by going to the hearing on the petition. If there is a court investigation, you can also let the investigator know you object to the emancipation.
If you financially support your child, they will not be emancipated. If your child can prove that they can financially support themself, the court may emancipate them.
If you support your child's emancipation, you can go to the hearing and tell the judge.