Wills and estate planning in Michigan

Researched 2026-10-20 · confidence: medium · 2026 figures

In plain words: in Michigan a will is valid when it's signed in front of 2 adult witnesses. There is no state estate tax. The federal estate tax exemption is $15,000,000 a person in 2026.

Witnesses to a will	2
Handwritten (holographic) will	Recognised
Self-proving affidavit	Available
Electronic wills	Not allowed
Power of attorney	No notary + 2 witnesses · Uniform Power of Attorney Act
Health care directive	2 witnesses
State estate tax	No
State inheritance tax	No
Community property	No
Age of majority / UTMA age	18 / 18

Signing a will

Statute: MCL 700.2502.

Signing by an interested witness does not invalidate the will or any provision of it (MCL 700.2505).

Holographic will valid if dated, signed and its material portions are in the testator's handwriting (MCL 700.2502(2)). No electronic-wills statute; HB 5701 (introduced March 2026) is pending in committee. Courts have applied harmless error (MCL 700.2503) to an electronic note (In re Estate of Horton, 2018), but do not rely on it. Research caveats: 2026 inflation-adjusted figures (intestate spouse amount, small estate $53,000) from secondary sources only - confirm against Michigan Treasury COLA notice under MCL 700.1210. UTMA: default 18, transferor may specify up to 21 (MCL 554.546-554.547). Exact MCL numbers for POA hot powers/statutory form inferred from act structure.

Power of attorney

Statute: MCL 556.201 to 556.505 (Uniform Power of Attorney Act, 2023 PA 187, eff. July 1, 2024).

To be DURABLE the POA must be EITHER acknowledged before a notary OR signed in the presence of 2 witnesses who also sign (neither may be a nominated agent; one may be the notary) (MCL 556.205(2)). Notary is strongly recommended: only an acknowledged signature is presumed genuine and triggers third-party good-faith reliance protection. If signed by another at the principal's direction, 2 witnesses are required regardless. Model 'witnesses: 2' means 2 witnesses OR notary. Hot powers (gifts, trusts, beneficiary designations, survivorship, disclaimers) require express grant (UPOAA §201 equivalent, believed MCL 556.301). Statutory form in Article 3 of the act (believed MCL 556.401).

Health care directive

Called: Patient advocate designation.

Statute: MCL 700.5506 to 700.5515 (patient advocate designation).

Witness may not be the patient's spouse, parent, child, grandchild, sibling, presumptive heir, known devisee, physician, or patient advocate, or an employee of the patient's life/health insurer, treating health facility, home for the aged where the patient resides, or community mental health program/hospital serving the patient (MCL 700.5506(4)).

Michigan has no living-will statute; instructions go in the patient advocate designation. The patient advocate must sign a statutory acceptance before acting (MCL 700.5507), and authority applies only when the attending physician and another physician or psychologist determine inability to participate. Authority to withhold/withdraw life-sustaining treatment must be expressed in a clear and convincing manner.

If there's no will: what a spouse gets

When all of the decedent's descendants are also the spouse's and the spouse has no other descendants, the spouse takes the first $150,000 (inflation-adjusted annually under MCL 700.1210; roughly $300,000 for 2026 per secondary sources) plus one-half of the balance (MCL 700.2102).

A spouse's right to a share

A surviving spouse of a testate decedent may elect one-half of the intestate share, reduced by one-half of property passing to the spouse outside the will and intestacy (MCL 700.2202); dower was abolished in 2017.

Estate and inheritance tax

No state estate tax.

No inheritance tax.

Probate

EPIC unsupervised administration is moderate; a small-estate affidavit or summary procedure is available below an inflation-adjusted threshold ($15,000 base; reported as $53,000 for 2026 deaths) (MCL 700.3982, 700.3983).

Money God drafts a Michigan will, power of attorney and health care directive from a short interview, then you send it to your attorney for review before signing.

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Sources

Researched from state statutes and official forms. Laws change; this page is information, not legal advice. Every Money God draft is reviewed by a licensed attorney in your state before you sign it.