Name Change in Michigan

Court and form: hard gate passed

A name change in Michigan is filed in the Family Division of the Circuit Court of the county where the petitioner lives, under MCL 711.1 and Michigan Court Rule 3.613. The petition is Form PC 51, Petition to Change Name, an SCAO-approved form. The hard gate for this slot is passed: Form PC 51 is identified by name and number on SCAO form copies, including Form PC 51, Rev. 1/21 and Rev. 4/21, citing MCL 333.2872, MCL 711.1, and MCR 3.613, and on county court instruction pages that list the completed Petition to Change Name form (PC 51) as the filing document. The Michigan Courts publication form, Form PC 50, Rev. 1/26, and the order form, Form PC 52, Order Regarding Petition for Name Change, confirm the same SCAO form family on courts.michigan.gov.

Form PC 51 states the core requirements on its face. Each person for whom a name change is sought has been a resident of the county for at least one year. The petition states the present name, the requested new name, and the reason for the change, and affirms that the change is not sought for a fraudulent purpose. Criminal-record information must be disclosed in the petition, including any pending charge, as the form requires. Dates of birth are not entered on the petition: the form directs the filer to put the date of birth in the reference-number row on form MC 97a, the Protected Personal Identifying Information form, which is filed with the petition.

This guide covers the adult petition. A minor 14 years of age or older must give written consent, on Form PC 51b, Minor's Consent to Change Name, as noted on Form PC 51. The minor petition procedure is not described here beyond that consent note.

Residency and the court's standard

The petitioner must have lived in the county for at least one year before filing. Kalamazoo County states the rule directly: pursuant to MCL 711.1, section 1(1), the petitioner must be a resident of Kalamazoo County for at least one year before filing a petition for a name change. Calhoun County states the same 12-month rule for its county. The one-year clock runs by county of residence: moving to a new county restarts the county-residency period for filing in that county. The court grants the change where sufficient reason is shown and no fraudulent intent is found, under MCL 711.1(1), as summarized in the sources for this guide. This guide states the standard only; it does not advise what reason a court will accept.

Background check: conflicting procedure statements, no fee stated

The background-check procedure is stated two ways in the sources, and this guide states the conflict rather than presenting one version as settled. Older copies of Form PC 51 carry a note that every person 22 years of age or older requesting a name change must have a criminal background check, with fingerprinting through a local police agency and mailing to the Michigan State Police. More recent guidance states that the petitioner discloses any criminal record in the petition and the court runs its own ICHAT or LEIN check at the court's cost, with no fingerprints required from the petitioner. No background-check fee, fingerprint fee, or fingerprint requirement is stated in this guide, because the procedure statements conflict and no current SCAO instruction page stating the procedure was opened for this guide. Confirm the current background-check step with the county Circuit Court clerk before filing, and do not pay a third-party fingerprint fee on the basis of an older form note alone.

Publication: Form PC 50, at least 14 days before the hearing

Notice of the hearing is published on Form PC 50, Publication of Notice of Hearing Regarding Petition for Name Change. The form's use note states it is for the required publication of notice of hearing unless the petitioner has an order granting a request for nonpublication. Kalamazoo County states the publication rule: the publication must run one time in a paper circulating in the county, and must occur at least 14 days before the scheduled hearing date. Failure to publish as required may result in republication or denial of the petition, according to the same county page.

Calhoun County adds a county filing step: a copy of the Affidavit of Publication must be filed with the Circuit Court Clerk at least seven days prior to the scheduled hearing, and failure to pay the publication fee or file the affidavit may result in adjournment, dismissal, or additional publication costs. That seven-day affidavit deadline is county practice as stated by Calhoun County and is not stated here as a statewide rule. The safety off-ramp is Form PC 51c, Petition for Name Change and Ex Parte Request for Nonpublication and Confidential Record, for petitioners who show good cause that publication would endanger them or risk retaliation or discrimination. The nonpublication request is decided by the court, not assumed.

Fee: county-varying, no statewide figure stated

No single statewide filing fee is stated in this guide. County pages state different totals: Kalamazoo County states a filing fee of $185, made up of a $150 filing fee, a $25 electronic filing fee, and a $10 name-change order fee; Calhoun County states a filing fee of $175. A statutory filing fee of $150 is cited in secondary summaries, with local charges pushing county totals higher. Those figures are county-scoped examples and conflict as a statewide figure, so none is carried here as the Michigan fee. Confirm the exact filing fee, payment method, and any publication cost with the county clerk where the petition will be filed. Publication is paid to the newspaper separately, and its cost varies by newspaper.

Hearing and order

After filing and publication, the court holds a hearing where one is set, and the judge signs the order on Form PC 52. Bring the proposed order, Form PC 52, with the caption completed, to the hearing. Obtain certified copies of the signed order for updating records. This guide does not state a sequence or deadline for updating Social Security, driver license, passport, or birth records, because no such sequence was verified on a Michigan Courts page opened for this guide. A Michigan-born petitioner may request a new live birth certificate in the petition itself, on Form PC 51; the birth-certificate amendment step is stated only as a petition item, not as a separate procedure.

For name changes in other states, see Name Change in Pennsylvania, Name Change in Ohio, and Name Change in Georgia. For changing only the name shown on a vehicle title after the court order, see How to Change the Name on a Vehicle Title.

Source

Sources: State of Michigan, Form PC 51, Petition to Change Name, Rev. 1/21 and Rev. 4/21, SCAO-approved (data.templateroller.com); Michigan Courts, Form PC 50, Publication of Notice of Hearing Regarding Petition for Name Change, Rev. 1/26 (courts.michigan.gov); Michigan Courts, Explanation of Changes for PC 52, Order Regarding Petition for Name Change (courts.michigan.gov); Kalamazoo County, Michigan, Name Changes (kalcounty.gov); Calhoun County, Michigan, Instructions for Name Changes, 37th Judicial Circuit Court (calhouncountymi.gov). Facts verified 2026-11-03. Open flags and conflicts: (1) background check: older Form PC 51 fingerprint note versus current court-run ICHAT/LEIN guidance, stated as a conflict, no fee or fingerprint requirement stated; (2) filing fee: county totals of $175 and $185 conflict as a statewide figure, no single fee stated; (3) Form PC 51 was verified through SCAO form copies and county court pages, not through a courts.michigan.gov PC 51 page opened directly; (4) the seven-day affidavit-of-publication deadline is Calhoun County practice, not a statewide rule.

This page explains how the process works and what the official rules say. It is general information, not legal advice. For a dispute about your specific situation, talk to the Circuit Court of your county.