Free Michigan Limited Power of Attorney Form

A Michigan limited power of attorney grants an agent authority over specific financial matters you name. Michigan reset these rules with the Uniform Power of Attorney Act, 2023 Public Act 187, at MCL 556.201 to 556.505, effective July 1, 2024.

The current act replaced Michigan’s older durable power of attorney provisions, so older templates can be out of step. Here’s what it asks for now.

Two Routes to a Durable Document

For a power of attorney to be durable, you take one of two paths. Either you acknowledge it before a notary public or another individual authorized to take acknowledgments, or you sign it in front of two witnesses who also sign it (MCL 556.205(2)).

Your Agent Can’t Be a Witness

A witness may not be an agent nominated in the document. One of the two witnesses may, however, be the same individual who acts as the notary or other authorized official for your signing (§ 556.205(2)(b)).

The Witness Route Costs You a Presumption

A signature acknowledged before a notary is presumed genuine (§ 556.205(4)). A signature that is witnessed but not acknowledged doesn’t get that presumption, and the document is not “acknowledged” for the purposes of sections 119 and 120 of the act (§ 556.205(5)).

Which Law Applies Depends on the Date

The act carries an effective date of July 1, 2024 throughout. A document you sign now runs under it, so wording drawn from the repealed Estates and Protected Individuals Code provisions may not match the current rules.

Both satisfy the act, but they aren’t equal in effect. The notary route gives you the presumption of a genuine signature, and it keeps the document within the act’s acknowledgment-based protections for third parties who accept it.

The two-witness route exists for situations where a notary isn’t available. Because it leaves out that presumption, a bank or title company may ask more questions first. For a Michigan limited power of attorney headed to a specific institution, the notary is usually the smoother path.

Either way, keep the grant narrow on the page. The act defines “durable” simply as not terminated by your incapacity (§ 556.202), so durability says nothing about how much authority you hand over.

Choose your signing route first, then gather the right people. Here’s the order:

1. Describe the task and name your agent.
2. Decide whether you want the authority to outlast your own capacity.
3. Pick the notary route, or line up two witnesses who aren’t your agent.
4. Sign in front of whichever you chose.
5. Have the witnesses sign too, if you used that route.
6. Give your agent the signed document and keep a copy.

Your Michigan limited power of attorney should be specific enough that a third party can act on it. Include:

• Your name and address, alongside your agent’s
• The exact authority, with the account or property named
• Initials beside only the subjects you grant, if you use the statutory form
• A start date and an ending date or event
• Your signature
• A notary acknowledgment, or two qualifying witness signatures

The statutory form also states that it doesn’t authorize health care decisions, or the powers you hold as a parent or guardian over a child’s care, custody, or property. Those need separate documents.

If you use the form, it prints signature blocks for both witnesses, with printed names and addresses. Filling those in properly is what makes the witness route hold up.