These are step-by-step instructions to help you with your stepparent adoption case when your stepchild’s other parent (not your spouse) agrees to the adoption. You can print the instructions and take them with you to use as a checklist. If the other parent does not agree to the adoption, use Stepparent Adoption (Petitioner) - Contested Case.
Step 1: Prepare your formsNote: These instructions are general instructions for use in any Michigan county. Some steps will vary from county to county. Many courts have adoption departments with their own requirements. Contact the Circuit Court Clerk’s office in the county where you will be filing to find out if there is an adoption department. If so, talk to someone in that department before starting this process. In some courts, you will need to schedule an appointment with a caseworker before filing your initial papers or right after filing.
Use the Do-It-Yourself Stepparent Adoption tool to prepare the forms you need. You will not file all of these forms at the beginning of your case; some you will file later.
Gather the following forms and documents to start the adoption case:
Other required documents vary by county. For a complete list, check with a clerk in the office where adoption petitions are filed. Depending on your county, this should be either the Circuit Court clerk’s office or the Probate Office. You might need any or all of the following:
It will cost you at least $175 to file your petition. Extra fees vary by county. Contact your court to find out about any extra fees.
If you are unable to pay the filing fee, you can ask the court to waive it. Your case will not start until you pay the filing fee or your Fee Waiver Request is approved.
The clerk of the court must automatically approve your fee waiver if any of these are true:
If you do not fit into one of these three categories, a judge will review your Fee Waiver Request. The judge must waive your fees if you show that your gross household income is under 125% of the federal poverty level. If your gross household income is over 125% of the federal poverty level, but you show that paying fees would be a financial hardship for you, the judge must also waive your fees.
You can use the Do-It-Yourself Fee Waiver to prepare a Fee Waiver Request.
The fee for a new birth certificate cannot be waived. It will cost $50 for a new Michigan birth certificate and $16 for each extra copy ordered at the same time. Fees for out of state birth certificates vary by state.
Step 3: Complete the Verified AccountingFill out Petitioner's Verified Accounting. Carefully read the form and list any amounts paid or agreed to be paid in connection with the adoption. This includes the court fees that you will pay when you file the forms. If you are unsure about the filing fees, fill this part in when you file the forms so you can ask the clerk.
Attach all receipts to the Verified Accounting form.
Step 4: Sign your formsYou and your spouse must sign and date the Petition for Stepparent Adoption, Petitioner’s Verified Accounting, and the Adoption Report.
Step 5: Make copiesAfter you sign your documents, make two copies of the Petition for Stepparent Adoption.
In some counties the court clerk’s office will make copies for you. You can call the clerk’s office ahead of time to ask whether you need to make your own copies.
The original petition gets filed with the court. The copies are for you and your stepchild’s other parent.
You will need an extra copy of the petition for any of these situations:
File your forms with the circuit court in the county where you live or where the child lives. This should be the county listed in the top left corner of the forms you prepared using the Do-It-Yourself Stepparent Adoption tool. Click on Courts & Agencies for the address and phone number of the court in your filing county.
Contact your Circuit Court Clerk’s Office to find out where adoption papers are filed. Depending on the county, you might file your forms with the Circuit Court Clerk’s Office or with the Probate Office.
Pay the filing fee or file a Fee Waiver Request along with the following documents:
Give the clerk the originals and the copies. The clerk will assign a case number and a judge to your case. The clerk will return copies of all the papers that the court doesn’t need.
Step 7: Request a hearing date and file the Notice of HearingIf the other parent agrees with the adoption, either you and your spouse or the other parent must request a consent hearing. The consent hearing is where the other parent officially consents to the adoption by signing the consent form in front of a judge or referee.
When you are at the court filing your papers, ask the clerk if you can get a consent hearing date or if the court will schedule the hearing for you and send notice by mail. If the court will take care of scheduling and notice, you can skip this step.
If you are responsible for giving notice, ask if the termination hearing will happen directly after the consent, or if you will need two different hearing dates. If there will be two separate hearings, make a copy of the Notice of Hearing form before you fill it out.
Make two extra copies of the Notice of Hearing if your stepchild is older than 14 and/or your stepchild is a member of an Indian tribe or qualifies for membership. You may need the copies later.
Fill out the Notice of Hearing form using the information the clerk gives you. Include the date, time, location of the hearing (including the courtroom or hearing room number), and the name of the judge or referee. Include the judge’s or referee’s bar number if you know it.
In the blank space below this information, under the words “state the nature of the hearing,” write as follows:
-Consent of Noncustodial Parent to Stepparent Adoption
If termination of parental rights will be covered at the same hearing, also write the following:
-Termination of Parental Rights of Noncustodial Parent
-Placement of Adoptee (Stepparent Adoption)
At the bottom of the form, write in the date above your name.
Make a copy of the Notice of Hearing. File the original and keep the copy to serve on the other parent. If your stepchild is older than 14, make another copy of the Notice of Hearing to serve on your stepchild. If your stepchild is a member of an Indian tribe or qualifies for membership, make another copy to serve on the tribe.
If you must send notice of the hearing to a prior court (see Step 11), be aware that you must do so at least 21 days before the date set for hearing.
Step 8: Serve the other parent with the papersSome courts may serve your papers for you. Ask if you are responsible for service before completing this step.
Have the other parent served with a copy of the Petition for Stepparent Adoption and the Notice of Hearing.* If you filed a Fee Waiver Request, also have them served with that form and the decision on your request.
You can serve the papers yourself, or you can ask another adult to serve them for you. Service can be done in person or by mail. You can serve the other parent by personally handing him or her the papers. If you mail the papers, send them by registered or certified mail, request a return receipt, and restrict delivery to the person.
If you personally serve the papers, you must do so at least 7 days before the date set for the consent hearing. If you serve the papers by mail, you must send them at least 14 days before the consent hearing date.
*If you are unable to get a hearing date until after you serve your petition, then you will need to serve the Notice of Hearing separately and file another Proof of Service showing you served the Notice.
Step 9: Complete other service requirementsComplete this step if any of the following are true:
Child older than 14:
If your stepchild is older than 14, you must give your stepchild one copy of each form (Petition for Stepparent Adoption and Notice of Hearing). You can hand the papers to your stepchild.
Indian tribe:
If your stepchild is a member of an Indian tribe or qualifies for membership, you must serve the tribe with a copy of the Petition for Stepparent Adoption and the Notice of Hearing. You must also send the Notice of Adoption Proceedings Concerning an Indian Child.
On the Notice of Adoption Proceedings form, fill in the name, address, and phone number of the tribal chairperson of the tribe your stepchild belongs to or qualifies for membership in. You can find the address and other contact information for the Indian tribe using the Tribal Directory on the Bureau of Indian Affairs website. Make two copies.
File the original Notice of Adoption Proceedings Concerning an Indian Child with the clerk. Keep one copy for your records. Take the other copy of the Notice of Adoption Proceedings and attach the copy of the Petition for Stepparent Adoption and Notice of Hearing. To serve the tribe, mail the forms by registered mail with return receipt requested and delivery restricted to the addressee.
Step 10: File a Proof of ServiceIf the court is serving all papers for you, skip this step.
The type of Proof of Service form you got from the Do-It-Yourself Stepparent Adoption tool depends on whether your stepchild is a member of an Indian tribe, qualifies for membership, or whether your stepchild is older than 14. If none of the above is true, complete your Proof of Service as follows:
The Do-It-Yourself Stepparent Adoption tool prepared one Proof of Service form. Make three copies of this form before you fill it out. You may need them later.
Complete one Proof of Service form for the papers you served on the other parent. Fill in the date that you served the papers and where you mailed or served them. Check the boxes next to the documents that were served. Indicate whether the person was served by mail or in person by checking the correct box. Attach a copy of the return receipt if the person was served by mail.
Date and sign the completed Proof of Service and make a copy. File the original Proof of Service, and keep the copy for your records.
If someone else served the other parent for you, that person must complete and sign the Proof of Service instead. Either one of you can file it.
If your stepchild is a member of an Indian tribe or qualifies for membership, and/or your stepchild is older than 14, complete your Proof of Service as follows:
The Do-It-Yourself Stepparent Adoption tool prepared one Proof of Service form. Make six copies of this form before you fill it out. You may need them later.
Complete one Proof of Service form. Write in the names of the papers you served. Read the rest of the form carefully. It is possible that you served up to three people: the other parent, your stepchild, and a tribal chairperson. Note that the form is separated into two categories: service by mail and personal service. If you served someone by mail, write the name of the person under part 2 and fill in the complete address and date of service. Indicate whether you served the person by first-class mail, registered mail, or certified mail by checking the correct box. Attach a copy of all return receipts.
If the person was served personally, fill in the person’s name, address of service, and date and time of service under part 3.
Write the date and sign and print your name on the correct lines. Make a copy of the completed form. File the original Proof of Service, and keep the copy for your records.
If someone else served the papers for you, that person must complete and sign the Proof of Service instead. Either one of you can file it.