Petitioning to Be Removed From Michigan's Sex Offender Registry

Michigan allows a registrant to ask a court for an order to discontinue registration, but only on the grounds listed in MCL 28.728c, which is the sole means of obtaining judicial review of registration requirements.^[1] A Tier I offender can petition after 10 years on a clean record, a Tier III offender can do so only where registration rests on a juvenile disposition and 25 years have passed, and any tier can petition on certain consensual-act and juvenile grounds.^[2][6][4]

Law as of 4 October 2026. Court rulings are changing this area. On September 9, 2026 the Michigan Supreme Court held that the 2021 SORA may not be applied retroactively to registrants whose offenses predate the 2011 amendments, and the Michigan State Police reported on September 11, 2026 that it had removed more than 20,000 people from the registry, with numbers that could change.^[7][8] A federal appeal was still pending when the State Police published its September 2026 legal update.^[9] A registrant should confirm current status and duties with the Michigan State Police Sex Offender Registry Unit or an attorney before relying on this page.

This page sets out each petition type with its exact conditions, the filing procedure, what the judge decides, and the rights of the victim.

Who may petition, and on what ground?

Petition	Who may file	Core condition	Court's power
Subsection (12)	Tier I offender	10 or more years since conviction or release from confinement, whichever occurred last, plus four further conditions	"May grant"[2][3]
Subsection (13)	Tier III offender registered on a juvenile order of disposition	25 or more years since adjudication or release from confinement, whichever occurred last, plus further conditions	"May grant"[6][10]
Subsection (14)	Tier I, II or III offender	Conviction resulted from a consensual sexual act and one of three age-based sets of conditions applies	"Shall grant"[5][11][12]
Subsection (15)	Tier I, II or III offender	Adjudicated as a juvenile and less than 14 at the time of the offense, or registered before July 1, 2011 for an offense that no longer requires registration	"Shall grant"[13]

There is no other category. The statute provides no clean-record petition for Tier II offenders or for Tier III offenders convicted as adults, and in In re Harder the Court of Appeals held that this does not violate equal protection.^[4]

The Tier I petition after 10 years

Under subsection (12), the court may grant a Tier I offender's petition if all of the following apply:^[3]

1. Ten or more years have elapsed since the date of conviction for the listed offense or since release from any period of confinement for that offense, whichever occurred last.^[2]
2. The petitioner has not been convicted of any felony since that date.^[3]
3. The petitioner has not been convicted of any listed offense since that date.^[3]
4. The petitioner successfully completed his or her assigned periods of supervised release, probation or parole without revocation at any time.^[3]
5. The petitioner successfully completed a sex offender treatment program certified by the United States Attorney General or another appropriate sex offender treatment program. The court may waive this condition if completing a treatment program was not a condition of the petitioner's confinement, release, probation or parole.^[3]

Meeting all five conditions makes a person eligible; it does not decide the petition. The word in the statute is "may."^[3]

The Tier III petition for juvenile adjudications after 25 years

Subsection (13) is open only to a Tier III offender who is required to register based on a juvenile order of disposition that is open to the general public. Twenty-five or more years must have elapsed since the adjudication or release from any period of confinement for the offense, whichever occurred last. The petitioner must not have been convicted of any felony or any listed offense since that date, must have completed supervision without revocation, and the court must determine that the petitioner successfully completed a sex offender treatment program, a condition the court may waive if treatment was not a condition of confinement, release, probation or parole.^[6][10]

A Tier III offender convicted as an adult has no petition under this subsection.^[4] In People v Kardasz, decided December 19, 2025, the Michigan Supreme Court held that the 2021 SORA is punishment but is not cruel or unusual, on its face or as applied to a Tier III offender convicted of first-degree criminal sexual conduct against a child.^[14]

What the judge weighs on a 10-year or 25-year petition

For petitions under subsections (12) and (13), the court must consider all of the following: the individual's age and level of maturity at the time of the offense; the victim's age and level of maturity at the time of the offense; the nature of the offense; the severity of the offense; the individual's prior juvenile or criminal history; the individual's likelihood to commit further listed offenses; any impact statement submitted by the victim; and any other information the court considers relevant.^[15]

There is one fixed limit on that discretion. The court "shall not grant the petition if the court determines that the individual is a continuing threat to the public."^[15]

Petitions the court must grant

Consensual acts

Under subsection (14), the court "shall grant" a properly filed petition if it determines that the conviction for the listed offense was the result of a consensual sexual act between the petitioner and the victim and any one of these sets of conditions applies:^[5]

• The victim was 13 years of age or older but less than 16 at the time of the offense, and the petitioner is not more than 4 years older than the victim.^[5]
• The conviction was for a violation of MCL 750.158, 750.338, 750.338a or 750.338b, the victim was 13 or older but less than 16 at the time of the violation, and the individual is not more than 4 years older than the victim.^[12]
• The conviction was for a violation of MCL 750.158, 750.338, 750.338a, 750.338b or 750.520c(1)(i), the victim was 16 or older at the time of the violation, and the victim was not under the custodial authority of the individual at the time of the violation.^[11]

The age limit is applied strictly. In People v Costner, the Court of Appeals said that a person who is even one day past the 4-year or 48-month limit is ineligible for relief under that provision.^[16] The consensual-act rules, including the related exception that can be raised at sentencing, are covered in Michigan's Romeo and Juliet provisions.

Juveniles under 14 and de-listed offenses

Under subsection (15), the court must grant a properly filed petition if the petitioner was adjudicated as a juvenile and was less than 14 years of age at the time of the offense, or if the individual was registered before July 1, 2011 for an offense that required registration but for which registration is not required on or after July 1, 2011.^[13] See juveniles and the registry.

How a petition is filed and heard

1. Choose the court. The petition is filed in the court in which the person was convicted of the listed offense.^[1] For a conviction in another state or country, a Michigan resident may file in the circuit court of the county of residence, and the order reaches registration under the Michigan act only.^[1]
2. Prepare the petition under oath. It must contain the petitioner's name and address, a statement identifying the offense for which discontinuation is requested, and a statement of whether the person was previously convicted of a listed offense for which registration is required. A person who knowingly makes a false statement in a petition is guilty of perjury.^[17]
3. Serve the prosecuting attorney. A copy must be filed with the office of the prosecuting attorney that prosecuted the case, or for a conviction elsewhere the prosecuting attorney for the county of residence, at least 30 days before a hearing is held. The prosecuting attorney may appear and participate in all proceedings.^[17]
4. Notice goes to the victim. If the prosecuting attorney knows the victim's name, the prosecuting attorney must send the victim written notice and a copy of the petition by first-class mail to the last known address, and the petition must include a statement of the victim's rights.^[18]
5. The court holds a hearing. If a petition is properly filed, the court must conduct a hearing on it.^[18]
6. Decision and review. The prosecuting attorney may seek appellate review of any decision on the petition.^[17]

The one-petition rule makes timing and preparation matter: a petition may not be filed if a previous petition was filed under the section and was denied by the court after a hearing.^[1] Court forms, filing fees and scheduling practice vary by court and are not stated in the statute.

The victim's rights in a removal proceeding

The victim has the right to attend all proceedings under the section and to make a written or oral statement to the court before any decision regarding the petition is made. A victim "shall not be required to appear at any proceeding under this section against his or her will."^[19] Any impact statement the victim submits is one of the factors the court must consider on a subsection (12) or (13) petition.^[15] Broader rights are described in rights of sexual assault survivors.

Other ways registration ends

A petition is not the only way off the registry.

• The period runs out. When the State Police determine that a person has completed the registration period or otherwise is no longer required to register, they must remove the information from both databases within 7 days after making that determination.^[20]
• A court ruling removes the basis for registration. Under People v Smith, the 2021 SORA may not be retroactively applied to registrants whose criminal acts occurred before the 2011 amendments, and the State Police have been removing registrants in response.^[7][8]
• Non-sexual offenses. Under People v Lymon and the final part of the federal judgment in Does v Whitmer, registration for certain offenses without a sexual component may not be required unless a court first determines that the offense by its nature was a sexual offense.^[21][22]

Setting the conviction aside is not a reliable route. SORA says registration must be discontinued when a set-aside order is presented, the set-aside statute says the person is still considered convicted for purposes of SORA, and no decision reconciling the two was found.^[23] See setting aside a sex offense conviction and, for the rulings, the SORA court rulings guide.

The federal court in Does v Whitmer rejected the claims that lengthy or lifetime registration without individual review is unconstitutional and that unequal access to removal petitions violates equal protection; the registrant class appealed those rulings.^[24][25]