Key Takeaways
- Michigan recognizes the PLLC as a distinct entity type for licensed professionals (Michigan LLC Act, Act 23 of 1993, Article 9 (MCL 450.4901–450.4910))
- Michigan does not require licensing board pre-approval as a condition of filing
- Filing fee: $50
- Generally no — a Michigan PLLC is limited to a single category of professional service. The one meaningful exception is healthcare: physicians, osteopathic physicians, chiropractors, and podiatrists may form a single PLLC together, and physician's assistants may join under certain conditions. Outside that narrow healthcare cross-license group, combining unrelated licensed professions (say, law and accounting) under one PLLC isn't permitted.
- LLC Attorney does not form PLLCs or other professional entities — this guide is educational; where your profession permits a standard LLC or corporation, LLC Attorney can form that
If you're a licensed professional in Michigan — a physician, attorney, CPA, or similar occupation — state law generally requires you to form a Professional LLC (PLLC) instead of a standard LLC, filed on a dedicated form separate from the one everyone else uses.
This guide covers exactly how to form a Michigan PLLC in 2026 — which professions need one, why the CD-701 form matters, the $50 cost, Michigan's Resident Agent requirement, and the narrow cross-license exception that lets certain healthcare professionals share one entity.
What Is a Michigan PLLC?
A Professional Limited Liability Company (PLLC) is a special LLC designation for licensed professionals — doctors, lawyers, accountants, and similar occupations. It works like a regular LLC, but ownership is restricted to people who hold the same professional license, and formation often requires sign-off from your licensing board before the state will accept your filing.
Yes. Michigan recognizes the PLLC as a distinct entity type for licensed professionals (Michigan LLC Act, Act 23 of 1993, Article 9 (MCL 450.4901–450.4910)).
Who Needs a PLLC in Michigan?
MCL 450.4902(b) defines the covered "professional services" broadly: certified/licensed public accountants, chiropractors, dentists, optometrists, veterinarians, osteopathic physicians and surgeons, physicians and surgeons, podiatrists (chiropodists), physician's assistants, architects, professional engineers, land surveyors, attorneys-at-law, and other Michigan-licensed "learned professions." Anyone practicing one of these must use a PLLC (or a professional corporation) rather than a standard LLC.
Do I Need Licensing Board Approval First?
LARA doesn't require a licensing board to pre-certify your PLLC before it will file the Articles. Instead, MCL 450.4904 requires the company to attest that every member and manager independently holds an active, valid license for the service the PLLC renders. LARA also maintains a restricted-words list for professional titles used in entity names, which staff verify at intake.
Because there's no formal pre-filing board certificate, a Michigan PLLC can be formed quickly — but enforcement is retrospective: if LARA later discovers a member isn't properly licensed, or a member's license lapses, LARA can refuse to issue a certificate of good standing until the company comes back into compliance, which can disrupt financing, licensing renewals, or a sale of the practice.
How to Form a Michigan PLLC
- Filing agency: Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA), Corporations, Securities & Commercial Licensing Bureau
- Form: Articles of Organization for Professional Limited Liability Company (CSCL/CD-701)
- Filing fee: $50
- Processing time: About 7-10 business days for standard processing
- Expedited option: 24-hour (+$50), same-day (+$100), 2-hour (+$500), or 1-hour (+$1,000)
- Name requirement: Must contain "Professional Limited Liability Company" or the abbreviation "P.L.L.C.," "P.L.C.," "PLLC," or "PLC"
Who Can Own a Michigan PLLC?
MCL 450.4904 bars anyone from being a member or manager of a Michigan PLLC unless they're licensed or otherwise legally authorized to render the professional service the company provides — non-licensed individuals cannot hold a membership interest, full stop.
Generally no — a Michigan PLLC is limited to a single category of professional service. The one meaningful exception is healthcare: physicians, osteopathic physicians, chiropractors, and podiatrists may form a single PLLC together, and physician's assistants may join under certain conditions. Outside that narrow healthcare cross-license group, combining unrelated licensed professions (say, law and accounting) under one PLLC isn't permitted.
What Liability Protection Does a PLLC Actually Provide?
A PLLC protects you from business debts and from a co-owner's malpractice — but it never shields you from your own malpractice. If you personally provide negligent professional services, you remain personally liable for that regardless of the entity structure.
A Michigan PLLC shields members from each other's malpractice and from ordinary business debts, but never from a member's own negligent professional acts — that liability follows the individual professional regardless of the entity wrapper.
Article 9 itself doesn't impose a blanket statutory malpractice-insurance mandate as a condition of PLLC formation. Some individual licensing boards separately require coverage or proof of financial responsibility to maintain a license — check your specific board's rules rather than assuming the PLLC filing alone satisfies any insurance obligation.
How Is a Michigan PLLC Taxed?
By default, a PLLC is taxed exactly like a regular LLC — pass-through to the owners' personal returns, with the option to elect S-corp or C-corp taxation if that fits your situation better. The professional designation changes ownership eligibility and licensing oversight, not the default federal tax treatment.
Michigan has a flat personal income tax of 4.25% for 2026, so a Michigan PLLC's pass-through profit is taxed at that flat rate on the members' personal returns by default. The state's 6% Corporate Income Tax only applies if the PLLC affirmatively elects C-corp tax treatment.
Michigan PLLCs must file an Annual Statement with LARA by February 15 each year (the fee is commonly cited around $25, though some LARA fee schedules list a higher figure — confirm the current amount on your LARA account before paying). Missing the deadline puts the company at risk of administrative dissolution.
How to Set Up Your Michigan PLLC Step by Step
If You Do It Yourself
Step 1 — Confirm you need a PLLC (not a plain LLC) for your profession.
MCL 450.4902(b) defines the covered "professional services" broadly: certified/licensed public accountants, chiropractors, dentists, optometrists, veterinarians, osteopathic physicians and surgeons, physicians and surgeons, podiatrists (chiropodists), physician's assistants, architects, professional engineers, land surveyors, attorneys-at-law, and other Michigan-licensed "learned professions." Anyone practicing one of these must use a PLLC (or a professional corporation) rather than a standard LLC.
Step 2 — Get licensing board sign-off if required.
LARA doesn't require a licensing board to pre-certify your PLLC before it will file the Articles. Instead, MCL 450.4904 requires the company to attest that every member and manager independently holds an active, valid license for the service the PLLC renders. LARA also maintains a restricted-words list for professional titles used in entity names, which staff verify at intake. Because there's no formal pre-filing board certificate, a Michigan PLLC can be formed quickly — but enforcement is retrospective: if LARA later discovers a member isn't properly licensed, or a member's license lapses, LARA can refuse to issue a certificate of good standing until the company comes back into compliance, which can disrupt financing, licensing renewals, or a sale of the practice.
Step 3 — File your formation documents.
File the Articles of Organization for Professional Limited Liability Company with Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA), Corporations, Securities & Commercial Licensing Bureau, $50.
Step 4 — Appoint a registered agent.
Michigan calls this role a "Resident Agent" — required at formation.
Step 5 — Confirm ownership eligibility for every member.
MCL 450.4904 bars anyone from being a member or manager of a Michigan PLLC unless they're licensed or otherwise legally authorized to render the professional service the company provides — non-licensed individuals cannot hold a membership interest, full stop.
Step 6 — Address malpractice insurance requirements.
Article 9 itself doesn't impose a blanket statutory malpractice-insurance mandate as a condition of PLLC formation. Some individual licensing boards separately require coverage or proof of financial responsibility to maintain a license — check your specific board's rules rather than assuming the PLLC filing alone satisfies any insurance obligation.
Step 7 — Handle ongoing state compliance.
Michigan PLLCs must file an Annual Statement with LARA by February 15 each year (the fee is commonly cited around $25, though some LARA fee schedules list a higher figure — confirm the current amount on your LARA account before paying). Missing the deadline puts the company at risk of administrative dissolution. Michigan has a flat personal income tax of 4.25% for 2026, so a Michigan PLLC's pass-through profit is taxed at that flat rate on the members' personal returns by default. The state's 6% Corporate Income Tax only applies if the PLLC affirmatively elects C-corp tax treatment.
Step 8 — Watch for Michigan-specific PLLC traps.
The most common Michigan-specific mistake is filing the general LLC Articles (CD-700) instead of the PLLC-specific CD-701 — the two forms look similar, but using the wrong one for a licensed profession like medicine, dentistry, or law can create real problems with LARA and with your licensing board down the line.
Where LLC Attorney Fits In
LLC Attorney doesn't form Michigan PLLCs or other professional entities, and the filing steps above are for you or your attorney to complete. What we can do:
- Form a standard Michigan LLC or corporation the same day where your profession permits one.
- Handle S-corp elections.
- Serve as your Resident Agent (registered agent).
- Connect you with flat-fee attorney consultations (no retainer) for licensing and ownership questions before you file.
When Should You Talk to an Attorney About Your Michigan PLLC?
Talk to an attorney before forming your Michigan PLLC if you're combining professionals across the healthcare cross-license exception (to confirm your specific mix qualifies), if you're unsure whether CD-701 or CD-700 is the correct form for your profession, or if you're bringing on a member whose license type doesn't clearly match the PLLC's stated professional service.
Is Michigan a State Where PLLC Formation Is More Complex?
Michigan adds two wrinkles most states don't have. First, LARA requires a PLLC-specific Articles form (CD-701) that's distinct from the general LLC Articles form (CD-700) — physicians, osteopathic physicians, surgeons, dentists, clergy, and attorneys in particular must use CD-701, and filing the wrong form can cause rejection or, worse, an improperly formed entity. Second, the healthcare cross-license exception (physicians, osteopathic physicians, chiropractors, and podiatrists sharing one PLLC) is narrower than people assume, and doesn't extend to other profession pairings.
How LLC Attorney Can Help Michigan Professionals
LLC Attorney doesn't form professional entities like PLLCs. This guide exists so professionals get the Michigan rules right — here's what we do offer.
- Standard LLC or corporation formation in Michigan, where your profession permits one — no markup on state fees.
- S-corp election handling when that fits your tax situation.
- Registered agent (Resident Agent) service in Michigan.
- Access to professionally trained Business Success Advisors at no charge, plus flat-fee attorney consultations (no retainer) for licensing and ownership questions.
Need Help Starting Your Michigan Business?
LLC Attorney doesn't form professional entities like PLLCs; if your profession allows a standard LLC or corporation in Michigan, we can form it and serve as your resident agent; if you're unsure which entity your license requires, a flat-fee attorney consultation can settle it before you file. See our full pricing for all service tiers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Michigan recognizes the PLLC as a distinct entity type for licensed professionals under Article 9 of the Michigan LLC Act (MCL 450.4901–450.4910).
CPAs, chiropractors, dentists, optometrists, veterinarians, osteopathic physicians and surgeons, physicians and surgeons, podiatrists, physician's assistants, architects, professional engineers, land surveyors, and attorneys are among the professions required to use a Michigan PLLC under MCL 450.4902(b).
No, not as a pre-filing requirement. LARA doesn't require a licensing board to certify your PLLC in advance — the company instead attests that all members and managers hold active licenses, and LARA enforces that requirement after the fact rather than gating the filing on it.
The Michigan PLLC filing fee is $50 for the CD-701 Articles of Organization, with optional expedited processing ranging from $50 (24-hour) to $1,000 (1-hour).
Every member and manager of a Michigan PLLC must hold an active professional license in at least one service the company provides — non-licensed persons cannot be members, with a narrow exception allowing physicians, osteopathic physicians, chiropractors, and podiatrists to share one PLLC.
Generally no. A Michigan PLLC must be organized around a single category of professional service, except for the narrow healthcare exception permitting physicians, osteopathic physicians, chiropractors, and podiatrists to form one PLLC together.
A Michigan PLLC shields members from each other's malpractice and from ordinary business debts, but never from a member's own negligent professional acts — that liability always follows the individual professional.
Michigan's Article 9 doesn't impose a blanket malpractice-insurance mandate tied to PLLC formation itself, though your specific licensing board may separately require coverage as a condition of maintaining your license.
No. LLC Attorney does not form PLLCs, professional corporations, or other license-restricted professional entities in Michigan or anywhere else. We form standard LLCs and corporations (including S-corp elections), provide registered agent service, and offer flat-fee attorney consultations if you need help confirming which entity your license allows.