Tax Clearance

Tax Related Obligations

• Establishing a New Business
• Selling or Closing Your Business
• Resources for Establishing, Selling or Purchasing a Business
• Purchasing a Business - Successor Liability

Tax Clearance Requests

Filing a Tax Clearance Request

File Form 5156, Request for Tax Clearance Certificate or Tax Status Letter if you:

• Want to know your current total tax liability with the Michigan Department of Treasury.
• Are selling all or part of your business.
• Are dissolving or withdrawing a corporation from Michigan.
• Have sold your business and need a certificate to present to the purchaser, so that any funds held in escrow can be released and the purchaser’s successor liability can be relieved.

When discontinuing your business, please attach a copy of Form 163, Notice of Change or Discontinuance with your request for tax clearance.

A business owner may request that the Department of Treasury conduct a review of the business tax account for tax clearance purposes. The Department's review will provide the taxpayer with information regarding any outstanding tax liabilities and missing returns. If there are no outstanding liabilities for the period of operation, the Department will issue a Tax Clearance Certificate stating that no taxes are due. This certificate should be provided to the buyer of a business.

To obtain clearance statements related to unemployment taxes, contact the Unemployment Insurance Agency - www.michigan.gov/uia.