Michigan Tax Refund Garnishment: How to Use Form MC 52

If the debtor who owes you a Michigan small claims judgment files a state income tax return and is due a refund, you can intercept that refund before it reaches them. SCAO Form MC 52 is the mechanism, and it works through the Michigan Department of Treasury rather than an employer or bank.

What Form MC 52 Can and Cannot Reach

Form MC 52 — Request and Writ for Garnishment (Income Tax Refund/Credit) — applies exclusively to Michigan state income tax refunds processed by the Department of Treasury. It cannot touch federal IRS refunds or municipal income tax refunds from cities like Detroit or Grand Rapids. For those, you need other collection tools.

The amount the Treasury will release is capped at the lesser of the debtor's refund amount or the balance claimed on your writ.

How to File

1. Wait 21 days after judgment entry (the standard enforcement stay under MCR 2.614)
2. Complete Form MC 52, including the sworn balance in Item 2 — principal judgment, accrued post-judgment interest under MCL 600.6013, recoverable filing fees and costs, minus any credits for payments received
3. File with the district court clerk and pay the $15 filing fee
4. Pay the $6 statutory disclosure fee to the Michigan Department of Treasury (this replaces the $35 fee used for employer and bank garnishments)

How the Department of Treasury Responds

The writ is served on Treasury electronically or via certified mail. When the debtor's tax return is processed, Treasury checks for outstanding garnishment writs. If one exists:

1. Treasury holds the refund amount (up to the balance claimed on the writ)
2. Treasury completes and files a Garnishee Disclosure
3. The debtor gets notice and has a window to file objections
4. If no objections or court order intervenes, Treasury remits the refund amount to the court or directly to you as directed on the writ

Timing Considerations

Tax refund garnishment is seasonal. Michigan income tax returns are typically filed between January and April, with refunds processing through late spring. Form MC 52 is valid for the annual tax-return cycle, so a filing in October is not an open-ended intercept for future years.

File within the tax-return cycle in which you expect the debtor's refund. The writ is valid for that annual cycle, not indefinitely.

When This Tool Makes Sense

Tax refund garnishment works best as a supplement, not your primary collection strategy. It's useful when:

• The debtor is self-employed or works cash jobs where wage garnishment isn't practical
• Bank account garnishment came back empty
• You know the debtor typically receives a meaningful state refund
• The debtor is otherwise judgment-proof but files Michigan taxes

The court and disclosure fees total $21 ($15 filing + $6 disclosure) before service costs. Whether a partial recovery makes financial sense depends on the amount recovered and the total cost of the attempt.

Combining with Other Tools

An active Form MC 52 doesn't prevent you from running wage or bank garnishments simultaneously. You can have all three tools active at once: wages being garnished biweekly, a bank garnishment waiting for the next payday deposit, and a tax intercept waiting for the next filing season.

Just track your total collections carefully. If the combined garnishments satisfy the judgment, you're legally obligated to release all active writs (Form MC 50) and file a Certificate of Satisfied Judgment (Form MC 17).

For complete guidance on combining tax intercepts with other enforcement tools and managing the balance ledger, see the Michigan Judgment Collection Roadmap.

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