Michigan Minor Work Permit: Requirements, Hours, and Prohibited Jobs

Every worker under 18 in Michigan needs a work permit on file with the employer before the first shift, with only a few narrow exceptions. Getting a Michigan work permit for minors takes three people working through a single form in order: the teen and a parent, the employer, and a school-designated issuing officer. The form is free, but no one can start work until all three sections are signed and the original is delivered to the employer.{¹}

Who Needs a Permit

Michigan’s Youth Employment Standards Act covers any minor under 18 in a job the Act reaches.{²} There are two forms, split by age:

Ages 14 and 15 use Form CA-6.
Ages 16 and 17 use Form CA-7.

A separate permit is required for each employer. Leaving one job for another means a brand-new permit before the first day at the new place; you cannot transfer or reuse the previous one.{¹}

One exception is worth knowing. Minors 13 and older working farm jobs like detasseling or hoeing during school vacation do not need a permit.{²} Modeling, filming, live performances, and similar entertainment work do not use this form at all; that pathway is covered further down.

What to Have Ready Before You Start the Form

Michigan accepts a specific list of documents for proof of age:{¹}{³}

A certified copy of a birth certificate or hospital record of birth
A valid Michigan driver’s license or state ID showing date of birth
A school record or school census record
A certificate of arrival in the United States
A baptismal certificate
A sworn statement from the parent or guardian combined with a physician’s statement

A U.S. passport is not on the state’s approved list, so do not assume one will be accepted. A school record is usually the easiest fallback when a birth certificate is not on hand.

The form also asks for the last four digits of the minor’s Social Security number, not the full number.{³} From the employer, the form needs the business name and address, a description of every task the minor will perform, the tools or equipment involved, and the exact scheduled hours and days.{¹}

How the Three-Section Form Gets Filled Out

Each section is completed by a different party, in order. A half-completed form sent to the wrong person will come back.{¹}

Section I — Minor and parent. Personal details: name, address, date of birth, school information. Both the minor and a parent or guardian sign.

Section II — Employer. The minor brings the partial form to the prospective employer. The employer fills in business information and spells out job duties, equipment, scheduled hours, and workdays per week. Vague entries like “general duties” tend to bounce; the form expects each task and tool listed specifically. The employer signs.

Section III — Issuing officer. With Sections I and II done, the minor takes the form to a school-designated issuing officer, typically the principal, superintendent, or another administrator either at the district the minor attends or the district where the job sits.{¹} The officer verifies age, reviews the proposed work against state and federal law, and signs and dates the section.{⁴}

The officer keeps a copy for the school file and returns the original to the minor, who hands it to the employer. The employer keeps it on file at the workplace for as long as the minor is employed.{¹} There is no fee.

Getting a Permit Over the Summer

School offices thin out in June and July, which is exactly when most teens are getting hired. Michigan allows a minor to obtain a permit from the district where the job is located, not only the district the minor attends.{¹} Most districts designate someone at the central administration office to handle permits year-round. A phone call to that office a week or two before the planned start date usually avoids a gap between hiring and the first shift.

Hour Limits for Ages 14 and 15

The tightest scheduling rules apply to the youngest workers. When school is in session, a 14- or 15-year-old can work no more than 18 hours per week, and school time plus work time together cannot exceed 48 hours in a week.{⁵} During summer break and other school-closed periods, the weekly cap rises to 48 hours and up to 10 hours in a single day.

Year-round, these workers:

Cannot work more than 6 days in a single week
Cannot work before 7:00 a.m. or after 9:00 p.m.
Cannot average more than 8 hours per day over the course of a week

The 9:00 p.m. curfew holds on weekends and holidays too, unlike the rules for older teens.{⁵}

Hour Limits for Ages 16 and 17

Older minors get more room, but the school year still tightens things. A 16- or 17-year-old enrolled in school can work up to 24 hours per week when school is in session. When school is out, the cap moves to 48 hours per week and 10 hours per day.{⁶}

Curfews split by night:

School nights, Sunday through Thursday: work ends by 10:30 p.m., no start before 6:00 a.m.
Fridays, Saturdays, and school vacations: curfew extends to 11:30 p.m.
Not enrolled in school: 11:30 p.m. every night.

One agricultural carve-out: minors 16 and older in seed production or agricultural processing during non-school periods can work up to 11 hours per day and 62 hours per week, though anything over 48 hours requires the minor’s consent and the parent’s written acknowledgment.{⁶}

Required Break

Every worker under 18 must get a documented 30-minute uninterrupted break after no more than five hours of continuous work.{⁷} The daily time records have to show shift start, shift end, and the break. State investigators check this during audits, so letting a minor skip the break to leave early is a real risk for the employer.

Jobs Minors Cannot Do

State and federal law both bar minors from certain hazardous work, and the stricter rule always applies.{⁸} Federal Hazardous Occupation Orders prohibit workers under 18 from:{⁹}

Manufacturing or storing explosives
Operating power-driven woodworking machines, saws, or metal-forming equipment
Working with radioactive substances or ionizing radiation
Roofing, demolition, and excavation deeper than four feet
Mining, coal and non-coal
Operating power-driven hoisting equipment like forklifts and cranes
Meat processing and slaughtering involving power-driven machines
Operating bakery machines, balers, or compactors

A Michigan work permit does not override any of these. Even if an employer writes the task on the form, the issuing officer should catch it during review.{¹⁰}

Driving on the Job

On-the-job driving is a common blind spot. Federal rules flatly prohibit 16-year-olds from driving motor vehicles on public roads as part of their employment, even with a valid state license.{¹¹}

Seventeen-year-olds can drive for work only under tight conditions: daylight hours only, a valid license with a clean record, a completed state driver’s education course, and a vehicle under 6,000 pounds with seat belts. Driving can be no more than a third of any workday and no more than 20 percent of the workweek. Route deliveries, time-sensitive deliveries like pizza runs, and towing are off-limits.{¹¹}

Pay for Minor Employees

Michigan’s general minimum wage is $13.73 per hour as of January 1, 2026.{¹²} Minors under 18 can be paid 85% of the general minimum wage, which works out to about $11.67 per hour.{¹³}

A separate federal training wage of $4.25 per hour is available for any new employee under 20 during the first 90 consecutive calendar days.{¹⁴} After the 90-day window, Michigan’s 85% rate applies. Employers cannot fire existing workers or cut their hours to replace them with someone earning the training wage.

When a Permit Can Be Taken Away

A work permit is not permanent. The issuing officer or the state can revoke it for two reasons:{¹⁵}

Declining school performance tied to poor attendance. The permit is first suspended for up to 30 days with notice to both the minor and the employer, giving the minor a chance to correct the problem. Revocation follows if attendance does not improve.
Employment that violates state or federal law. If the issuing officer learns the job involves illegal conditions, the permit can be revoked immediately.

The minor must be told about the appeal process when a permit is revoked. The issuing officer keeps a written record of every refusal, suspension, and revocation along with the reasons.{¹⁵}

What Employers Face for Skipping the Permit

Michigan treats youth employment violations as criminal offenses. A general violation of the Act, including employing a minor without a valid permit, is a misdemeanor carrying up to one year in jail, a fine of up to $500, or both.{¹⁶} More serious violations escalate:

First offense involving certain prohibited conditions: misdemeanor, up to one year in jail and a fine up to $2,000.
Second offense: misdemeanor, up to two years in jail and a fine up to $5,000.
Third or subsequent offense: felony, up to 10 years in prison and a fine up to $10,000.
Most serious violations under Section 14a: felony, up to 20 years in prison and a fine up to $20,000.

Modeling, Film, and Live Performance

Entertainment work uses a different pathway. Minors from 15 days old through 17 who will participate in modeling, filming, live performances, dancing, or similar work need a Performing Arts Authorization from the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity rather than a standard work permit.{¹⁷} The production company or payroll company submits the application with a valid workers’ compensation insurance certificate at least 10 days before the first rehearsal or performance. Written parental consent must accompany each application, and the approved authorization stays on-site during the work.

1
Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity. Work Permit Information
2
Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 409.104 – Employment of Minor; Copy of Work Permit or Temporary Permit Required
3
Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity. CA-6 Combined Offer of Employment and Work Permit/Age Certificate
4
Legal Information Institute. Michigan Administrative Code R. 409.5 – Responsibilities of Issuing Officer
5
Michigan Legislature. Youth Employment Standards Act – Act 90 of 1978
6
Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws Chapter 409 – Section 409.111
7
Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity. Youth Employment Standards Act FAQs
8
U.S. Department of Labor. Selected State Child Labor Standards Affecting Minors Under 18 in Non-farm Employment
9
eCFR. Occupations Particularly Hazardous for the Employment of Minors Between 16 and 18 Years of Age
10
U.S. Department of Labor. Child Labor – What Jobs Are Off-Limits
11
U.S. Department of Labor. Teen Driving on the Job
12
Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity. Minimum Wage and Overtime
13
Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 408.414b
14
U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 32 – Youth Minimum Wage – Fair Labor Standards Act
15
Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 409.107
16
Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 409.122 – Violation as Misdemeanor or Felony; Penalties
17
Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity. Performing Arts Authorization Information