2,161. Immersing Servants

Hilchos Issurei Biah 13:11

Just as we circumcise and immerse converts, we likewise circumcise and immerse servants acquired from non-Jews for labor. If a person acquires a servant from a non-Jew and the servant proactively immerses intending to become free, he acquires himself so long as he says “I am immersing in front of you for purposes of conversion” while immersing. If he immerses in front of his master, he need not make this statement; rather, since he immersed, he becomes free. Because of this, the master must push him into the water until he comes up, at which point he is his servant. The master must tell the servant that he’s immersing him in the presence of judges for servitude. Like a convert, servants must only immerse by day in front of three judges. This is because it’s a partial conversion.

Hilchos Issurei Biah 13:12

When a servant is freed, he must immerse a second time by day in front of three men in order to complete his conversion and make him a Jew. He need not accept the mitzvos, nor must the court inform him of the basics of Judaism because they already did so when he immersed for servitude.