How to Transfer a Car Title After Death in Arkansas

When it applies: the Arkansas title shows "transfer on death to" or "TOD" followed by your name. If a co-owner is still living, the car goes to that co-owner first, not to the beneficiary.

An owner, or up to three joint owners, can ask DFA for a certificate of title with beneficiary. It names one individual to become the owner when the owner dies, or when the last owner dies. A beneficiary can't be added while the car has a lien, or if the owners hold it as tenants in common. A will can't change the designation. Under Arkansas law, this transfer is not subject to probate administration, but the car stays subject to any loan or security interest on it.

How the process works:

• Get a death certificate issued by the state or a local government.
• Bring the death certificate, the original title with beneficiary, and payment for the title application fee and title fee. DFA handles title work at State Revenue Offices; confirm with the office before you go.
• If the car still has a loan, the new title will still show the lien. Contact the lender about payoff or payments.
• Optional: you can name your own beneficiary on the new title at the same time with Form 108 and a $10 processing fee.

Forms:

• Vehicle Registration Application, listed by DFA as Application for Title or Replacement Title (Form 10-381)
• Request for Title or Watercraft Registration with Beneficiary (Form 108) (only if you want to name your own beneficiary)

Documents:

• Death certificate issued by the state or a political subdivision of the state
• The certificate of title with beneficiary, surrendered
• Title application and the title application fee and title fee

When it applies: the title lists more than one owner.

Under the beneficiary title law, when an owner dies DFA issues the new title to the surviving owner first, and to the named beneficiary only if no owner survives. DFA's forms explain how co-owners sign: if the names are joined by "and", all owners must sign; if joined by "or", either owner may sign.

Official DFA sources we found don't explain how a surviving co-owner retitles a car that has no TOD beneficiary, or whether "and" versus "or" decides who keeps the deceased owner's share. Contact a State Revenue Office to confirm what they need before you go.

How the process works:

• Look at how the names are joined ("and" or "or") and whether the title shows a TOD beneficiary.
• If it's a title with beneficiary, the surviving owner applies for a new title with the death certificate, the surrendered title and the title fees.
• If there's no beneficiary, ask a State Revenue Office whether the survivor can retitle alone, or whether the deceased owner's share needs the heir affidavit, a small estate affidavit or probate.

Forms: Vehicle Registration Application, listed by DFA as Application for Title or Replacement Title (Form 10-381)

Documents:

• Arkansas title
• Death certificate (required for a beneficiary-title transfer)
• Title application and fees

When it applies: you were married to the owner.

The routes on this page are the ones DFA and Arkansas law describe for family members. A surviving spouse can use whichever fits:

• You're a co-owner on the title: see "The Car Was Co-Owned".
• You're the named TOD beneficiary: see "The Title Names a Beneficiary (TOD)".
• No probate is opened: heirs can sign DFA's Affidavit of Inheritance of a Motor Vehicle (Form 10-306), or use the court small estate affidavit (see "No Probate").
• Probate is opened: the personal representative handles the car (see "An Executor Has Been Appointed").

One point that matters for spouses: Arkansas's $100,000 small estate limit leaves out the homestead and the statutory allowances for a surviving spouse or minor children. Ask a State Revenue Office whether anything else applies to your situation.

Documents: the same as the route you use.

When it applies: there's no TOD beneficiary or surviving co-owner, and no probate has been opened. Arkansas has two routes.

Route 1: DFA's Affidavit of Inheritance of a Motor Vehicle (Form 10-306). It's signed by the deceased's "sole heir(s) at law". They state the estate hasn't been administered and that any will hasn't been, and probably won't be, probated. By mutual agreement, they name who the car will be titled to. The form lists up to three vehicles and states no dollar limit.

DFA hasn't published a checklist for this form. It doesn't say whether a death certificate, notarization or every heir's signature is required, or whether DFA prefers this form over the court affidavit. Contact a State Revenue Office to confirm before you go.

Route 2: Court small estate affidavit (Official Probate Form 23). Distributees can collect property without a personal representative when:

• No petition for an administrator is pending or granted
• 45 days have passed since the death (file on day 46 or later to be safe)
• The estate, less debts secured against it, is $100,000 or less, not counting the homestead and the spouse and minor-child allowances
• There are no unpaid claims and no unreimbursed state Department of Human Services benefits

The affidavit is signed in front of a notary and filed with the probate clerk of the circuit court. A clerk-certified copy is then given to whoever holds the property or keeps its records.

How the process works:

• Decide among the heirs who will take the car.
• Route 1: complete Form 10-306 with the deceased's name, the vehicle's year, make, model, body style and VIN, and the name the car will be titled in. Ask the Revenue Office what to bring with it.
• Route 2: on day 46 or later, file Form 23 with the probate clerk, get a certified copy, and bring it to the Revenue Office with the title application.

Forms:

• Affidavit of Inheritance of a Motor Vehicle (Form 10-306)
• Affidavit for Collection of Small Estate by Distributees (Official Probate Form 23), Garland County packet
• Vehicle Registration Application, listed by DFA as Application for Title or Replacement Title (Form 10-381)

Documents:

• Signed Form 10-306, or a clerk-certified copy of the filed small estate affidavit
• Arkansas title, if available
• Title application
• Lien release (Form 10-315) if a lien is recorded and the loan is paid
• Other documents, such as a death certificate: contact the office to confirm

When it applies: a probate case is open and the court has appointed a personal representative (executor or administrator).

The personal representative handles the car. DFA's sales tax rule treats a transfer by inheritance or intestate succession as nontaxable when the person getting the car provides a certified copy of a probate court order or other proof of the testamentary transfer.

No official DFA page we found lists the exact documents a personal representative must bring. Contact a State Revenue Office to confirm before you go.

How the process works:

• Get certified copies of the court papers appointing the personal representative and any court order distributing the car.
• To give the car to an heir or will beneficiary: the heir applies for title at a State Revenue Office with the title, the certified court order or other proof of the transfer, and a title application.
• To sell the car: ask the Revenue Office what the personal representative must sign and attach.

Forms: Vehicle Registration Application, listed by DFA as Application for Title or Replacement Title (Form 10-381)

Documents:

• Certified copy of the probate court order, or other proof of the testamentary transfer
• Arkansas title
• Title application
• Lien release (Form 10-315) if a lien is recorded and the loan is paid

When it applies: a lender still has a lien on the car.

The loan doesn't go away when the owner dies. A TOD beneficiary takes the car subject to any loan or security interest on it, and the new title still shows the lien. The small estate law also leaves lenders' rights in place. A beneficiary can't be added to a title while the car has a lien.

Once the loan is paid, the lienholder signs DFA's Form 10-315. If the loan isn't paid, the lienholder can use the same form to allow a replacement title, which DFA mails to the lienholder.

How the process works:

• Contact the lender to learn the payoff amount and whether they hold the title.
• If the loan is paid off, get a signed lien release (Form 10-315).
• Bring the release with the other title paperwork to a State Revenue Office.
• If the loan isn't paid off, work with the lender on payoff, refinancing or continued payments.

Forms: Official Release of Lien or Permission to Issue a Replacement Title (Form 10-315)

Documents: lien release signed by the lienholder, if the loan is paid.

• Title fees: Arkansas law requires a title application fee and a title fee, but we didn't find the current dollar amounts on an official DFA page. Contact a State Revenue Office to confirm.
• Replacement title: $10.00 if the original title is lost.
• Adding or changing a TOD beneficiary: $10 processing fee, plus the title application fee and title fee.
• Expedited title: an extra $10, in person only at the Central Revenue Office in Little Rock, with pickup in 3 business days.
• Small estate affidavit: the statute sets $25 to file and $5 per certified copy. Garland County's packet lists $30, so check your county clerk's total.

Sales tax: DFA's sales and use tax rule treats a transfer by inheritance or intestate succession as nontaxable when you give DFA a certified copy of a probate court order or other proof of testamentary transfer. A sale by the executor or administrator is taxable to the buyer. The rule doesn't say whether a TOD, co-owner or Form 10-306 transfer counts as "other proof", so ask the Revenue Office what they accept for your route. No separate exemption form was found.

Title work is handled by DFA's Office of Motor Vehicle at State Revenue Offices. DFA says Arkansas residents can apply for a replacement title at any state revenue office. Find one on DFA's locations page.

• Expedited titles: in person only at the Central Revenue Office, Charles D. Ragland Taxpayer Services Center, 1900 West 7th St, Little Rock.
• Mail: DFA accepts mailed replacement-title applications only from out-of-state applicants. Whether inheritance transfers can be mailed isn't stated. Contact the office to confirm.
• Online: no official source describes an online title transfer for a deceased owner's car.
• Timing: DFA says to allow at least three weeks to receive a replacement title.

Because DFA hasn't published a deceased-owner checklist, call or visit a State Revenue Office before you go to confirm what to bring.

• TOD title or surviving owner: the beneficiary or surviving owner gets a new title in their own name, then sells.
• Form 10-306: the heirs name who the car is titled to. Official sources don't say whether that can be a buyer directly, so titling it to an heir first is the simpler path. Contact the office to confirm.
• Probate: the executor or administrator sells the car. DFA's tax rule lists a sale by the executor or administrator as taxable, so the buyer pays sales tax when titling.

Any lien must be released before the buyer can get a clean title. If probate is needed, our Arkansas probate guide walks through it.