How to Change the Name on a Vehicle Title

What this cell covers, and what it does not

This guide covers one narrow step: updating the name shown on an existing vehicle title after the owner's legal name has already changed through marriage, divorce, or a court order. The legal name change itself happens elsewhere: through the marriage certificate, through the divorce decree, or through the court-order petition covered in the state name-change court guides. This guide does not explain how to obtain a court order, and it does not cover requesting a duplicate title for a lost title, adding or removing an owner, or transferring ownership to another person. Where a name change also adds or removes an owner, the state may treat that as a transfer, not a name correction, and the transfer rules apply instead.

In every state below, bring identification in the new name where the state requires it, the current title or other proof of ownership, and the original or certified document proving the change. Photocopies are not accepted where the state requires an original or certified copy. If a lienholder holds the title, contact the lienholder before filing: the lienholder may need to authorize or receive the corrected title.

Per-state document and fee table

Table notes: Texas uses the Application for Texas Title and/or Registration, filed at the county tax assessor-collector office; no single figure is stated on the TxDMV pages opened, and the county tax office confirms the title application fee, which varies by county. Florida uses the Application for Certificate of Title With/Without Registration for a printed title, and the license name change comes first under Florida Statutes section 322.19; the fees are under section 319.32. California pairs the Name Statement portion with the California Certificate of Title or Form REG 227; a duplicate title fee applies if a duplicate title is also issued. New York takes the application in person at a DMV office, for a change of name issued in the U.S. Colorado files at a county motor vehicle office, where the title assignment shows the old name in the seller area and the new name in the buyer area.

Texas

File Form 130-U at the county tax assessor-collector office with the current title, identification, and the document showing the name change: a marriage certificate, divorce decree, or court order. A title correction through Form 130-U fixes the existing record without changing who owns the vehicle. Adding or removing an owner's name is not a correction and is treated as a transfer of ownership, with a signed title assignment and possible motor vehicle sales tax consequences, according to TxDMV title guidance summarized for this guide. The title application fee varies by county and is not stated as a single figure here: the TxDMV new-Texan checklist directs applicants to the county tax office for the exact fee amount, and secondary summaries state conflicting $2 and $28/$33 figures for name-change and correction filings that were not verified on a TxDMV page opened for this guide.

Florida

Florida Statutes section 322.19 requires a person who changes legal name to obtain a replacement driver license or identification card reflecting the change within 30 days. That 30-day rule is stated for the license or card. For the vehicle record, the FLHSMV name-and-address guidance summarized for this guide states that updating the name on the driver license updates the electronic title record, while a printed title still shows the previous name until a new title is applied for with Form HSMV 82040. The electronic-record update claim was not verified on an FLHSMV page opened for this guide and is stated here only as the guidance summary, with the printed-title step stated as the verified filing. To obtain a printed title in the new name, submit Form HSMV 82040 at the county tax collector's office with the marriage certificate, divorce decree, or court order. The fee is $75.25 for an electronic title or $77.75 for a paper copy under section 319.32, plus $2 per lien where a lien is recorded. If a lien is recorded on a paper title, the lienholder may not allow a new title to be printed, and the electronic record stands.

California

Submit the California Certificate of Title, or an Application for Replacement or Transfer of Title, Form REG 227, if the title is missing, with the Name Statement portion of the Statement of Facts, Form REG 256, completed by the owner. The DMV handbook states the rule for both a change of name and a correction of name: the title or REG 227 plus the REG 256 name statement, a duplicate title fee if applicable, and no fee due solely for a name change or solely for a name correction. That no-fee rule covers the name change itself, not a duplicate title or registration renewal issued at the same time. Adding or removing an owner is listed by the DMV under name changes including adding or removing an owner, and is handled with the corrected title and REG 256; where ownership itself changes, the transfer rules and any use tax or smog rules for transfers must be checked separately. No deadline in days for a name change itself was stated on the DMV pages opened: the 10-day rule on the DMV title transfers page covers reporting a change in ownership or lienholder, not a name change alone, and the two rules must not be merged.

New York

Bring the items below to a local DMV office. The New York DMV states there is no fee to change your name on your registration documents or title certificate. Bring the current title or other acceptable proof of ownership, a completed Vehicle Registration/Title Application, Form MV-82, the current license, permit, or non-driver ID, or at least six points of proof of identity and proof of date of birth, and the original or a certified copy of a U.S. marriage certificate, U.S. divorce documents, or other court papers for a change of name issued in the U.S. If the marriage certificate shows both the spouse's surname and the applicant's surname, the applicant may change a middle name to the former surname, choose a different middle name, or change the surname to the spouse's surname. The same page states there is no fee for a correction where the DMV made an error; that correction rule is separate from a legal name change and must not be used to avoid the proof-of-change documents.

Colorado

Colorado county motor vehicle offices handle this as a change to an existing title record, not a transfer of ownership: one owner must remain the same. Bring the divorce decree, marriage certificate, or court order legalizing the name change. Print and sign the old name in the seller's area of the title assignment and print the new name in the buyer's area. Bring the signed title, supporting documents, and owner identification, with secure and verifiable identification. Be prepared to pay the title fee of $7.20, as stated on county motor vehicle office pages. Where a divorce court order awards the vehicle, the order must describe the vehicle by year, make, and VIN and accompany the title application; where the order divests one owner's interest, no signature is required from the person not awarded the vehicle. Those divorce-award rules are distinct from a name-only change and are stated here only to keep the two situations apart.

For the court-order process that creates a legal name change, see the state name-change guides, including Name Change in Pennsylvania, Name Change in Ohio, Name Change in Georgia, and Name Change in Michigan. For moving a title to a new state, see Out-of-State Vehicle Title Transfer.

Source

Sources: New York DMV, Change Information on Vehicle Registration and Title (dmv.ny.gov); California Department of Motor Vehicles, Title Transfers and Changes (qr.dmv.ca.gov); California DMV Vehicle Industry Registration Procedures Manual, section 22.020, Change or Correction of Lienholder/Legal Owner Name (qr.dmv.ca.gov); Larimer County, Colorado, Name Change (larimer.gov); Mesa County, Colorado, Changing Existing Colorado Title (mesacounty.us); Florida Statutes sections 322.19 and 319.32, as summarized in the search results for this guide; Texas Department of Motor Vehicles, Form 130-U and title-correction guidance, as summarized in the search results for this guide. Facts verified 2026-11-03. Open flags: (1) Texas fee amount omitted because secondary figures conflict and no amount was verified on a TxDMV page opened; (2) Florida electronic-title automatic update stated only as a guidance summary, not verified on an FLHSMV page opened; (3) Florida fee figures rest on the section 319.32 schedule as summarized, not on an FLHSMV Fees page opened; (4) no deadline in days is stated for a name change alone in any state in this guide, because none was verified on the state pages opened, apart from Florida's 30-day license rule and California's 10-day ownership-reporting rule, each stated in its own lane.

This page explains how the process works and what the official rules say. It is general information, not legal advice. For a dispute about your specific situation, talk to the motor vehicle agency of your state.