SECTION 1. Section 31-3.1-37 of the General Laws in Chapter 31-3.1 entitled "Certificates of Title and Security Interests" is hereby amended to read as follows: 31-3.1-37. Passage of title upon death of owner.
(a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, or unless Unless otherwise provided in the last will and testament of a decedent, any motor vehicle(s) owned by the decedent shall belong, and title to them shall pass, to the surviving spouse.
(1) The administrator of the division of motor vehicles shall register the motor vehicle(s) in the name of the surviving spouse upon presentation to the division of motor vehicles of:
(i) A certified copy of the death certificate of the deceased spouse;
(ii) Registration(s) of the motor vehicle(s) of the deceased spouse.
(2) No fee shall be charged to the surviving spouse for issuance of a new certificate of title.
(3) A surviving spouse shall not be charged a registration fee during the year he or she is registering the vehicle(s) in his or her name and having a new certificate of title issued,
(i) Where the deceased spouse registered that motor vehicle(s) with the division of motor vehicles; and
(ii) Paid the registration fees provided in § 31-6-1 for the motor vehicle(s) for the year.
(4) Where the deceased spouse did not register the motor vehicle(s) or failed to pay a registration fee pursuant to § 31-6-1 for the year in which the surviving spouse appears to register the motor vehicle(s) and have a new title certificate issued in his or her name, then the surviving spouse shall pay a pro rata amount of the annual registration fee for the remaining months of the year.
(b) On and after September 1, 2026, notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, a motor vehicle may be titled in transfer-on-death form by including in the certificate of title a designation of a beneficiary or beneficiaries to whom the motor vehicle shall be transferred on death of the owner or the last to die of two (2) or more owners with the right of survivorship, subject to the rights of any lien holder, whether created before, simultaneously with, or after the creation of the transfer-on-death interest. A trust may be the beneficiary of a transfer-on-death certificate of title.
(c) A motor vehicle is titled in transfer-on-death form by designation in the certificate of title, the name of the sole owner, or the names of the owners who jointly and severally own the motor vehicle with the right of survivorship, followed in substance by the words "transfer on death to [name of beneficiary or beneficiaries]". If no title is available or in the event that the title document held by the owner of the vehicle does not contain transfer-on-death language, the owner may, during their lifetime, execute a document, using in substance the same language as contained on a title, transferring the vehicle to a beneficiary or beneficiaries as desired. If no such document has been executed, the surviving spouse or other heirs, may transfer the title to the vehicle by producing a copy of the owner’s death certificate along with an affidavit, in a form approved by the director of the department of motor vehicles, stating that they are the surviving spouse or sole heirs and requesting the title and registration be transferred without the necessity of probate. No such request shall be denied by the department of motor vehicles unless there is evidence of fraud or collusion.
(d) The transfer-on-death beneficiary or beneficiaries shall have no interest in the motor vehicle until the death of the owner or the last to die of all multiple owners with the right of survivorship. A beneficiary designation may be revoked or changed at any time by the owner(s) without the consent of the beneficiary by either filing an application with the department of motor vehicles for a subsequent certificate of title or revoking any other document executed transferring the vehicle on death. If such original document was filed with the department of motor vehicles, the revocation shall also be filed.
(e) Ownership of a motor vehicle titled in transfer-on-death form for which an application for a subsequent certificate of title has not been filed shall vest in the designated beneficiary or beneficiaries on the death of the owner or last survivor of any jointly owned vehicle, subject to the rights of any lien holder. If no beneficiary survives the death of the owner(s), then any interest in the motor vehicle belongs to the estate of the deceased owner.
(f) The department of motor vehicles shall prescribe any fees associated with the transfer of title and registration, except as provided in subsection (a) of this section, but in no event shall any fee exceed the annual registration fee for such vehicle.
(g) A certificate of title in transfer-on-death form shall not be considered a testamentary disposition.
(h) On and after September 1, 2026, the department of motor vehicles shall provide amended title forms and/or transfer-on-death forms to accomplish the purposes of subsections (b) through (g) of this section.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.
