Wisconsin title answers · Inherited and family
How do you transfer a car title held in a trust in Wisconsin?
Short answer
Use WisDOT's Trustee Statement for Certificate of Title, form MV2790, along with the title signed by the trustee as seller. The trust name on the MV2790 has to match the name on the Wisconsin title exactly, and WisDOT will not accept trust papers from a lawyer in place of the form. The new owner then applies on form MV1. A change of trustee by itself is not a transfer and needs no new title.
Taking a car out of a trust
WisDOT's trust page lists what it wants when someone buys or receives a vehicle from a trust that holds a Wisconsin title. The trustee completes MV2790 and signs it as seller. The trustee also signs the seller section of the title and, for a vehicle less than 20 model years old, fills in the odometer reading on the back.
The person receiving the car, whether a beneficiary or a buyer, then completes the MV1 title and plate application and sends it with the signed title and the MV2790. WisDOT's rules treat any transfer to or from a trust as a change of ownership, so a new title is issued in the new owner's name.
Who has to sign
The principal trustee signs, and the MV2790 has room for co-trustees. The form notes that, under Wisconsin trust law, a majority of the trustees generally must sign unless the trust documents say otherwise.
A successor trustee counts. Wisconsin's trust titling rule defines trustee to include an original, added or successor trustee, and it says a change of trustee or beneficiary is not a transfer of the vehicles the trust owns. So if the person who created the trust has died and you have taken over as trustee, you sign as trustee. You do not need to retitle the car into your name first.
Putting a car into a trust
The same form works in the other direction. The trustee completes MV2790, the current title is signed over with the trustee as purchaser, and the principal trustee signs the MV1. Again, the trust name must match word for word between the MV2790 and the MV1. WisDOT may shorten a long trust name to fit its records, since its database limits names to 60 characters.
Where people get stuck
Trust transfers are usually stopped by paperwork details, not by anything about the car. These are the ones to check before you mail it.
- The names do not match. One extra word, a missing date or a different spelling of the trust name between the MV2790 and the title is enough to stop the application.
- Sending a trust certificate or an attorney's letter instead of MV2790. WisDOT says it cannot accept those in place of the form.
- The car was never actually in the trust. If the title shows a person's name, not the trust's, the trust does not own it on WisDOT's records, and a transfer after death follows the estate rules instead.
- The title is lost. The trust is the owner on record, so the trust applies for a $20 replacement on MV2119, using the trust's federal tax ID number where the form asks for one.
Common questions
Does the beneficiary pay the title fee?
Plan on the regular $214.50 title fee for a transfer out of a trust. Wisconsin waives the fee for a family member taking a car from someone who died owning it, but a trust is the owner here, so ask WisDOT before you assume the waiver applies.
Do I need the trust's tax ID number?
MV2790 has a space for the trust's federal tax identification number. WisDOT's rule asks for it if the trust has one.
What if the trustee's address changes?
Wisconsin's trust titling rule says the principal trustee must tell WisDOT about a name or address change within 10 days.
Can a trust-owned car get special plates?
MV2790 notes that if the beneficiary personally qualifies for special plates, such as disability plates, they may be issued to the trust after the fees are paid.
Want us to do the paperwork?
You tell us your situation. We fill out the WisDOT forms for it and give you a checklist of what to include. You review, sign and mail the package yourself.
If the state asks for a bond, you buy it from a licensed surety of your choosing. We take no commission.
- ✓ $299, one flat fee, bonded titles included
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- ✓ The application is in your name from the start
State fees are paid to WisDOT. Any bond premium is paid to the surety you choose.
Prefer to fill out the forms yourself? The $97 do-it-yourself kit walks you through every form field, the real costs, and the 12 reasons packets get rejected.
Related answers
What if the car title is still in a deceased parent's name in Wisconsin?
A car still titled to a parent who died moves to a child with WisDOT form MV2300 plus MV1. Qualifying family members pay no title fee.
Read this guide →Can you transfer a car title after a death without probate in Wisconsin?
Often yes. WisDOT accepts form MV2300 instead of court papers for a surviving spouse, and for other heirs when the estate is $50,000 or less.
Read this guide →Can you name a transfer-on-death beneficiary on a Wisconsin vehicle title?
No. Wisconsin car titles have no transfer-on-death beneficiary box. What families use instead: OR titles, form MV2300, a trust or a will.
Read this guide →Do you pay a title fee to transfer a car to family in Wisconsin?
Between living relatives: $214.50, but close family can skip sales tax. After a death: $0 for qualifying family with MV2300. Here is the split.
Read this guide →Car title after a death
Transferring a vehicle from an estate or a spouse.
Read this guide →Sources, checked 2026-10-31: WisDOT: Vehicles involving trusts · WisDOT: Form MV2790, Trustee Statement for Certificate of Title · Wis. Admin. Code ch. Trans 157, titling of vehicles held by trusts · Wis. Stat. 342.14, title fees · WisDOT: Form MV2119, Replacement Title Application. Rules can change; confirm with WisDOT before you file.
TitleFiled is a document-preparation and title-recovery assistance service operated by Nuvent66 LLC, a Wisconsin limited liability company. It is not a law firm, does not provide legal advice, and is not affiliated with, authorized by, or endorsed by any DMV or government agency, including the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT). We do not guarantee that any agency will approve or issue a title. Information on this page is provided for general reference, was verified against official WisDOT sources on the date shown, and is not legal advice.