Moves a car out of a deceased person's name without opening probate, where the estate is small enough to qualify. It is a sworn statement, not an application - you are certifying facts about the estate, and the liability that comes with getting them wrong is spelled out on the form.
Written against REG 5 (Rev 12/2024), issued under California Vehicle Code 5910 and 9916; Probate Code 6401, 6402, 13050, 13051, 13100 and 13109 to 13113.
Section 2 points at Probate Code 13109 to 13113, which is the part that lets creditors and heirs come after the person who took the vehicle. This is a sworn affidavit with a tail on it, not a shortcut.
Two documents, and they are not the same thing. Take the blank REG 5 from the dmv.ca.gov copy so you get the revision that is current today, then print our REG 5 guide and keep it beside you while you fill theirs in.
This is the actual REG 5, rendered from the PDF the California Department of Motor Vehicles publishes and completed end to end: letterhead, every field, and the blocks at the foot.
Amber — you write it
Grey — not yours to fill
Numbered — explained below
The actual REG 5. One heir is signing here, so the second and third rows stay empty - the form notes only one date and signature is needed. A copy of the death certificate goes with it, and at least 40 days have to have passed.
Field by field
Every line, in the order you meet it
1
You fill this in
Section 1, vehicle
VIN or hull number and plate or CF number in the comb boxes, then year and make.
Watch out: One character per printed box. This form goes to a clerk who will compare it against the title record.
2
You fill this in
Name of decedent
The owner who died, named exactly as the title records them.
Watch out: A copy of the death certificate goes with the form - section 1 says required in its own heading.
3
You fill this in
Date and place of death
The date, then the city and state.
Watch out: At least 40 days must have passed since the death before this can be filed. The wait is written into the certification you are signing.
4
You fill this in
Print true full name
The person entitled to the vehicle, with a telephone number or email address.
Watch out: You are certifying there is no probate proceeding, that unsecured creditors are paid or discharged, and that the estate is under the ceiling - $166,250 for a death before 1 April 2022, $184,500 on or after.
5
You fill this in
Signature and date signed
Sign on the rule and date it.
Watch out: Section 2 points at Probate Code 13109 to 13113, which is the part that lets creditors and heirs come after whoever took the vehicle. This is a sworn affidavit with a tail on it.
6
You fill this in
The second and third rows
More rows for more heirs. Left empty where there is only one.
Watch out: The form notes that only one date and signature is needed - but everyone entitled to the car should be on it, because a missing heir is what unwinds these later.
At a glance
What goes where
On the form
What to put in it
Section 1, vehicle and decedent
VIN or hull number, plate or CF number, year and make, then the decedent's name, the date of death and the place of death by city and state. A copy of the death certificate goes with it.
The certification you are making
Read this rather than skimming it. You are stating there is no other property needing probate, that no probate proceeding is being or has been conducted in California, that unsecured creditors have been paid in full or their claims discharged, and that at least 40 days have passed since the death.
The estate value ceiling
Two figures, and which one applies turns on the date of death: $166,250 if the decedent died before 1 April 2022, $184,500 if on or after. That is the gross fair market value of all California real and personal property, not just the car.
Which capacity you are signing in
One of three: the person or persons who succeeded to the property under the will or under Probate Code 6401 and 6402 where there was no will; a trustee acting for a trust the decedent established; or a conservator or guardian of the estate of those persons.
Section 3, signature
Up to three signature rows with printed names and phone numbers. The form notes only one date and signature is needed - but every person entitled to the vehicle should be on it, because a missing heir is what unwinds these later.
What gets this one rejected
•Filing before 40 days have passed. The wait is written into the certification.
•An estate over the ceiling for the applicable date of death, or one where probate has been opened. Either takes the car out of this form's reach and into the probate court's.
•A vehicle that is not California titled. The form's own subtitle limits it to a California titled vehicle or vessel.
•Filing without a copy of the death certificate. Section 1 says required, in brackets, in the heading.
•Counting only the car when working out the estate value. The test is the decedent's real and personal property in California, excluding what Probate Code 13050 lets you exclude.
Every line here was read off REG 5 (Rev 12/2024) itself —
the PDF is here — and off the California Department of Motor Vehicles pages.
This is plain-language help with a form, not legal advice, and where our wording and the agency's differ,
theirs governs.
