Rhode Island's one title application, and the form that answers this state's own peculiar question: what to sign when the car has never had a certificate. Seven transaction types share it, and the header prices all of them the same - fee is $53.50 for any transaction. ADD TITLE is the one that matters to somebody selling an older car, because until 1 January 2024 Rhode Island issued no titles at all for model years before 2001, and thousands of those cars are still on the road.
Written against TR-2/TR-9 (Rev 11/2025), issued under R.I. Gen. Laws § 31-3.1-38 and § 31-3.1-11. Read the transaction ticks before you fill anything in, because two of them look interchangeable and are not. CORRECTION is for a title that exists and is wrong; ADD TITLE is for a vehicle that has never had one. Ticking CORRECTION on a car Rhode Island never titled asks the Research Office to amend a record that does not exist.
Two documents, and they are not the same thing. Take the blank TR-2/TR-9 from the dmv.ri.gov copy so you get the revision that is current today, then print our TR-2/TR-9 guide and keep it beside you while you fill theirs in.
This is all 2 pages of the actual TR-2/TR-9, rendered from the PDF the Rhode Island Division of Motor Vehicles publishes and completed end to end: letterhead, every field, and the blocks at the foot.
Each tick prints its own section list beside it. ADD TITLE calls for A, B, C, D, E and I; DUPLICATE TITLE/AFFIDAVIT OF LOSS calls for A, B, C, D, E, F and I.
Watch out: The lists are not the same and the Research Office works to them. Ticking ADD TITLE and then filling in section F, or ticking DUPLICATE and leaving F blank, is the commonest way to have the packet sent back.
Signature, printed name, an AGENT OF line, and the identification number of the person submitting the documents.
Watch out: This is not the same as section B. If a relative is dropping the packet off for you, their details go here and yours go in B - and if they are signing anything on your behalf they need the notarised Limited Power of Attorney as well.
Name, licence or Rhode Island identification number, date of birth, telephone, email, residence address and a mailing address if it differs.
Watch out: Match the registration you are producing as proof of ownership. A first title is built from that record, and a name that has changed since needs to be resolved before the certificate is printed rather than after.
Year, vehicle identification number, gross vehicle weight, make, model, body type, colour, cylinders, seat belts, pickup bed and fuel type.
Watch out: The heading says complete all fields and means it. Gross vehicle weight is on the VIN plate in the driver's door jamb, and on an older car the label can be faded to the point of illegibility - check it before you are sitting in the car park.
The figure in whole miles, then a signature, a printed name and a date underneath it.
Watch out: No tenths, and no exempt box exists. If the dial has rolled past its own maximum, the first qualifying tick is the one that says so; if you simply cannot vouch for the number, the second one brands the record.
Lienholder name, date of lien and address. It carries an asterisk because it is conditional.
Watch out: Leave it blank on a car you own outright. Writing in a lender whose loan was settled years ago puts a lien on a brand-new certificate and costs another $53.50 to take off.
One tick from lost, stolen, destroyed or illegible/mutilated - and only on a duplicate application.
Watch out: An illegible or mutilated certificate has to travel with the form, and the note asks for an explanation of the circumstances with it. Do not throw the damaged one away.
The dealer recipient affidavit, for a duplicate that will be posted to a dealership because the car has been sold or traded to it.
Watch out: It is a private residence or the dealership, not both, and it needs the dealership's self-addressed envelope and a copy of the registered owner's licence photograph. A private seller ticks nothing here.
A declaration under penalty of perjury that no other liens exist, a yes or no on disclosure of your personal information, then signature and date.
Watch out: The consent question is about your motor vehicle record being released to somebody who asks for it, and it has nothing to do with the sale. Answer it deliberately rather than ticking through.
Signature, printed name and a commission expiration date marked mandatory.
Watch out: A Rhode Island notary's stamp has to be ink. An embossed seal on its own is refused, and so is a notary block with the printed name missing.
| On the form | What to put in it |
|---|---|
| Transaction Type | Seven ticks across the top and each names the sections it wants completed. SECURITY ADDITION: REFINANCE, DUPLICATE TITLE/AFFIDAVIT OF LOSS, DEALERSHIP, SALVAGE TITLE with its three sub-boxes for Classification A parts only, Classification B repairable and Unrecovered Theft, CORRECTION with sub-boxes for Mileage, Lienholder and Other, ADD TITLE, and ADD OR REMOVE SECOND OWNER. |
| A, Name Of Person Submitting Documents | Signature, printed name, an AGENT OF box for somebody attending on another's behalf, and the licence number and state, passport number or photo identification number of whoever is standing at the counter. |
| B, Owner's Information | Primary owner's last or company name, first, middle and suffix; licence, Rhode Island identification or CID number; date of birth; telephone; email; a residence address and a mailing address if it differs. Then the same block again for a secondary owner. |
| C, Vehicle Information | Year, vehicle identification number, gross vehicle weight, make, model, body type, colour, cylinders, the number of seat belts in the vehicle, whether it has a pickup bed, and a fuel tick from gas, hybrid, electric, diesel or CNG/LPG. Two further rows collect engine size and maximum speed for a motorcycle or moped and length and carrying capacity for a camper or trailer. |
| D, Odometer Disclosure Statement | The reading in whole miles with the words no tenths printed beside the line, then the two qualifying statements - mileage is in excess of its mechanical limits, and odometer reading is NOT the actual mileage, WARNING - ODOMETER DISCREPANCY - and a signature, printed name and date. |
| E, Lien Information | First and second lienholder name, date of lien and address. Marked with an asterisk because it is completed only if there is a current vehicle loan. |
| F, Duplicate Title/Affidavit Of Loss | One tick from lost, stolen, destroyed or illegible/mutilated, and a warning in capitals that a vehicle which has ever had a loan needs an original release of lien from the financial institution before a duplicate can be requested. |
| G, Dealership duplicate | A dealer recipient affidavit for a duplicate that will be posted to a dealership rather than a private residence. Its own note says the form does NOT constitute Power of Attorney or Assignment, and it carries a notary block of its own. |
| H, Salvage Title Important Information | Not a block to complete but a statutory warning: under the Rhode Island Salvage Law you are required to apply for a salvage certificate of title for a vehicle within twenty days, and a violation is a felony punishable by up to five years or a fine of not more than five thousand dollars, or both. |
| I, Signature | A declaration under penalty of perjury that no other liens exist, a yes/no consent question about disclosure of personal information from your motor vehicle record, the owner's and second owner's signatures, a corporate title line, and a notary block. |
Every line here was read off TR-2/TR-9 (Rev 11/2025) itself — the PDF is here — and off the Rhode Island Division 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.
Back to all Rhode Island seller paperwork, or what selling a car in Rhode Island involves.