The Indiana One and the Same Person Affidavit, State Form 13637, is how you tell the Bureau of Motor Vehicles that two different name versions on vehicle records belong to the same person or business. You use it when the name on a title or registration doesn’t match the name on your current ID: a missing middle initial, a nickname, a misspelled surname, or a slightly different business name. The form is a free download from the BMV’s title forms page, and filing it costs $15 along with your title application.
When This Affidavit Is the Right Fix
Use Form 13637 when the owner name on a certificate of title doesn’t line up with the name on your driver’s license or other records because of an error or variation. Typical examples: a middle name left off an older title, “Rob” on one document and “Robert” on another, a transposed letter in a last name, or a business whose legal name was recorded slightly differently years ago. The form works for entities too. Under Indiana Code 9-13-2-124, “person” includes firms, partnerships, LLCs, corporations, and trusts, so a company with inconsistent name records can use the same affidavit.
Two situations fall outside the form. If your name actually changed through marriage, divorce, or a court order, the old and new names aren’t “one and the same”; they’re two legal names at different points in time. Update your driver’s license first using the marriage certificate, divorce decree, or court order, then apply for a corrected title with the new ID. The affidavit also can’t paper over a missed dealer reassignment. If a vehicle moved through a dealership and the dealer didn’t complete a proper reassignment on the title, Form 13637 won’t repair that chain. The BMV says so on the form itself.
What to Have Ready
- Your current government-issued ID: Indiana driver’s license, state ID card, or U.S. passport showing your correct legal name.
- The existing certificate of title that shows the incorrect or variant name.
- The full 17-character VIN, which you can find on the driver’s side dashboard at the windshield or on the driver’s door jamb. It has to match the existing title exactly.
- $15 for the title fee.
Filling Out Form 13637
The form has three sections. Individuals use Section 1, businesses use Section 2, and dealers use Section 3. Fill out only the one that applies and leave the others blank. Use blue or black ink, or type your entries before printing.
Section 1: Individuals
Write your full legal name exactly as it appears on your current license or ID. Then write the name exactly as it appears on the existing title, errors and all. The whole point of the form is the contrast between those two entries, so copy both precisely. If the title reads “John R Smith” and your license reads “John Robert Smith,” enter each version verbatim.
Add the vehicle’s model year, make, and the full 17-character VIN. Check every character of the VIN against the existing title. One wrong digit and the BMV can’t match the affidavit to a vehicle record, which means rejection.
Section 2: Business Entities
If an LLC, corporation, partnership, or other entity owns the vehicle, use Section 2. Enter the entity’s correct legal name, the name as it currently appears on the title, and the same vehicle information. An authorized representative of the business signs.
Getting It Notarized
You’re swearing under oath that the two name versions identify the same person or entity, so Indiana requires the signature to happen in front of a notary public or another official authorized to administer oaths. Don’t sign the form in advance. The notary has to watch you sign.
Personal appearance is mandatory under Indiana’s Notary Public Guide. The signer must be physically present with the notary; an oath can’t be administered by phone or video.
Bring your photo ID to the appointment. The notary verifies your identity, administers the oath, watches you sign, and applies the official seal. Indiana caps notary fees at $10 per signature for standard acts like oaths and acknowledgments, though a mobile notary who travels to you may add a trip fee on top of that.
The sworn statement carries real weight. Knowingly making a false statement on the affidavit is perjury, a Level 6 felony in Indiana. A conviction carries six months to two and a half years of imprisonment, with a one-year advisory sentence, plus a possible fine of up to $10,000.
Submitting the Affidavit and Paying the Fee
You have two ways to get the notarized affidavit to the BMV.
At a BMV Branch
Bring the notarized affidavit to any Indiana BMV branch with your title application, your current ID, the existing title, and the $15 fee. Branch staff can process it on the spot, which is the fastest route to a corrected title.
By Mail
For remote transactions, mail the notarized affidavit together with the completed title application, the existing title if the transaction requires it, and a check or money order for $15 made out to the Indiana BMV. Send everything to:
Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles
Indiana Government Center North
Room 402
100 North Senate Avenue
Indianapolis, IN 46204
Mail takes longer than walk-in processing. Put every required document and the correct fee in one packet; an incomplete submission slows things down further.
After You File
The BMV reviews the affidavit to confirm the name variations match the vehicle record and that the notarization is complete. If everything checks out, the state issues a new certificate of title with the corrected name and mails it to the address on your application.
Keep a photocopy of the notarized affidavit in your own records. If the name discrepancy comes up later during a sale, insurance claim, or lien release, your copy saves you from chasing the original through the BMV.