How to Fill Out and Submit a Louisiana Change of Address Form

If you’ve moved within Louisiana or into the state, the Louisiana change of address form you file with the Office of Motor Vehicles is due within ten days of the move under RS 32:406.¹ You can submit it online, by mail, or at a field office. The OMV filing is only the first step: your vehicle registration, voter registration, and state tax records live in separate systems and each needs its own update.

Filing the OMV Change of Address

The OMV offers three ways to submit the Change of Address Application Package:

Online through the ExpressLane portal at expresslane.la.gov. This updates the OMV’s records but does not produce a new card.²
By mail to the Office of Motor Vehicles, P.O. Box 64886, Baton Rouge, LA 70896. All OMV mail is processed at headquarters.³
In person at any OMV field office. This is the only method that lets you walk out with a new card showing your updated address.

The form asks for your full legal name as it appears on your current license, your Social Security number, your Louisiana driver’s license or ID card number, your old address, and your new address. Keep the credential in front of you while you fill it out so the name and license number match exactly. A transposed number or a nickname where your legal name belongs is the easiest way to stall the process.

Getting a New Card That Shows the New Address

Updating your record and holding a card that displays the new address are two different things. If you file online or by mail, your card still shows the old address until you request a duplicate.⁴ The OMV’s duplicate credential page is explicit: if your mailing address differs from the address printed on your license, you cannot request a duplicate online and must visit a local OMV office.⁵

The duplicate carries two charges. The duplicate fee under RS 32:412.2 is five dollars.⁶ A twelve-dollar handling charge under RS 32:412.1 applies to each Class D or E license transaction, including duplicates.⁷ That’s seventeen dollars before any electronic commerce surcharge. The OMV does not accept cash, so bring a credit card, debit card, check, cashier’s check, or money order.⁸

Updating Your Vehicle Registration

Your license and your vehicle registration sit in separate OMV databases. Updating one doesn’t update the other, and each vehicle you own needs its own change. If you skip this step, renewal notices and tax assessments go to your old address, and a license-to-registration mismatch can create problems at a traffic stop or when you sell the vehicle.

You’ll need the license plate number and the Vehicle Identification Number (or Hull Identification Number for watercraft) for each vehicle. You can submit the change through OMV online services or by mail to the same Baton Rouge headquarters address.³ A duplicate registration certificate showing the new address costs twelve dollars, plus a possible parish fee of up to six dollars.⁹

Updating Your Voter Registration

Louisiana’s voter registration application doubles as a change-of-address form.¹⁰ You have two routes:

Online at voterportal.sos.la.gov. The system asks for the four-digit audit code printed on the front of your Louisiana driver’s license or state ID. The session times out after five minutes of inactivity, so pull your card before you start.¹¹
By paper application printed from the Secretary of State’s website or picked up at your local Registrar of Voters office. The residence address field cannot be a P.O. box; a separate mailing address line is provided if you receive mail elsewhere.¹⁰

Without this update, you stay registered at your old address and may be assigned to a precinct that no longer corresponds to where you live.

Updating Your State Tax Records

The Louisiana Department of Revenue keeps its own address records. If you don’t tell it directly, your state income tax notices keep going to the old address. Individual filers can update online through the Department of Revenue’s Contact Us page or submit Form R-6505, the Individual Income Tax Name and Address Change.¹²

Form R-6505 asks for your Social Security number, old address, new address, and signature. If your last return was a joint filing and you’re now at a separate residence from your spouse, there’s a checkbox for that. You can mail the form to the Department of Revenue at P.O. Box 1469, Baton Rouge, LA 70821, fax it to (225) 219-0806, or email it to CentralReg@LA.GOV.¹³

Business filers use a parallel process: update through LaTAP (Louisiana Taxpayer Access Point) or submit Form R-6450, the Business Taxes Address Change.¹²

Homestead Exemption If You Bought

If you own your new home, file for homestead exemption at your parish assessor’s office. Louisiana law requires that you both own and occupy the residence by December 31 of the applicable tax year to qualify for that year’s exemption.¹⁴ Miss that cutoff and you lose the exemption for the whole year.

Parish practices vary, but applications typically require proof of ownership (your act of sale or recorded deed), a valid driver’s license or state ID showing the property address, and a current utility bill confirming occupancy. The license requirement is one more reason to update the OMV first. Call your new parish assessor’s office for the exact process and whether you need an appointment.

Business Entity Address Changes

If you run a corporation or LLC, a move may also trigger a filing with the Secretary of State. Foreign corporations and LLCs must file a Statement of Change when the registered office address, registered agent, or principal business establishment changes. The fee is twenty-five dollars, and the form must be filed in duplicate. The form requires notarization. If only the registered office address is changing, the registered agent can sign and notarize. If the registered agent or the principal business address is changing, a corporate officer or LLC manager must sign.¹⁵

Why USPS Forwarding Isn’t a Substitute

Mail forwarding with the Postal Service is useful as a safety net, but it doesn’t update any Louisiana state agency. USPS states plainly that a change-of-address order only changes your mailing address with the Post Office and that government agencies for benefits, driver’s licenses, and voter registration must be updated separately.¹⁶ Standard forwarding also expires: first-class mail is forwarded for twelve months. Relying on forwarding alone leaves you out of compliance with the OMV’s ten-day rule from the day you move, and the forwarded mail eventually stops arriving.

1
Louisiana State Legislature. Louisiana Revised Statutes 32:406 – Licensee Must Give Notice of Change of Address
2
Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles. Change of Address Application Package
3
Louisiana Department of Public Safety. Office of Motor Vehicles – Mailing Address
4
Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles. Duplicate Credential Request
5
Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles. Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles – Information – Section: What If I Need to Change My Personal Information or My Address?
6
Louisiana State Legislature. Louisiana Revised Statutes 32:412.2 – Duplicate Drivers License
7
Louisiana State Legislature. Louisiana Revised Statutes 32:412.1 – Handling Charges
8
WAFB. La. OMV Stops Accepting Cash, Offers Installment Plans for Debt
9
Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles. Duplicate and Replacement Registrations
10
Louisiana Secretary of State. Louisiana Voter Registration Application
11
Louisiana Secretary of State. Online Voter Registration
12
Louisiana Department of Revenue. How Do I Change My Address?
13
Louisiana Department of Revenue. Individual Income Tax Name and Address Change Form R-6505
14
East Baton Rouge Parish Assessor’s Office. General Information
15
Louisiana Secretary of State. Statement of Change of Registered Office, Registered Agent and/or Principal Business Establishment
16
USPS. Standard Forward Mail and Change of Address