How to Get a Replacement Car Title in Massachusetts

A replacement car title in Massachusetts costs $25 and arrives by mail within about 10 business days once the Registry of Motor Vehicles receives your application.¹ You can apply online, by mail, or at any RMV service center. The online option is only available if your vehicle has no active lien, and vehicles with an electronic lien can’t be replaced through the duplicate title process at all until the lender releases the lien.

What You Need Before You Apply

The paper form is the Application for Duplicate Certificate of Title (TTL117_0822), available on mass.gov or at any service center.¹ The online system asks for the same information without the paper form.

To apply online, you’ll need:

Your full name as it appears on the title
Your date of birth
Your Massachusetts driver’s license, learner’s permit, or ID number
The last four digits of your Social Security Number (businesses use their Federal Identification Number)

Paper applications add the vehicle identification number, current odometer reading, and license plate number.² Double-check every field before submitting.

If Your Vehicle Has a Lien

The lien situation controls what’s possible. Before doing anything else, call your lender. If you’ve paid the loan off, they may still have your original title in their files and can simply mail it to you, which saves the $25 fee entirely.

Paid-Off Paper Liens

If your loan is paid but the title still shows the lender, you need a signed lien release letter on the lender’s official letterhead. The letter must include the year, make, VIN, and every titled owner. The RMV won’t accept a fax or photocopy.¹ Without it, the duplicate will still list the lender and you won’t be able to sell or transfer the vehicle. Because the release letter has to travel physically, you can’t use the online portal in this scenario.

Electronic Liens

If your lender holds an electronic lien (ELT), the RMV cannot issue a duplicate title while that lien is active. If the loan is paid off, ask the lender to release the lien electronically. Once they do, the RMV system automatically generates a paper title and mails it to you, so no duplicate application is needed.³ If the loan is still open, work with the lender directly. There’s no RMV workaround.

How to Submit the Application

Online

The fastest route, and available only for vehicles with no active lien. You authenticate with your ID number and date of birth, enter the vehicle details, and pay electronically.¹

In Person

Bring the completed TTL117_0822 form, $25 payment, and any lien release to any RMV service center. A clerk reviews the paperwork on the spot, which helps catch errors early. Service centers don’t print titles on-site. Every title, no matter how you apply, is printed by a third-party vendor on secure title paper and mailed out.³

By Mail

Send the application, any lien release, and a $25 check or money order payable to MassDOT to:

Registry of Motor Vehicles
Title Division
P.O. Box 55885
Boston, MA 02205-5885

Mail works well for complex lien paperwork or when you can’t visit a service center during business hours.¹ Postal transit is added to the processing time on both ends.

How Long It Takes and Where It Goes

Plan on up to 10 business days from the day the RMV receives your application.¹ The RMV does not offer expedited processing. The title is mailed to the owner’s address on file, or to the lienholder if there’s an active lien.⁴ No service center can hand you a title over the counter.

To send the title somewhere other than the address on file, you must include a photocopy of each owner’s license or ID. This most often applies to people who have moved out of state but still hold a Massachusetts title.

Someone Else Applying for You

A third party can file the application with a Power of Attorney. The RMV accepts its Vehicle Owner’s Limited Power of Attorney form (TTLREG109) or any freeform POA that meets Massachusetts legal requirements.⁵ The agent has to write “P.O.A.” next to their signature on every document. An agent signing for a business also adds “on behalf of” and the business name. If the title is going to an address other than the one on file and the request is being made by someone other than the owner, a signed POA from every owner is required.

Replacing a Title After the Owner’s Death

When the owner is deceased, the application must be mailed to the Title Division; the online portal isn’t available. Along with the completed form and $25 fee, include a death certificate plus one of the following: a letter of administration, a court order, or an Affidavit of Surviving Spouse.¹

A surviving spouse can use the affidavit to skip formal probate for the vehicle, but only if they were legally married to the deceased at the time of death. Live-in partners and ex-spouses do not qualify.⁶ A court-appointed personal representative uses the letter of administration or court order in place of the affidavit, with the same fee and death certificate requirements.

Selling a Vehicle Before the Replacement Arrives

Massachusetts requires a properly endorsed certificate of title at the time of any private-party sale.⁷ There is no workaround using a bill of sale or the registration. The buyer needs the assignment section on the back of your title completed with the sale date, purchase price, odometer reading, and both signatures. If your title is missing, order the duplicate before you list the vehicle. A buyer who shows up at the RMV without a properly assigned title will be turned away.

If Your Name Has Changed

A duplicate title is printed with whatever the RMV has on file, so a name that changed after the original title was issued will still appear the old way. Updating it requires a separate Title Amendment with its own $25 fee, supporting documentation for the name change, and a processing time of 10 to 14 business days.⁸ File the duplicate first, then submit the amendment once it arrives. Combined, you’re looking at three to four weeks.

1
Mass.gov. Replace Your Vehicle’s Certificate of Title
2
General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 90D Section 14
3
Mass.gov. Duplicate Title Transaction Job Aid – EVR Policies
4
Registry of Motor Vehicles. Application for Duplicate Certificate of Title
5
Mass.gov. Power of Attorney for Title and Registration Application
6
Mass.gov. Surviving Spouse/Heirship/Inheritance
7
Mass.gov. Private Party Car Sales
8
Mass.gov. Change Information on Your Vehicle Title