Ohio BMV Form 5736 is a power of attorney that lets you authorize another person to apply for vehicle registration, or to transfer a registration, on your behalf at a deputy registrar’s office. It is not a title form. If you’re trying to get a certificate of title for a vehicle in Ohio, the form you actually need is BMV 3774, and 5736 will not do that job for you.
When to Use Form 5736
The form covers a narrow situation: you own a vehicle that needs registering or a registration transfer in Ohio, and you can’t be at the counter yourself. Signing 5736 puts someone else there in your place. Typical uses include military personnel stationed away from home, owners who are temporarily out of state, and transactions where a dealership or a family member is running the paperwork.
The authority is limited to registration tasks. It does not let your appointee sign a title assignment, negotiate a sale, or make decisions about liens. If you need someone to handle a title transfer for you, that’s a different process and may require a broader power of attorney.
What the Form Asks For
Form 5736 collects identifying details for both the owner and the person being appointed. You’ll need:
- The vehicle owner’s full legal name and address, matching your driver’s license or state ID exactly.
- The appointed person’s full legal name and address.
- A Social Security Number, required if you don’t hold an Ohio driver’s license or Ohio ID card.
- An Employer Identification Number (EIN/TIN) instead of an SSN if the vehicle is owned by a business.
- Vehicle details sufficient to identify each vehicle covered.
One form can cover multiple vehicles, so you don’t need a separate copy for each car or truck. Check every name and number against your existing records before you sign. A small mismatch between the name on the form and the name on your license is enough to get the form kicked back at the counter.
Signing and Notarization
The vehicle owner must sign Form 5736 in front of a notary public, who then seals the document. Your appointee does not need to be present for the notarization. The current version is dated April 2025 and requires an original ink signature. Digital or photocopied signatures are not accepted from individuals. Licensed Ohio motor vehicle dealers are the exception: they may use authenticated digital signatures, and they have to keep records proving the document is authentic.
How Long the Form Stays Valid
Form 5736 has no fixed expiration date. That said, deputy registrar offices may refuse a form that looks stale or where the situation has obviously changed, such as when the vehicle has since been sold. The practical answer is to have the form notarized close to the date your appointee plans to use it, not months in advance.
If You Actually Need to Title a Vehicle
A lot of people looking up Form 5736 are really trying to complete a title transfer, not a registration. The two forms sit next to each other in the process but do different work:
- BMV 5736 is a power of attorney. It authorizes someone else to register a vehicle for you. It does not transfer ownership or create a title record.
- BMV 3774 is the application for a certificate of title. You file it with a County Clerk of Courts to obtain or transfer a title, and it asks for the vehicle’s year, VIN, make, model, body type, purchase price, odometer reading, lien information, and sales tax payment.
If you’re buying a vehicle in a private sale, bringing an out-of-state vehicle into Ohio, or replacing a lost title, BMV 3774 is your form. Form 5736 only comes into play for the registration step that typically follows titling, and only when someone other than the owner is handling it.
One warning worth carrying over from the title form: falsifying the purchase price on BMV 3774 is a violation of Ohio Revised Code 2921.13, a first-degree misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both. The Ohio Department of Taxation audits transfers, so understating the price to shrink the sales tax bill is both illegal and likely to be caught.
Where to Get the Form
Form 5736 is available as a free download from the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles website, in either PDF or Word format. You can also pick up a paper copy at any deputy registrar location. BMV 3774 is on the same site as a PDF and is available at any County Clerk of Courts title office if you need the title application instead.
Before your appointee heads to the deputy registrar, make sure they have the notarized original of Form 5736, along with the vehicle documents and payment for the registration fees. Without the original, the office will not process the transaction in your name.