How To Transfer a Car Title to a Family Member in Kentucky in 2026

A transfer of motor vehicle ownership to a family member in Kentucky is administered by the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Division of Motor Vehicle Licensing and processed through the county clerk system. The legal basis for assignment of title and application for a new title appears in KRS 186A.215. According to this statute, the transfer transaction must be completed within 15 days after the vehicle changes hands.

What Does Transferring a Car Title to a Family Member in Kentucky Mean?

In Kentucky, a certificate of title is the Commonwealth's ownership record for a motor vehicle. A family transfer changes that record from the present owner to the recipient through an assigned title and a new title application filed with the county clerk. Until the transfer documents are accepted for processing, the prior owner remains the owner shown in the state record.

Kentucky maintains vehicle title, registration, and lien data electronically in the state's Automated Vehicle Information System, with authorized record access available through OVIS. The system functions as a hybrid record structure: county clerks process title work locally, while the state maintains the official electronic record and issues the certificate of title. Kentucky also offers an optional speed title service for qualifying transactions.

A family transfer may be documented as a no-consideration transfer or as a private sale for an agreed amount. Those two transaction structures do not receive identical tax treatment. Kentucky applies motor vehicle usage tax rules separately from the title process, so the amount due depends on the parties' relationship and the nature of the transfer.

Eligible Family Members for Title Transfers in Kentucky

Kentucky identifies certain family relationships for preferential tax treatment of motor vehicle use. The current Form 71A101 recognizes transfers between spouses, between a parent or stepparent and a child or stepchild, and between a grandparent and grandchild. The Department of Revenue's current usage tax guidance states that all persons involved in the exempt transfer must be Kentucky residents and that the vehicle must have been titled in Kentucky on or after July 1, 2005, or previously registered in Kentucky.

Common family relationships for which title transfers are routinely processed include:

• Spouses
• Parents and children, including stepparents and stepchildren
• Grandparents and grandchildren
• Siblings
• In-laws
• Other relatives

A family relationship alone does not exempt every transfer from tax. If the parties do not fall within Kentucky's listed exempt relationship categories, the transfer is generally handled under the same private-party tax rules that apply to unrelated individuals. For taxable transactions, Kentucky imposes motor vehicle usage tax at 6% of the vehicle's retail price under KRS 138.460.

Standard title, identification, insurance, and odometer requirements still apply even when the transfer takes place within a family. If a lien remains attached to the vehicle, the lienholder must participate through the documents accepted by the county clerk before the title can be transferred free of that lien.

How To Transfer a Car Title as a Gift to a Family Member in Kentucky

Step 1 — Verify the title record and lien status.
The present owner should review the current Kentucky title for any recorded security interest before the transfer is made. Kentucky's title, registration, and lien records can also be reviewed through authorized OVIS access. If a lien is still active, the county clerk and lienholder must be consulted regarding the release or lien-filing documents accepted for that record. When a lien is being noted, TC 96-187 is obtained from the county clerk.

Step 2 — Complete the title assignment and title application.
The transferor must execute the assignment of title and provide the recipient with the signed title and the title application materials used by the county clerk. Kentucky's standard transfer form is TC 96-182, which requires the owner's or buyer's name and address, the date of sale or transfer, odometer disclosure, total consideration, lien information, if applicable, and the required signatures with attestation.

Step 3 — Claim the family exemption, if the relationship qualifies.
For a qualifying spouse, parent, or stepparent to a child or stepchild, or grandparent to grandchild transfer, the recipient should complete the family exemption claim on Form 71A101 and provide the supporting relationship information required by the county clerk. Kentucky's standard private-transfer guidance does not list a separate general bill of sale as a universal filing document for an ordinary in-state title transfer.

Step 4 — Handle the plate record and protect the transferor if the filing is delayed.
Kentucky's current plate policy provides that the registration plate does not stay with the transferred vehicle. The transferor may keep the plate and transfer it to another vehicle of the same class, hold it for the remaining registration period, or return it to the county clerk if required. If the recipient does not complete the transfer within 15 days, the transferor may file TC 96-3 to report an incomplete transfer.

Step 5 — Submit the application to the county clerk.
The recipient must present the assigned title, the completed transfer application, proof of Kentucky insurance issued within 45 days, acceptable identification, the exemption form if applicable, and payment of the required fees to the county clerk's office serving the owner's county of residence or the county where the vehicle is primarily operated.

Step 6 — Register the vehicle in the recipient's name.
Because Kentucky's current plate policy requires the transferred vehicle to obtain its own registration authority, the recipient must complete registration and obtain a new plate, transfer an eligible plate already assigned to the recipient, or operate under lawful temporary authority until county clerk processing is completed.

How To Transfer a Car Title as a Sale to a Family Member in Kentucky

Step 1 — Complete the title assignment with the agreed consideration.
For a sales transaction, the transferor must assign title to the buyer and complete the transfer application, including the agreed purchase price, transfer date, odometer disclosure, buyer identification information, and the signatures required for notarization. Kentucky uses TC 96-182 for this purpose in ordinary county clerk title work.

Step 2 — Document the total consideration for tax purposes.
Kentucky's usage tax guidance permits the selling price to be supported through TC 96-182 or, when required by the county clerk, a notarized 71A100. The state's ordinary private-transfer instructions do not identify a separate general bill of sale as a mandatory filing document for every in-state title transfer.

Step 3 — Resolve any existing lien.
If the title record shows an active lien, the lienholder's release or other lien documentation accepted by the county clerk must accompany the transfer. If a new lien will be recorded as part of the transaction, the clerk will require the title lien filing materials associated with TC 96-187.

Step 4 — Comply with Kentucky's transferor plate procedures.
The seller retains the Kentucky plate rather than leaving it on the sold vehicle. If the buyer does not complete the transfer within 15 days, the seller may protect the record by filing TC 96-3 with the county clerk in the seller's county of residence.

Step 5 — Submit the title application and registration documents.
The buyer must take the assigned title, the completed application, proof of Kentucky insurance, acceptable identification, and payment for title, transfer, registration, and tax charges to the county clerk for processing.

Step 6 — Pay the applicable usage tax at registration.
For taxable family sales, Kentucky collects motor vehicle usage tax when the title and registration are processed. A transfer between relatives is not automatically exempt. Only the statutory family categories recognized by the Department of Revenue may claim the exemption if the required conditions are met.

What Documents Are Needed To Transfer a Car Title to a Family Member in Kentucky

Required for all transfers:

• Current Kentucky Certificate of Title — The original title must be properly assigned by the present owner so the county clerk can move the ownership record to the recipient.
• Application for Kentucky Certificate of Title or Registration (TC 96-182) — This application records the vehicle description, buyer information, odometer disclosure, consideration, lien data, and signatures required for processing.
• Proof of Kentucky insurance — The county clerk requires current Kentucky insurance proof, and the state's general title guidance specifies an issue date within 45 days.
• Government-issued identification — Kentucky's standard title instructions accept a Kentucky driver's license, Kentucky identification card, or Social Security card for title processing.
• Odometer disclosure — The transfer documents must contain the mileage statement required for ownership transfer when applicable under state and federal law.

Required for sale transfers:

• Affidavit of Total Consideration Given for a Motor Vehicle (71A100) — This notarized affidavit may be required when the county clerk needs separate proof of the actual consideration used to determine motor vehicle usage tax.

Required in specific circumstances:

• Motor Vehicle Usage Tax Multi-Purpose Form (71A101) — Used to claim a qualifying family relationship exemption from motor vehicle usage tax.
• Title Lien Statement (TC 96-187) — Used in lien-related processing; the form is obtained from a Kentucky county clerk's office.
• Limited Power of Attorney to Transfer Ownership & Disclose Mileage (TC 96-336) — Used when an authorized representative signs title and mileage documents on behalf of an owner.
• Affidavit of Incomplete Transfer (TC 96-3) — Filed by the transferor if the transferee has not completed the transaction within 15 days.

If the name shown on the title does not match the name shown on identification, Kentucky's title guidance requires an affidavit or comparable record establishing that both names refer to the same person.

How To Transfer a Car Title to a Family Member Online in Kentucky

A standard private-party transfer in Kentucky, including a transfer between family members, cannot be completed entirely online. The recipient must appear before the county clerk with the assigned title, proof of insurance, identification, application materials, and payment of the required fees and taxes so that the title and registration can be processed in the state system.

What's the Cost To Transfer a Car Title to a Family Member in Kentucky?

Title and Transfer Fees

Registration Fees

Motor Vehicle Usage Tax (for sale transfers)

Kentucky collects motor vehicle usage tax at 6% on the vehicle's retail price. For used vehicles, the Department of Revenue states that the selling price shown on TC 96-182 or 71A100 may be used if it satisfies the state's valuation rules; otherwise, the county clerk uses the prescribed reference manual value.

A qualifying family exemption from motor vehicle usage tax is available only for the relationship classes recognized by current Department of Revenue guidance: spouse to spouse, parent or stepparent to child or stepchild, and grandparent to grandchild, subject to the residency and prior Kentucky title or registration conditions on the exemption form. A transfer outside those exempt groups can still be taxable even if no consideration is paid.

Contact Information

Kentucky Transportation Cabinet Division of Motor Vehicle Licensing
200 Mero Street, Frankfort, KY 40622
Phone: (502) 564-1257
Official Website: Kentucky Transportation Cabinet Division of Motor Vehicle Licensing