Do I Need a Vehicle Transfer on Death Designation in Montana?
Montana allows a transfer-on-death beneficiary designation on a vehicle titleMont. Code Ann. 61-3-226Verified Aug 25, 2026View source, filed through the Montana Department of Justice, Motor Vehicle Division (Vehicle Services Bureau); applications are also accepted at the county treasurer's office or an MVD authorized agent using Form MV13.
Yes. Montana allows a beneficiary designation (transfer on death) on a vehicle titleMont. Code Ann. 61-3-226Verified Aug 25, 2026View source. It passes the vehicle to the named beneficiary at death without probate.
Montana allows a beneficiary designation (transfer on death) on motor vehicle, vessel, camper, manufactured home, and mobile homeMont. Code Ann. 61-3-226Verified Aug 25, 2026View source. Under 61-3-226(7), a manufactured home or mobile home that has been considered or declared an improvement to real property under 15-1-116 is excluded from the definition of "vehicle" for this designation.
Add the designation through the Montana Department of Justice, Motor Vehicle Division (Vehicle Services Bureau); applications are also accepted at the county treasurer's office or an MVD authorized agentMont. Code Ann. 61-3-226View source using Beneficiary Designation for Vehicle or Vessel Title (Form MV13)Mont. Code Ann. 61-3-226View source. Notarization is not requiredMont. Code Ann. 61-3-226View source.
Yes. The designation can be changed or cancelled at any time during the owner's life; in Montana: Transfer the vehicle or vessel to the beneficiary or a third party before death; Submit a new beneficiary designation (MV13) together with an MV7 Certificate of Title Replacement Application. To revoke outright, mark the revoke box and leave the beneficiary section of the MV13 blank. Montana allows more than one beneficiaryMont. Code Ann. 61-3-226Verified Aug 25, 2026View source.
The beneficiary retitles the vehicle with the Montana Department of Justice, Motor Vehicle Division (Vehicle Services Bureau); applications are also accepted at the county treasurer's office or an MVD authorized agentMont. Code Ann. 61-3-226View source by submitting: Copy of the death certificate for every owner listed on the current Montana title; Application for Certificate of Title for a Motor Vehicle (MV1) in the beneficiary(ies) name, signed by all beneficiaries; Government-issued identification for each beneficiary; Proof of death and identification presented to the MVD, county treasurer's office, or an authorized agent; Payment of applicable title (and, if registering, registration) fees. The designation covers that vehicle alone; a revocable trust set up with SimplyTrust keeps the home, the accounts and everything else out of probate in one document.
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New Baby or Adoption
Your family is growing. Your protection should too. Guardian nominations, trusts for minors, beneficiary updates, and the documents new parents need in place.
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Marriage
What married couples need in place: one joint trust or two, wills, beneficiary updates, and the spousal rights your state grants you automatically.
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New Home
How to put your house in a revocable trust: the deed you record, what it does to your mortgage and property taxes, and when a TOD deed is simpler.
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Retirement
Retirement changes your financial picture. Healthcare directives, beneficiary reviews, long-term care planning, and protecting what you've built.
Learn moreForms for Planning Your Estate in Montana
Free forms for planning your estate in Montana: a will, living trust, pour-over will, both powers of attorney, living will, and TOD deed.
Healthcare Power of Attorney
Montana requires 2Mont. Code Ann. § 50-9-103Verified Oct 15, 2026View source witnesses for a healthcare power of attorney; notarization is not requiredMont. Code Ann. § 50-9-103Verified Oct 15, 2026View source.
Financial Power of Attorney
Montana treats a power of attorney as durable by defaultMCA § 72-31-305Verified Sep 18, 2026View source, and it is signed with no witness or notary requirementMCA § 72-31-305Verified Sep 18, 2026View source.
Transfer on Death Deed
In Montana, a transfer on death deed is signed before a notaryMCA 72-6-401 to 72-6-418Verified Oct 18, 2026View source, then recorded with the county before the owner's deathMCA 72-6-401 to 72-6-418Verified Oct 18, 2026View source.
Vehicle Transfer on Death
Name a beneficiary to inherit your vehicle at death without probate. Available in 26 states and the District of Columbia.
Living Will
In Montana, the living will is the DeclarationMont. Code Ann. §§ 50-9-101 to 50-9-505 (Montana Rights of the Terminally Ill Act)Verified Sep 27, 2026View source, a written instruction that is valid with no agent named.
Last Will and Testament
In Montana, a will is signed before 2MCA § 72-2-522Verified Oct 18, 2026View source witnesses, and a self-proving affidavit signed with it lets the court admit it without witness testimonyMCA § 72-2-522Verified Oct 18, 2026View source.
Tools for Planning Your Estate in Montana
Free tools for planning your estate in Montana: what a will or trust costs, whether you need a trust or TOD deed, and how documents are signed.
Do I Need a TOD Deed?
Montana authorizes transfer on death deedsMCA 72-6-401 to 72-6-418Verified Oct 17, 2026View source: a recorded, revocable deed that passes real property at death outside probate.
What Does Estate Planning Actually Cost?
An attorney-prepared revocable trust in Montana runs $3,620Estimate: 10 hours at $362, Clio's Montana Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $5,430Estimate: 15 hours at $362, Clio's Montana Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source and a simple will $957Estimate: 3 hours at $319, Clio's Montana Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $1,914Estimate: 6 hours at $319, Clio's Montana Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source, against $0 to $549 up front plus a subscription with an online service.
How Much Life Insurance Do I Need?
In Montana, four years at a public university cost about $72,640NCES Digest of Education Statistics 2023, Table 330.20, public 4-year in-state tuition, fees, room and board, academic year 2022-23Verified Oct 17, 2026View source and the cost of living is 5% below the U.S. averageBEA Regional Price Parities, all items, by state, 2024Verified Oct 17, 2026View source; no state estate or inheritance tax appliesMont. Code Ann. § 72-16-905 (estate tax = maximum federal state death tax credit — a pickup tax that computes to $0 for deaths after 12/31/2004, IRC § 2011 credit repealed by EGTRRA 2001; part 9 still codified); Mont. Code Ann. Title 72, ch. 16, pts. 1, 3, 4, 7, 8 (inheritance tax) repealed eff. Jan. 1, 2001 (I-145, Nov. 2000)Verified Sep 15, 2026View source.
Are My Beneficiary Designations Protected?
Montana automatically revokes an ex-spouse as beneficiary at divorceMCA § 72-2-814Verified Sep 15, 2026View source; employer plans under ERISA follow federal rules either way, so a 401(k) beneficiary changes only by a new designation.
How Do I Sign Estate Documents?
Find witness, notary, and remote signing requirements for all 50 states.
Will My Estate Documents Transfer?
Check if estate planning documents signed in one state are valid in another.
How Much Does Probate Cost?
Probate on a $500,000 estate in Montana costs an estimated $24,934MCA § 72-3-634 (court review of reasonableness of compensation of persons employed by the personal representative, including attorneys); § 72-3-632 (reasonable attorney fees in estate litigation); former § 72-3-633 repealed by Sec. 105, Ch. 313, L. 2019Verified Sep 8, 2026View source. Attorney fees run 1.8%MCA § 72-3-634 (court review of reasonableness of compensation of persons employed by the personal representative, including attorneys); § 72-3-632 (reasonable attorney fees in estate litigation); former § 72-3-633 repealed by Sec. 105, Ch. 313, L. 2019Verified Sep 8, 2026View source to 2.9%MCA § 72-3-634 (court review of reasonableness of compensation of persons employed by the personal representative, including attorneys); § 72-3-632 (reasonable attorney fees in estate litigation); former § 72-3-633 repealed by Sec. 105, Ch. 313, L. 2019Verified Sep 8, 2026View source of the estate under a reasonable-compensation standard.
Who Inherits Without a Will?
Without a will in Montana, a surviving spouse takes the entire estateMCA § 72-2-112Verified Sep 10, 2026View source when every child of either spouse is a child of both, and descendants divide what passes to them per capita with representationMCA § 72-2-116Verified Sep 10, 2026View source.
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Montana Estate Planning Resources
In-depth guides covering Montana probate laws, trust requirements, and estate planning strategies.