To replace a lost, stolen or damaged California title, you fill in REG 227, Application for Replacement or Transfer of Title, and submit it at a DMV office or by mail. The DMV’s checklist lists a duplicate title at $28. A notary is only needed when a lienholder signs Section 5.
What you need
- REG 227, Sections 1 to 3 completed and signed
- The $28 fee
- The damaged title, if it was damaged rather than lost
- Your registration card or renewal notice and your driver license, if you apply in person because your address changed
- A lien release, if a lender is listed and the loan is paid off
Filling in REG 227
The form is a fillable PDF from the DMV, so you can type into it in your browser.
- Top of the form. Tick “Replacement Title” if you are keeping the car. Tick “Transfer of Title with Replacement” if you are selling it and the title is missing.
- Vehicle details. Plate number, VIN and year/make, exactly as on your registration.
- Section 1: Registered owner(s). Your full name as it appears on the title or registration, driver license number, physical address and county.
- Section 2: Legal owner (lienholder). The bank or finance company, if any. Leave it blank if there is none.
- Section 3: Missing title statement. Tick why it’s missing: lost, stolen, illegible/mutilated (attach the old title), not received from the prior owner, or not received from the DMV (allow 30 days from the issue date). Sign, date and add a phone number.
- Section 4 is only for sellers releasing their interest. Section 5 is for a lienholder’s release and must be notarized.
Submitting it
- By mail: DMV, PO Box 942869, Sacramento, CA 94269.
- In person: at a DMV office. You must apply in person if your address is different from the DMV’s records. Bring the original or a copy of your registration card or renewal notice, plus your driver license or ID card.
Titles usually arrive by mail within 15 to 30 days.
Things to know
- Issuing a replacement cancels the old title. If you find the original later, don’t use it.
- Replaced in the last 90 days? A California Highway Patrol vehicle verification is required.
- Paid off a loan? A lien release can come on REG 166 or the lender’s signature on the title. REG 166 can’t be used for vehicles two model years old or newer unless the lender is in the electronic lien program; the lender must request a replacement title first.
- Registration says “Nontransferable/No California Title Issued”? REG 227 won’t work. You need a title from the state where the car was last titled.
Selling the car?
Fill in Sections 1 to 4 and give REG 227 to the buyer with a bill of sale. The buyer completes Sections 6 and 7 and submits within 10 days. See California title transfer after a private sale.