Updated October 8, 2026. Quick answer: Yes, for securities and vehicles. Ohio’s Uniform Transfer-on-death Security Registration Act, Revised Code sections 1709.01 to 1709.11, lets an owner register a security in beneficiary form, and “without the consent of the beneficiary”. Section 2131.13 separately allows a transfer-on-death beneficiary on a vehicle title.
How Ohio handles transfer-on-death registration
| Item | What the state documents say |
|---|---|
| Brokerage and securities accounts | Ohio’s Uniform Transfer-on-death Security Registration Act is codified at Revised Code sections 1709.01 to 1709.11. It defines beneficiary form as a registration of a security that names who becomes owner when the present owner dies. A registering entity is not required to offer or accept beneficiary-form registration, so the firm’s terms control availability. |
| Effect on the will and probate | A transfer on death from a registration in beneficiary form takes effect through the contract between the owner and the registering entity and the Act, and ownership passes to the surviving beneficiaries on the last owner’s death. Creditors’ rights against beneficiaries under other Ohio laws are not limited. |
| Changing the beneficiary | The designation has no effect on ownership until the owner’s death, and the sole owner or all surviving owners may cancel or change it at any time. The beneficiary has no say while the owner is alive. |
| Vehicle titles | Ohio allows a transfer-on-death beneficiary on a motor vehicle, watercraft, or outboard motor title under Revised Code section 2131.13. A sole owner, or joint owners with survivorship, apply for a certificate of title showing the beneficiary. The source says: “by the words “transfer-on-death” or the abbreviation “TOD””. The owner may cancel or change the designation at any time without the beneficiary’s consent, and the transfer is not testamentary. |
A $250,000 brokerage account split
An owner holds a brokerage account worth $250,000 and registers it in beneficiary form to two named beneficiaries, with each to receive half. Each share is computed as $250,000 x 50% = $125,000. The 50/50 split is the owner’s illustration, not a rule of the state: the owner names the beneficiaries and, where the form allows it, the shares.
Real estate, probate and estate tax
A transfer on death deed is a different instrument for real property: see Ohio transfer on death deed. For what probate costs in Ohio, see Ohio probate cost, and for Ohio’s own estate or inheritance tax, see Ohio estate and inheritance tax. Which of these your account or vehicle falls under depends on how it is titled.
Related: Ohio probate cost, how Ohio taxes retirement income, Ohio estate and inheritance tax, Ohio transfer on death deed, car titles after a death, by state, and transfer-on-death registration by state.
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Answer againSources
- Section 1709.01, Uniform transfer-on-death security registration act definitions: https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-1709.01
- Section 1709.06, Effect of designation of transfer-on-death: https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-1709.06
- Section 1709.09, Transfer-on-death is not testamentary: https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-1709.09
- Section 2131.13, Transfer-on-Death of Motor Vehicle, Watercraft, or Outboard Motor Statute: https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-2131.13
Sources: the primary documents linked above, read on October 8, 2026. General information, not tax advice. Your own facts decide the outcome, and a preparer, the plan administrator or the agency itself is the right place to confirm anything consequential.