Updated October 8, 2026. Quick answer: Yes, for securities and vehicles. Nevada’s nonprobate transfer provisions, Nevada Revised Statutes sections 111.700 to 111.815, let an owner register property such as a security in beneficiary form, and on the death of a sole owner the property “passes by operation of law to the beneficiary”. Section 482.247 separately allows a certificate of title in beneficiary form for a vehicle.
How Nevada handles transfer-on-death registration
| Item | What the state documents say |
|---|---|
| Brokerage and securities accounts | Nevada has no separate security registration act. Its Nonprobate Transfer of Property Upon Death provisions, Nevada Revised Statutes sections 111.700 to 111.815, cover contracts that include certificated and uncertificated securities and accounts. Section 111.771 lets property be registered in beneficiary form by showing on the account record or security certificate the words transfer on death to, or the abbreviation TOD or POD, followed by the beneficiary. A transfer-on-death direction may only be placed on an account record or security certificate by the transferring entity or a person it authorizes, so the firm’s own process controls. |
| Effect on the will and probate | A provision for a nonprobate transfer on death in a contract is nontestamentary, is not subject to administration as part of the person’s estate at death, and is not distributed under the will or intestacy law except to the extent the beneficiary designation fails. On the death of a sole owner, the property goes to the beneficiary. If no beneficiary survives the owner, the property belongs to the owner’s estate. |
| Changing the beneficiary | Unless the designation is expressly made irrevocable, it can be revoked or changed during the owner’s lifetime, and a change involving joint owners needs the agreement of all living owners. A later designation revokes an earlier one unless it says otherwise, and a will cannot change it unless the designation grants that right. The source says: “signature or agreement of the beneficiary is not required”. Before the owner’s death the beneficiary has no rights in the property because of the designation. |
| Vehicle titles | Nevada allows an owner or joint owners of a motor vehicle, trailer, or semitrailer to request a certificate of title in beneficiary form, which carries the words transfer on death to, or TOD, and the beneficiary’s name. It cannot be issued to people who hold as tenants in common. The Department of Motor Vehicles lists Transfer on Death Application VP 239 and says vehicles with a current loan or lien, leased vehicles, and business-owned vehicles cannot use it. The source says: “is not considered as testamentary and is not subject to administration”. The owner may revoke or change the beneficiary at any time during life by selling the vehicle or applying to reissue the title, without the beneficiary’s consent. |
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 Nevada transfer on death deed. For what probate costs in Nevada, see Nevada probate cost, and for Nevada’s own estate or inheritance tax, see Nevada estate and inheritance tax. Which of these your account or vehicle falls under depends on how it is titled.
What changed recently
Section 111.779, on claims against nonprobate transferees, shows a 2025 amendment in the current chapter text.
Related: Nevada probate cost, how Nevada taxes retirement income, Nevada estate and inheritance tax, Nevada transfer on death deed, and car titles after a death, by state.
Find the right next step for your situation
About how much do you have invested? Pick the range that fits; your next step appears immediately below.
Compare vetted advisors for your estate plan
If your portfolio is $250,000 or more, this connects you (free, with no obligation to hire anyone) with 2 to 3 vetted advisors.
Before you start, what actually happens. The matching service is run by WiserAdvisor, an independent advisor-matching company. It opens on their site, asks for your ZIP code and a few questions, and matches you with 2 to 3 vetted advisors. It is free to you.
WiserAdvisor states the service is built for portfolios of $250,000 and above. By submitting, you consent to emails, phone calls and text messages from WiserAdvisor and up to three advisors, so expect to be contacted. Clear Money Guide may earn a referral payment for a qualifying completed form, whether or not you ever hire anyone.
Opens on WiserAdvisor’s site in a new tab.
See how an advisor plans your estate
Price the destination before you decide. The matching service below introduces you to advisers who pay to meet you.
Before you start, what actually happens. The form is run by Kapitalwise, our advisor-matching partner. Kapitalwise sends your details to advisers who pay for the introduction, so expect calls and texts. Clear Money Guide may earn a referral payment through this service, whether or not you ever hire anyone. This is free to you and there is no obligation to hire anyone.
The Kapitalwise form opens here; you stay on this page.
What happens when you press the button
It asks about nine questions: age, investable assets, location; then your name, email and phone number, and verifies the phone by text. Nothing loads and nothing reaches Kapitalwise until you press the button.
Prefer flat-fee or hourly pricing instead? Compare ranges here.
Answer againSources
- Chapter 111, Estates in Property, Nonprobate Transfer of Property Upon Death (Nevada Revised Statutes): https://www.leg.state.nv.us/NRS/NRS-111.html
- Chapter 482, Motor Vehicles and Trailers, section 482.247 (Nevada Revised Statutes): https://www.leg.state.nv.us/NRS/NRS-482.html
- Vehicle Beneficiary Transfer on Death (Nevada DMV): https://dmv.nv.gov/regtod.htm
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.