Updated October 8, 2026. Quick answer: Yes, for securities. Under Fla. Stat. ss. 711.50 to 711.512, a security is registered in beneficiary form when the registration “includes a designation of a beneficiary to take the ownership” at the death of the owner.
How Florida handles transfer-on-death registration
| Item | What the state documents say |
|---|---|
| Brokerage and securities accounts | The Florida Uniform Transfer-on-Death Security Registration Act, Fla. Stat. ss. 711.50 to 711.512, lets a security held as a certificate or an account be registered in beneficiary form. Only individuals with sole ownership, or multiple ownership with right of survivorship, may obtain that registration. The registration may be shown by the words transfer on death or TOD, or pay on death or POD, after the owner’s name. |
| Effect on the will and probate | On the death of the sole owner or the last owner to die, ownership of the security passes to the surviving beneficiary or beneficiaries by the registration. Section 711.509 states that the transfer rests on the contract between the owner and the registering entity and is not testamentary. The source says: “ownership of securities registered in beneficiary form passes to the beneficiary”. If no beneficiary survives all owners, the security belongs to the estate of the deceased owner. |
| Changing the beneficiary | The beneficiary designation has no effect on ownership until the owner’s death, and the registration can be canceled or changed at any time by the sole owner or all surviving owners. The source says: “without the consent of the beneficiary”. A registering entity may set its own terms for requests to change a beneficiary, and it is not required to offer beneficiary registration at all. |
| Vehicle titles | The Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles procedure manual pages cited here do not describe a transfer on death beneficiary on a vehicle title. The agency or a tax collector office is the place to confirm whether one is available. |
| Life estate and remainder person on a title | The same agency manual describes a title issued with Life Estate after an owner’s name and a named remainder person, which is a different arrangement from a transfer on death designation. The source says: “remainder person is the individual named in the will or legal instrument”. The manual says a legal document is needed when the title does not show the remainder person. |
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 Florida transfer on death deed. For what probate costs in Florida, see Florida probate cost, and for Florida’s own estate or inheritance tax, see Florida estate and inheritance tax. Which of these your account or vehicle falls under depends on how it is titled.
Related: Florida probate cost, how Florida taxes retirement income, Florida estate and inheritance tax, Florida transfer on death deed, car titles after a death, by state, and transfer-on-death registration by state.
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Answer againSources
- Florida Statutes, Chapter 711, Part II: Uniform Transfer-on-Death Security Registration Act (Florida Legislature): www.leg.state.fl.us
- TL-18 Motor Vehicle Procedure Manual, Deceased Owners (Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles): https://www.flhsmv.gov/pdf/proc/tl/tl-18.pdf
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.