Updated October 8, 2026. Quick answer: Yes, for securities. Oregon’s Uniform TOD Security Registration Act, ORS 59.535 to 59.585, lets an owner register a security in beneficiary form, and the owner may cancel or change it “without the consent of the beneficiary”. The state pages cited here do not describe a beneficiary designation on a vehicle title.
How Oregon handles transfer-on-death registration
| Item | What the state documents say |
|---|---|
| Brokerage and securities accounts | Oregon’s Uniform TOD Security Registration Act is codified at ORS 59.535 to 59.585. Only individuals who hold a security alone, or together with survivorship rather than as tenants in common, may obtain registration in beneficiary form. 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 on the last owner’s death the security passes to the surviving beneficiaries. If no beneficiary survives all owners, the security belongs to the owner’s estate. Creditors’ rights against beneficiaries under other Oregon 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 | The Oregon statute chapter and the Oregon DMV operation of law guidance cited here do not describe naming a transfer on death beneficiary on a vehicle title. The Oregon DMV is the place to confirm what it offers. |
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 Oregon transfer on death deed. For what probate costs in Oregon, see Oregon probate cost, and for Oregon’s own estate or inheritance tax, see Oregon estate and inheritance tax. Which of these your account or vehicle falls under depends on how it is titled.
Related: Oregon probate cost, how Oregon taxes retirement income, Oregon estate and inheritance tax, Oregon transfer on death deed, and car titles after a death, by state.
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Answer againSources
- ORS Chapter 59, Securities Regulation, sections 59.535 to 59.585: https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors059.html
- Chapter G, Operation of Law and Trusts (Vehicle Title and Registration Manual): https://www.oregon.gov/odot/dmv/docs/chapter_g.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.