Updated October 8, 2026. Quick answer: Yes, for securities. Tennessee’s Uniform Transfer on Death Security Registration Act, Tenn. Code Ann. Title 35, Chapter 12, provides that “ownership of securities registered in beneficiary form passes to the beneficiary” or beneficiaries who survive all owners.
How Tennessee handles transfer-on-death registration
| Item | What the state documents say |
|---|---|
| Brokerage and securities accounts | The Uniform Transfer on Death Security Registration Act is codified in Tenn. Code Ann. Title 35, Chapter 12, and came before the General Assembly as House Bill 494 in 1995. It permits a security, including a securities account with a broker, to be registered in beneficiary form. The source says: “includes a broker maintaining security accounts for customers”. Only individuals with sole ownership, or ownership with right of survivorship, may obtain a registration in beneficiary form. |
| Effect on the will and probate | On the death of the sole owner or the last owner to die, ownership passes to the surviving beneficiary or beneficiaries by the registration. The Act states that the transfer rests on the contract with the registering entity and is not testamentary. The source says: “is effective by reason of the contract regarding the registration”. 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. |
| Vehicle titles | The Tennessee Department of Revenue vehicle titling page cited here does not describe a transfer on death or beneficiary designation on a vehicle title. The Department of Revenue or a county clerk is the place to confirm. |
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 transfer on death deeds by state. For what probate costs in Tennessee, see Tennessee probate cost, and for Tennessee’s own estate or inheritance tax, see Tennessee estate and inheritance tax. Which of these your account or vehicle falls under depends on how it is titled.
Related: Tennessee probate cost, how Tennessee taxes retirement income, Tennessee estate and inheritance tax, transfer on death deeds by state, car titles after a death, by state, and transfer-on-death registration by state.
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Answer againSources
- House Bill 494, Uniform Transfer on Death Security Registration Act (Tennessee General Assembly): https://capitol.tn.gov/Bills/99/Bill/HB0494.pdf
- Senate Bill 2702, amending Title 35, Chapter 12 (Tennessee General Assembly): https://capitol.tn.gov/Bills/107/Bill/SB2702.pdf
- Titling a Vehicle (Tennessee Department of Revenue): https://www.tn.gov/revenue/title-and-registration/vehicle-titling/titling-a-vehicle.html
- SB2029 bill information, 114th General Assembly (Tennessee General Assembly): wapp.capitol.tn.gov
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.