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Home/ Services/ Remove, Add or Change the Lienholder on Your California Title

Remove, Add or Change the Lienholder on Your California Title

Xpress Registrations files legal owner transfers with the California DMV: removing a lienholder after a loan is paid off, adding a new lender, or changing from one lender to another, with no change to the registered owner. You send a photo of the title with the lienholder’s release signed on the front (line 2) or a REG 166 Lien Satisfied form, we file it, and the DMV issues a new title. If the title is unavailable a REG 227 with the legal owner’s notarized endorsement is used instead.
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What you need to send

The same checklist our staff works from, taken from the DMV requirements for this transaction. Clear phone photos are enough; originals are needed only where noted.

Usually required
  • California titleFront line 2 signed by the lienholder to release; for a new lien, the owner completes the new lienholder in lines 11–13 and initials. The registered owner does NOT sign off the back.
Only if it applies to you
  • REG 166 (Lien Satisfied)Acceptable in lieu of the lienholder’s release on the title. Must be notarized if submitted with a REG 227.
  • REG 227 (Application for Duplicate Title)If the title is unavailable — Section 5 signed and endorsed by the legal owner (notarized).

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Plate and a phone number is all we need to pull your record. No payment until you see the number.

Licensed DMV business partner. Quote by email within one business day. No card needed.

Who this is for

  • Owners who paid off a car loan and want a clean title in their name
  • Owners refinancing and adding a new lender to the title
  • Anyone whose old lienholder never released the lien on the record

Key facts

Lien release
The lienholder signs the front of the title on line 2, or provides a REG 166 Lien Satisfied.
New lien
The owner completes the new lienholder in lines 11-13 on the back and initials; the registered owner does not sign off.
No title
REG 227 with Section 5 signed and notarized by the legal owner.
Result
A new California title showing the updated legal owner (or none).

How it works

No line, no appointment, no second trip because one form was wrong.

  1. 1Today

    Send a photo of the title front and back (or the REG 166 / lien release letter from your lender).

  2. 2Within 1 business day

    We confirm the release is valid and invoice the transfer fee + our fee.

  3. 3After payment

    We file the legal owner transfer.

  4. 4DMV mails

    The new title goes to the registered owner’s address on record.

How your documents get back to you

FreePickup at OfficeReady at our Montebello office
$20USPS Priority (tracked)1-3 business days, tracking included
$50USPS Express (tracked)1-2 business days, tracking included

Common questions

Straight answers. If yours is not here, ask us.

I paid off my car. How do I get the lienholder off my California title?

The lender releases the lien on the title itself (front, line 2) or with a REG 166. That release is filed with the DMV as a legal owner transfer and a new title is issued without the lienholder. We file it from a photo.

My lender sent an electronic lien release. What now?

California uses electronic titles for many lenders; when the loan is paid the lender releases the electronic lien and a paper title is mailed. If the paper title never came, a duplicate title request pulls it. Send us the release notice and we will tell you which applies.

Do I sign the back of the title to remove a lien?

No. The registered owner does not sign off the back for a lien change; that is only for a change of owner. You write "none" on line 11 and initial.

Can you add a lienholder for a private loan?

Yes. The new lienholder is entered in lines 11-13 on the back and initialed by the owner; the title is then held by the lienholder until released.

Related guides

Title Transfer Deadlines: The Clock Started at the Handshake

Other services

Renew Your California Registration Without the DMVTransfer a California Vehicle Title Without a DMV VisitReplace a Lost or Missing California TitleRegister Your Out-of-State Vehicle in CaliforniaJunk or Salvage a Vehicle in CaliforniaRe-Register a Rebuilt Salvage or Junk VehicleRegister a Vehicle in California for the First TimeRegister a Boat, Jet Ski or Vessel with the California DMVCommercial Vehicle Registration in CaliforniaUnusual Title and Registration Situations
Xpress Registrations is not the DMV. We are a licensed private vehicle registration service (a California DMV Business Partner). The services we provide are also available directly from the California DMV without our added service fee. dmv.ca.gov

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