Oregon key facts
- Bonded title: not issued
- What Oregon uses instead: Certification of Ownership Facts
- Authority: ORS 803.205 (proof of ownership; verified affidavit); no bond provision in ORS ch. 803
- Forms: DMV Form 735-550 Certification of Ownership Facts
- Agency: Oregon DMV (ODOT Driver and Motor Vehicle Services)
Why there is no Oregon title bond
Thirty-five states have adopted some form of the Uniform Motor Vehicle Certificate of Title and Anti-Theft Act's bond provision, which lets an applicant who cannot prove ownership post a surety bond and receive a branded title. Oregon has not. Its vehicle code requires the titling agency to be satisfied as to ownership before a title issues, and gives the applicant an administrative or judicial route when the paper trail is broken. A surety bond that the agency has no authority to accept does not help, and we will not sell you one for a Oregon-titled vehicle.
What Oregon does instead
- The DMV's Ownership Documents manual states that Oregon DMV does not have authority to issue a branded title for a bonded title application.
- Oregon accepts other states' bonded titles and issues a clean Oregon title with Form 550.
- Without any ownership document, the DMV requires other acceptable proof under ORS 803.205 or the customer must title in the state of origin.
When a title bond may still apply
If the vehicle was last titled in a state that does bond titles, the fastest path is often to obtain a bonded title there and surrender it to Oregon. Oregon's DMV manual, for example, expressly accepts other states' bonded titles and issues a clean Oregon title against them, and most non-bond states take the same view because the surrendered bonded title is a valid certificate of title from the issuing state. The catch is that the bonding state will usually require you to be its resident or to have the vehicle physically inside its borders. Our underwriters can read the prior-state record and tell you whether that route is open.
If the vehicle has never been titled anywhere, or Oregon is the only state in its record, the Oregon route above is the only one.
Oregon FAQ
Can I get a bonded title in Oregon?
What does Oregon do instead of a title bond?
Why do some websites sell a Oregon lost title bond?
When might a title bond still help a Oregon resident?
Primary sources
- ORS 803.205 (proof of ownership; verified affidavit); no bond provision in ORS ch. 803
- Oregon DMV (ODOT Driver and Motor Vehicle Services)
Content last reviewed November 5, 2026. Confidence that Oregon issues no bonded title: high. If Oregon adopts a bond provision, this page will change.
States that do bond titles
Written and reviewed by C. Constantin Poindexter, MA, JD, CPCU, AFSB, ASLI, ARe, AINS, AIS, CPLP, founder of Surety One, Inc. and CEO of Janus Assurance Re, with more than thirty years of surety and reinsurance underwriting experience. Author of The Contractor's Guide to Surety Bonds. Reflects state law and DMV practice as of November 5, 2026. More about the author →
Vehicle last titled elsewhere?
Tell an underwriter where the vehicle was last titled and we will say whether a bonded title in that state will get you a clean Oregon title.
Quote a bond in another state
Pick the state, enter the vehicle's value, and the statutory multiplier does the rest. Rounded up to the next $1,000.