Electronic lien and title, also known as ELT, is a program offered by various US States allowing for the electronic exchange of

lien A lien ( or ) is a form of security interest granted over an item of property to secure the payment of a debt or performance of some other obligation. The owner of the property, who grants the lien, is referred to as the ''lienee'' and the pers ...

and

title A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. It may signify their generation, official position, military rank, professional or academic qualification, or nobility. In some languages, titles may be ins ...

information with lienholders in lieu of a paper certificate of title.

Standards

The American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators (AAMVA) created a 'standard' that many states have adopted in ELT design. States that use the AAMVA standard include:

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

. States that have chosen not to use the AAMVA standard have developed their own proprietary system.

Benefits of ELT for jurisdictions

ELT offers improved data accuracy resulting from the electronic exchange of data (reduction in typographical errors) and improved timeliness of data exchange (no more waiting for the mail and faster lien releases) as well as improved data and forms security. There may be a reduction in the use and control of secure forms (paper costs) and in mailing and printing costs.

Benefits of ELT for the lienholder

ELT offers a potential staff reduction in areas associated with filing, retrieval and mailing of certificates and a reduction of storage space needed for filing and storing paper certificates of title. There is increased ease of processing for dealer transactions. It may offer a reduction in title-related

fraud In law, fraud is intent (law), intentional deception to deprive a victim of a legal right or to gain from a victim unlawfully or unfairly. Fraud can violate Civil law (common law), civil law (e.g., a fraud victim may sue the fraud perpetrato ...

Drawbacks

A drawback of ELT is that a holder cannot convert ELT to paper on a same-day basis in the majority of ELT states. Some states do offer an option for expedited printing. For example, in Ohio, a vehicle owner who wishes to sell a car that has an ELT must first have the lien released by paying the lienholder the remaining amount owed on the lien. The lienholder then releases their lien electronically which allows the customer to pick up the title directly from the Ohio BMV on the following business day. Some states may take up to three months for a paper title to be produced after an electronic lien release, though this is uncommon.

Implementation in the United States

Several states have implemented compulsory ELT schemes: *

: May 31, 2010 *

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

: January 1, 2013 *

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

: January 1, 2013 *

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

: January 1, 2013 *

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

: 2022 *

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

: January 1, 2010 *

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

: 2021 *

: 1997 *

: 2021 *

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

: October 1, 2016 *

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

: July 1, 2016 *

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

: July 1, 2008 *

: 2007 *

: 2015 *

West Virginia West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...

: 2022

References

External links

Electronic Lien and Title Status
by state at Tableau Public Vehicle law Personal finance Credit Liens

Standards

Benefits of ELT for jurisdictions

Benefits of ELT for the lienholder

Drawbacks

Implementation in the United States

References

Further reading

External links