How to replace a lost title in Illinois

Can you apply at all?

Two gates come first. The original title has to be lost, stolen or mutilated. And to protect against fraud, the Secretary of State won’t issue a duplicate within 15 days of an original title, or within 30 days of a previous duplicate. If your title is fine but wrong, say a misspelled name, that’s a corrected title, a separate application.

Filing for the duplicate, one step at a time

1. Get form VSD 190, the Application for Vehicle Transaction(s). You can print it, pick it up at a facility, or fill it in through the Secretary of State’s Electronic Registration and Title system.
2. Check the Duplicate Title box in the top section, then fill in every section that applies to you.
3. Write the VIN exactly as it appears on the car, plus the current odometer reading, and check the odometer box that fits: actual, not actual, or in excess. The Duplicate Titles page warns that the application is returned if this information is missing. The FAQ also asks for the last license plate number.
4. Sign it.
5. Deal with any lien on the title before you send it (next section).
6. Submit it with the $50 fee, by mail to the Secretary of State’s Vehicle Records Processing Division in Springfield (the full mailing address is on the Duplicate Titles page) or in person at a Secretary of State facility.

If you filled the form in online, the Duplicate and Corrected Titles publication (VSD 270) says to take the printed application, your supporting documents and payment to a facility within seven days, or mail them.

Liens change where the title goes

Illinois mails a title to the lienholder when a lien is recorded. If the loan is paid off, you can have the lienholder removed on the duplicate. VSD 270 lists four ways to show it:

• a lien clearance letter from the lienholder saying the lien is paid in full
• the lien contract stating it’s paid in full, countersigned by an authorized representative of the company
• copies of receipts or canceled checks to the lienholder totaling the original lien amount, with evidence of that original amount
• a court order directing the Secretary of State to issue the duplicate without the lien, signed by the judge or bearing the clerk’s FILED stamp, and listing the year, make and VIN

With no lien, the title goes to the first owner listed on the application or to the “Mail To” address you give. More on this in junking a car with a lien.

How long it takes, and the faster option

About three to four weeks once the office receives your application, per the Secretary of State’s FAQ. Illinois law requires the title be mailed, so there’s no picking it up in Springfield.

In a hurry? Some facilities offer Expedited Title Service for a $30 fee on top of the normal $50. Requests made before 12 p.m. ship by FedEx that day; later ones ship the next business day. The title goes to the street address on the title, not a PO box. The Secretary of State lists Chicago South, on South King Drive, among the facilities that offer it, which is the closest one to our Far South Side pickup areas. Two limits: the surrendered title has to be a current Illinois title, and transactions that need special documentation, such as bonds, estate work or repossessions, aren’t eligible. If the title isn’t processed within the allotted time, the page says you can apply for a refund of the $30.

Bought the car without a title from out of state?

Then you can’t file for the duplicate yourself. The Duplicate Titles page says out-of-state residents who bought an Illinois vehicle without a title must ask the Illinois owner to apply. A former Illinois resident who was the last valid title holder can still apply, using their former Illinois address and out-of-state mailing instructions.

Selling a junk car? You may not need to wait

Replacing the title is worth it if you’re keeping the car or selling somewhere that insists on one. If you’re junking it in Chicago, you can send Junk Car Company the form while you decide: list the papers you have, and we’ll say on the call what Illinois allows for your car. Junk Car Company’s offers don’t expire, so a few weeks’ wait for the duplicate won’t cost you the offer. See junking a car with registration only or read how junking a car works in Illinois from start to finish.