Wyoming: Transfer-on-Death Deed Requirements
The short answer
Yes. Wyoming's Nontestamentary Transfer of Real Property on Death Act lets an owner sign and acknowledge a deed that expressly says it takes effect at death, then record it with the county clerk before death. No witnesses or beneficiary signature are required; the deed stays revocable, but the beneficiary takes subject to existing interests and Wyoming may place a Medicaid-recovery lien on the property.
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This is the general rule in Wyoming. Ezel applies current Wyoming law to your specific facts and answers with citations to the statutes.
| Governing law | Wyoming Nontestamentary Transfer of Real Property on Death Act, Wyo. Stat. §§ 2-18-101 to -106 — a Wyoming-specific scheme, not URPTODA |
|---|---|
| TOD deed available? | Yes. A deed that expressly states it is effective at the owner's death transfers the owner's real-property interest to the named grantee beneficiary at death (§ 2-18-103(a), (o)) |
| How to sign it | Owner signs an instrument that expressly makes the transfer effective at death and acknowledges it before a notarial officer; no witnesses required. Beneficiary signature, consent, agreement, or notice is unnecessary (§§ 2-18-103(a), (k), (m), 2-18-104; §§ 34-1-106, -113) |
| Recording requirement | Must be executed and recorded before the owner—or last surviving owner—dies, with the county clerk where the real property is located; no signing-based outer deadline (§ 2-18-103(e)) |
| Revoking it | Owner may revoke by executing and recording a revocation before death; the last recorded TOD deed for the property controls. A will does not revoke it (§§ 2-18-103(f), (h), (m), 2-18-105) |
| Eligible property & owner | Any owner may transfer an interest in Wyoming real property, including to the trustee of a revocable trust. Multiple grantees and valid tenancy forms are allowed; joint-tenancy survivorship prevails unless the last surviving owner executed the deed (§ 2-18-103(a)-(e)) |
| Beneficiary survival & effect | Deed may name a successor and must state the vesting condition. For a predeceased grantee, the deed chooses either voiding that gift or sending it to the grantee's estate. At death the grantee takes subject to conveyances, mortgages, liens, and other interests (§§ 2-18-103(a)-(d), 2-18-104) |
| Creditor & Medicaid reach | Beneficiary takes subject to existing conveyances, mortgages, liens, and other interests. For qualifying medical assistance, the Department of Health may lien TOD property for the recoverable amount, even if no clearance request or death affidavit is filed (§ 2-18-103(a), (g), (n); § 42-4-207(k)) |
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Wyoming allows a transfer-on-death deed under its Nontestamentary Transfer of Real
Property on Death Act, Wyo. Stat. §§ 2-18-101 to -106. It is Wyoming's own statute,
not the Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act. You keep title during life; the named
grantee beneficiary receives your interest only at death.
Requirements one by one
Signing and acknowledgment
Under §§ 2-18-103(a), (m) and 2-18-104, the owner signs a deed that expressly says
the transfer is effective at death. The statutory form includes an acknowledgment, and
§§ 34-1-106 and 34-1-113 require a land conveyance to be executed and acknowledged
before a notarial officer. Neither the TOD Act nor those recording provisions require
witnesses.
The beneficiary does not sign. § 2-18-103(k) says the beneficiary's signature,
consent, agreement, and notice are unnecessary during the owner's life.
Recording before death
The deed is valid only if it is executed and recorded with the county clerk where the real
property is located before the owner—or the last surviving owner—dies
(§ 2-18-103(e)). Wyoming sets no separate deadline measured from signing.
Revocation
The connected rules in § 2-18-103(d)-(m) cover joint owners, recording, revocation,
Medicaid, competing deeds, beneficiary consent, and wills. Under § 2-18-103(f), the
owner may revoke at any time, but the revocation must itself
be executed and recorded in the correct county before that owner dies. If several TOD deeds
cover the same property, the last one recorded before death controls under
§ 2-18-103(h). A will does not revoke the deed (§ 2-18-103(m)).
Beneficiaries, co-owners, and a beneficiary who dies first
Wyoming permits multiple grantees in any tenancy valid under state law and lets the deed
name a successor grantee with a stated vesting condition (§ 2-18-103(b)-(c)). The
statutory form in § 2-18-104 requires the owner to choose what happens if a grantee
dies first: that conveyance either becomes void or becomes part of the grantee's estate.
Joint-tenancy survivorship comes first. Under § 2-18-103(d), a deed signed by fewer
than all joint tenants works only if one of its signers is the last surviving owner; otherwise
the transfer lapses.
Liens and Medicaid recovery
The grantee takes subject to the owner's conveyances, mortgages, deeds of trust, liens,
security pledges, and other interests under § 2-18-103(a). Wyoming also directly
authorizes the Department of Health to place a Medicaid-recovery lien on TOD property for
an amount recoverable from the owner's estate (§ 2-18-103(g)). Under
§ 42-4-207(k), the Department may file that lien after death even if the grantee never
requests a clearance certificate or files the death affidavit.
What trips people up
- A will cannot cancel the deed. Record the revocation during life.
- The latest recorded TOD deed controls. Section 2-18-103(h) looks to recording order,
not merely which document was signed last. - Joint tenancy can defeat the designation. A surviving joint tenant's right comes before
the TOD beneficiary unless the last survivor executed the deed. - Medicaid clearance matters to title. Section 2-18-103(n) requires the recorded proof of
death to be accompanied by a Department of Health certificate stating that medical-
assistance claims are satisfied or do not exist.
Common questions
Can the deed name a trust? Yes. Section 2-18-103(e) expressly permits a transfer to
the trustee of a trust, even a revocable trust.
Can I name more than one beneficiary? Yes. Section 2-18-103(b) allows joint tenancy,
tenancy in common, or another tenancy valid under Wyoming law; state the intended form.
Does the beneficiary take free of the mortgage? No. Existing mortgages, liens, and
other interests remain attached under § 2-18-103(a).
What happens to property insurance at death? Under §§ 2-18-103(o) and
26-23-109, coverage in force carries over to the grantee for up to 60 days. The grantee
must notify the insurer and provide a current address within that period, although failure to
give notice does not cancel the statutory extension.
Statutes and sources
- Wyo. Stat. §§ 2-18-101 to -106 (TOD-deed act) — https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf (accessed 2026-07-12)
- Wyo. Stat. §§ 34-1-106, 34-1-113, 34-1-118; 34-11-101 (acknowledgment, recording, and title affidavit) — https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title34.pdf (accessed 2026-07-12)
- Wyo. Stat. §§ 42-4-206 to -207 (Medicaid estate recovery and liens) — https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title42.pdf (accessed 2026-07-12)
- Wyo. Stat. § 26-23-109 (60-day insurance extension) — https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title26.pdf (accessed 2026-07-12)
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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