How to Fill Out and Mail PWD 1347: Release of Ownership Interest

PWD 1347, the Request for Release of Ownership Interest, is the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department form you mail to a boat or outboard motor’s last recorded owner (and any lienholder) during the bonded title process, asking them to confirm in writing that they no longer claim the asset. You do not download it yourself. TPWD sends it to you after you file an initial bonded title application, you complete the top half, mail it by trackable means to every name on the state’s record, wait 30 days for a reply, and then return the response and your proof of mailing to TPWD.

When PWD 1347 Applies

The form only appears inside the bonded title track. If you have clean paperwork, you use the regular titling process and never see it. PWD 1347 shows up when one of these situations sent you into bonded title in the first place:¹

You bought or were given a boat or motor and the seller never signed over the title.
You once had a valid title but it is lost and a duplicate cannot be obtained.
A vessel was left on your private property without your consent for more than seven consecutive days.²

In each case, Texas needs proof you made a good-faith effort to notify the person on record before the state will hand you title to something that was legally theirs. PWD 1347 is that proof.

How You Get the Form

You get PWD 1347 by first filing the bonded title application that fits your situation: PWD 388 (Statement of Fact for Bonded Title Review) for a standard case, or PWD 1344 (Abandoned Boat Request for Bonded Title Review) for a vessel abandoned on your property.³ TPWD reviews that application and, if it qualifies, mails you a packet containing PWD 1347, the names of the recorded owner(s) and lienholder(s), and instructions. You can also call the Boat Titling and Registration Section at (512) 389-8420 to request the form directly.

Do not send any fees with your initial PWD 388. TPWD instructs applicants to hold payment until after approval, and jumping ahead can delay processing.

Filling Out the Applicant Section

PWD 1347 has two halves. You complete the top; the previous owner completes the bottom. The applicant side asks for:³

Your full legal name as the person currently in possession.
How you obtained the asset. Check the box that fits: no title received, title lost, or abandoned on your property.
The name of the person or entity that gave or sold you the boat, and the date of the transaction.
The owner name(s) shown on TPWD’s record. TPWD provides these in the packet.
The asset description: TX registration number, hull identification number or motor serial number, make, and year for each item (boat and/or outboard motor).
Your phone number, email, and mailing address so the previous owner can reach you.

Check the hull identification number and any motor serial number against the physical stampings on the vessel before writing them down. A single wrong digit here can stall the file. If the boat is homemade or its HIN is missing, PWD 504 and a game warden inspection have to happen before the bonded title can move forward.⁴

Mailing the Form

Send a completed PWD 1347 to every owner and every lienholder listed on TPWD’s record. Include a self-addressed, stamped envelope so the recipient can return the form to you easily.

TPWD requires “verified mail.” That means any method that produces evidence the letter was properly addressed and sent with postage prepaid through the U.S. Postal Service or another common carrier.³ Certified mail is one option, not the only one. Basic USPS tracking, an electronic mailing confirmation printed from the carrier’s website, or an unopened letter returned as undeliverable all satisfy the rule. What you cannot do is drop the envelope in a mailbox with no record and hope for the best.

Keep everything. Tracking receipts, delivery confirmations, and any envelope returned by the post office go into your file to hand back to TPWD later. If TPWD or another state’s boating agency confirms in writing that no record of the previous owner exists, that letter also counts as proof of notification.

The 30-Day Wait and Possible Responses

Give the recorded owner at least 30 days to reply.³ If your letter comes back undeliverable before that window closes, you don’t have to keep waiting; you can move on immediately.

The previous owner’s half of PWD 1347 asks them to check one of two boxes: they have no financial or ownership interest in the vessel, or they do. A “no” response is the release you need and clears the path forward. A “yes” response, or any correspondence asserting a competing claim, has to be resolved before TPWD will issue a bonded title; the department will not act while the recorded owner is actively claiming the asset. If nothing comes back at all, your mailing receipt and the completed 30-day wait become the evidence.

Sending Everything Back to TPWD

Once the waiting period has run, mail the following to TPWD’s Bonded Title staff:

Any written response you received. This may be a completed PWD 1347, a notarized lien release on PWD 231, or other correspondence from the owner or lienholder.⁵
Your proof of mailing: tracking receipt, electronic confirmation, or the letter returned as undeliverable.
Anything else TPWD asked for in the original packet.

If TPWD’s record shows a lienholder, you also need a Notarized Release of Lien on PWD 231 from that lienholder. That is a separate form from PWD 1347, but the same notification rules apply if the lienholder is unreachable: mail, document, submit the proof.

Where This Fits in the Bonded Title Process

PWD 1347 sits in the middle of the bonded title sequence. You start by filing PWD 388 (or PWD 1344 for an abandoned vessel) with evidence of ownership such as a bill of sale or proof of payment.⁶ TPWD reviews, sends the packet, and you handle PWD 1347 as described above. After you return the response and mailing evidence, TPWD tells you the exact surety bond amount, which must equal one and one-half times the department’s determined value of the asset and must be issued by a company authorized to operate in Texas. Only then do you buy the bond. Once TPWD processes the bond and fees, a certificate of title with the bond notation is mailed to you.

Abandoned vessels add a six-month public notice period on the TPWD website before the bond stage, during which the legal owner, a lienholder, or law enforcement can still claim the boat.

Mistakes That Cost You Time

The bonded title track already takes weeks, and small missteps around PWD 1347 add months. The ones TPWD sees most:

Skipping the tracking. A form dropped in a mailbox with no receipt gives you nothing to submit as proof of notification.
Guessing at the HIN or serial number. Any mismatch between the number on PWD 1347 and the number stamped on the hull or motor will bounce the file back.
Missing a name on the record. You have to mail every owner and every lienholder TPWD lists, not just the person you dealt with.
Buying the surety bond early. Wait for the approval letter that specifies the exact amount. Buying in advance risks the wrong figure or a wasted premium if the application is denied.

For situation-specific questions, the TPWD Boat Information Hotline at 1-800-262-8755 can confirm what your file needs before you mail anything.⁷

1
Texas Parks & Wildlife Department. Title Requirements
2
State of Texas. Texas Parks and Wildlife Code Section 31-043
3
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Statement of Fact for Bonded Title Review (PWD 388)
4
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Verification of Vessel or Outboard Motor Serial Number (PWD 504)
5
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Release of Lien for Vessel/Outboard Motor (PWD 231)
6
Texas Parks & Wildlife Department. References, Tools and Forms for Boat Titling/Registration
7
Texas Parks & Wildlife Department. Boat Registration and Titles – FAQ