Wisconsin Quitclaim Deed: Requirements, Recording and Transfer Fee

A Wisconsin quitclaim deed passes whatever interest the grantor holds and warrants nothing: under Wis. Stat. § 706.10(4), "a quitclaim deed shall pass all of the interest in or appurtenant to the land described which the grantor could lawfully convey, but shall not warrant or imply the existence, quantity or quality of any such interest." To be recorded, the deed must be signed by each grantor, identify the parties, the land and the interest conveyed, and carry an acknowledgment or other authentication allowed by § 706.06 (§§ 706.02, 706.05(2)(b)), and it goes to the register of deeds of the county where the land lies together with an electronically filed Real Estate Transfer Return (§§ 706.05(1), 77.22). For other states, see our guide to quitclaim deed rules by state.

Information last verified on 2026-10-08. This article has not been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers Wisconsin law on quitclaim deeds: chapter 706 (conveyances of land), § 59.43 (register of deeds recording rules, as amended by 2025 Wis. Act 234), the real estate transfer fee in subchapter II of chapter 77, § 705.15 (transfer on death), and the federal mortgage and gift-tax rules that apply in every state. It does not cover title insurance, lender underwriting rules, Wisconsin marital property classification under chapter 766 (beyond the management and gift limits noted below), local fees beyond the statewide recording fee, federal income tax, or other states' laws.

What a quitclaim deed does in Wisconsin

Wisconsin is one of the states that defines the quitclaim deed by name. Section 706.10(4) says it passes all of the interest "which the grantor could lawfully convey" and does not "warrant or imply the existence, quantity or quality" of that interest. If the grantor owns nothing, the grantee gets nothing, and the deed gives the grantee no warranty to fall back on.

Section 706.10(6) adds that no warranty or covenant is implied in any conveyance unless chapter 706 provides for it. That is the core difference from a warranty deed; for a side-by-side comparison, see quitclaim vs. warranty deeds.

Words of inheritance are not needed, and "every conveyance shall pass all the estate or interest of the grantor unless a different intent shall appear expressly or by necessary implication" (§ 706.10(3)).

Chapter 706 sets the requirements a conveyance must meet but gives no fill-in quitclaim form. Section 706.10(1) keeps the "terms and forms of conveyance authorized by law or in common use" as of July 1, 1971 and allows "other, different or more concise forms which conform to the requirements of this chapter." Chapter 706 contains no statutory short form, though the rest of the code is not covered here.

Requirements for a valid Wisconsin quitclaim deed

Notary or attorney authentication

To be recorded, the deed needs a form of authentication authorized by § 706.06 or chapter 140 (§ 706.05(2)(b)). Section 706.06(2) lets "any public officer entitled by virtue of his or her office to administer oaths, and any member in good standing of the State Bar of Wisconsin" authenticate signatures by endorsing the instrument "Acknowledged," "Authenticated," or "Signatures Guaranteed" with the date, the officer's signature and title. In practice most people use a notary: Dane County's register of deeds tells filers that a deed needs "the grantor's notarized signature."

Delivery

A deed that is signed but never handed over does not convey: § 706.02(1)(g) requires that the conveyance "is delivered." Except as § 706.09 provides, if a deed is delivered on an unwritten (parol) condition, the condition binds only if a lawsuit raising it is started within 5 years after the conditional delivery, and when the condition is the grantor's death or survival, the suit must also be started before the grantor dies (§ 706.02(1)(g)).

Does a spouse have to sign a quitclaim deed in Wisconsin?

For a homestead, yes. A conveyance that alienates any interest of a married person in a homestead must be "signed, or joined in by separate conveyance, by or on behalf of each spouse," except conveyances between spouses (§ 706.02(1)(f)). That applies even when only one spouse is on title.

"Homestead" here means the dwelling and the land reasonably necessary for its use as a home, not less than one-fourth acre if available and not more than 40 acres (§ 706.01(7)). The legislature's annotations to § 706.02 report that a spouse's joinder in a homestead deed is not waived by conduct and that no finding of agency will sustain a deed the other spouse did not join (Wangen v. Leum, 46 Wis. 2d 60 (1970)). Later annotations report that the protection must be waived affirmatively by actually signing (Weber v. Weber, 176 Wis. 2d 1085 (1993), a mortgage case) and that spouses may affirmatively waive it in a premarital agreement (Jones v. Estate of Jones, 2002 WI 61). Section 706.095 preserves the remedies spouses have against each other over marital property.

Chapter 766 adds limits beyond the homestead rule. Marital property held in the names of both spouses, other than in the alternative ("A or B"), can be managed and controlled only by both spouses acting together (§ 766.51(2)). One spouse acting alone may give marital property to a third person only up to $1,000 in a calendar year or a larger amount that is reasonable considering the spouses' economic position, and any other gift is subject to the other spouse's remedy under § 766.70(6) unless both spouses make it together (§ 766.53). This page does not cover how a particular home is classified as marital or individual property, so ask a lawyer licensed in Wisconsin before one spouse signs alone. Deeds between spouses, including in a divorce, are exempt from the transfer fee (see below); for the divorce side, see Wisconsin divorce laws.

Recording a quitclaim deed with the register of deeds

Every conveyance "shall be entitled to record in the office of the register of deeds of each county in which land affected thereby may lie" (§ 706.05(1)). To search what is already on record before you draft, see Wisconsin property records.

Why recording matters

Recording is not what makes the deed effective between the grantor and grantee, but it protects the grantee. Under § 706.08(1)(a), "every conveyance that is not recorded as provided by law shall be void as against any subsequent purchaser, in good faith and for a valuable consideration, of the same real estate or any portion of the same real estate whose conveyance is recorded first." An unrecorded quitclaim can lose to a later good-faith buyer who records first, and § 706.09 adds rules on when a purchaser for value without notice takes free of unrecorded claims.

Document format rules

Since 2025 Wis. Act 234 took effect on April 10, 2026, the register's format rules sit in § 59.43(2m)(a), and the register may refuse a document that does not substantially comply:

• The document's name appears 0.5 to 6 inches from the top of the first page.
• The upper right corner of the first page has a blank space of at least 3 inches by 3 inches for recording information; "a document that does not contain the space under this subdivision may not be recorded."
• White paper of at least 20-pound weight, 8.5 inches wide and 11 or 14 inches long, with no hinged pages, legible enough to copy or scan.
• Black, blue or red ink; a top margin of 0.5 inch and bottom and side margins of at least 0.25 inch.
• Return information on the first page, unless the document is electronically recorded (§ 59.43(2m)(a)4m).
• Names of grantors, grantees and notaries clearly written or typed (§ 59.43(2m)(a)10).
• A parcel identification number where the county uses one in the tax roll: required by statute in counties of 750,000 or more and by ordinance elsewhere (§ 59.43(7)(a), (b); (2m)(a)5).

A document that satisfies most of the requirements and will not impair accurate recording cannot be refused (§ 59.43(2m)(bm); (2s)(f)). Dane County also says only the original deed with original signatures may be recorded, "not photocopies."

Recording fee

The statewide recording fee is $30 "for recording any document entitled to be recorded with the register of deeds" (§ 59.43(2)(ag), subject to § 59.72(5) and the exceptions in pars. (f) and (h)). Dane County confirms "the recording fee is $30.00 per document." The sources cited here show no per-page recording fee for a deed; counties set copy and other fees locally. The register also collects any real estate transfer fee at recording (§ 77.22(1)).

Electronic recording

Wisconsin's statutes assume electronic recording exists (§ 59.43(2m)(a)4m exempts an electronically recorded document from the paper return-information rule), but the sources cited here show no statewide mandate or county roster, so ask your register of deeds. Ask your county register of deeds whether it accepts e-recording.

The Wisconsin real estate transfer fee and return

Wisconsin calls its tax a real estate transfer fee. Section 77.22(1) imposes it "on the grantor of real estate ... at the rate of 30 cents for each $100 of value or fraction thereof on every conveyance not exempted or excluded." The register collects it at recording; the county keeps 20 percent and sends the balance to the state (§ 77.24).

"Value" depends on the deed:

• Sale: the full actual consideration, including any liens on the property (§ 77.21(3)(a)).
• Gift, nominal-consideration deed or exchange: "the estimated price the property would bring in an open market" between a willing seller and buyer (§ 77.21(3)(b)).

So a gift deed to someone outside the exemptions pays the fee on market value. The Department of Revenue's FAQ uses the example of a gift of a house to a nephew, which still requires the fee on full market value. The register has no duty to verify the value or an exemption claim (§ 77.22(1)).

Exemptions that fit common quitclaim situations

The Department of Revenue's FAQ says the spousal exemption covers conveyances between spouses while married, such as a sale, land contract or gift, and conveyances due to divorce where one party is to receive the property. The same FAQ says that former spouses who keep joint title after the divorce and later move it to one of them outside the decree, by gift or sale, pay the fee on half the property's estimated value. Relatives outside the § 77.25(8) list, such as nephews, siblings or friends, are not exempt.

An exemption does not remove the paperwork. Every conveyance offered for recording must be accompanied by the transfer return (§ 706.05), and an exempt transfer must state the reason on the face of the conveyance by reference to the proper subsection of § 77.25 (§ 77.22(1)). The DOR FAQ notes that a return is still required for a corrective instrument and when a divorce judgment is the only document recorded; only a transfer on death designation, or a conveyance made before October 1, 1969, is excused (§§ 77.255, 77.25(1), (10m)).

The chapters cited here (chapter 77, subchapter II; § 59.43; chapter 706) contain no city or county transfer tax, but that negative is not confirmed across the whole code.

The Real Estate Transfer Return (RETR)

The grantee or the grantee's agent files the Real Estate Transfer Return on the Department of Revenue's form, signed by both grantor and grantee (§ 77.22(1), (2)). Since July 1, 2009, the statute requires electronic filing: forms "shall be filed electronically in the manner prescribed by the secretary" (§ 77.22(2)). The Department announced on January 12, 2026 that "the new real estate transfer return (RETR) is now available in My Tax Account (MTA)," replacing the old eRETR system; the RETR page is where you file. A waiver of electronic filing is available only for undue hardship (Form PE-500w). The register of deeds cannot accept the deed until the completed return is submitted and any fee is collected (§ 77.22(1)), and Dane County requires the electronic return receipt with every deed.

The transfer return is the only state-issued form in the deed process. No state or county quitclaim deed form is among the sources cited here; the county register of deeds can tell you what the office accepts, and a lawyer can prepare the deed. Registers cannot give legal advice.

Federal gift tax

The federal gift tax is separate from the transfer fee. The IRS says that "for tax year 2026, the annual exclusion for gifts remains at $19,000," and the donor is generally the one responsible for any gift tax. A tax professional can say how federal rules apply to a particular gift of real estate.

Property tax effects

A quitclaim does not trigger a special reassessment in Wisconsin, because Wisconsin has no capped base to reset. "The assessor shall assess all taxable property as of the close of January 1 of each year" (§ 70.10), at full value (§ 70.32(1)).

The lottery and gaming credit is paid on a principal dwelling "for which a claim for the credit ... is made by the owner of the principal dwelling" (§ 79.10(5)). The credit goes to an owner who uses the dwelling as a primary residence on January 1 and claims it; the claim is filed with the county treasurer (or the city treasurer in a city that collects its own taxes), and the transfer return includes the credit application (§§ 79.10(1)(dm), (10)(a); 77.22(2)). A grantor who no longer owns the home after deeding it away is not the owner the statute describes, so ask the county treasurer how a particular deed affects the credit.

Deed fraud protections in Wisconsin

2025 Wis. Act 234 (effective April 10, 2026) added three protections:

• Free recording alerts: each county that retains transfer fee money "shall establish a real property recording notification system to be administered by the register of deeds" (§ 59.43(13)). On application, it watches the records for a person or property and notifies the applicant when a new document is recorded, and no fee may be charged. Waukesha County's version lets owners "register parcel ID numbers and/or legal descriptions to receive email notification," and Dane County's Property Fraud Alert monitors a name.
• Refusal of suspect documents: a register may not record a document it "reasonably believes is being recorded for a fraudulent or other unlawful purpose" (§ 59.43(2s)(e)).
• A new crime: "Whoever knowingly provides to a register of deeds for recording any forged document relating to a conveyance ... is guilty of a Class I felony" (§ 946.77).

An alert service does not stop a forged deed from being recorded; Waukesha County notes that while its system "does not prevent fraudulent activity from occurring, it can provide an early warning of fraud that may have otherwise gone undetected." The FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center gives the same advice nationally: check whether your county offers a notification service.

Does a quitclaim deed remove you from the mortgage?

No. A deed changes ownership; it does not change who owes the loan. Only the lender releases a borrower: under 12 CFR 191.5(b)(4), when the lender and the new owner agree in writing, before the transfer, that the new owner is obligated on the loan, the lender releases the existing borrower.

Federal law bars a lender from calling a loan due under its due-on-sale clause for certain transfers of residential property with fewer than five dwelling units (12 U.S.C. 1701j-3(d)), but 12 CFR 191.5(b) limits those protections to a home the borrower occupies or will occupy. A transfer to a spouse or child, or to a spouse under a divorce decree or property settlement, is protected only if that person occupies or will occupy the home (12 CFR 191.5(b)(1)(v)), and a transfer into a living trust only if the borrower remains a beneficiary and occupant (12 CFR 191.5(b)(1)(vi)). A later event can disqualify a transfer that once fit an exception (12 CFR 191.5(b)(5)). Transfers outside those categories, such as to a sibling or friend, are not covered. Talk to the lender before signing.

The transfer on death alternative

If the goal is for property to pass at death rather than now, Wisconsin allows a TOD beneficiary designation under § 705.15. The recorded document names the owner and beneficiary and states that the transfer is effective only on death; both spouses sign for marital property. It "is not effective unless the document on which the designation is made, and any fees required to record the document, are submitted for recording to the register of deeds office of the county in which the real property is located before the death of the sole owner or the last to die of multiple owners." It does not affect ownership until death and can be revoked by a later recorded instrument.

A TOD designation is exempt from the transfer fee and needs no transfer return (§ 77.25(10m), (11m); § 77.255). For how property passes when there is no designation, see Wisconsin probate.

Recent Wisconsin changes

• 2025 Wis. Act 234 (effective April 10, 2026): rewrote the register of deeds recording rules in § 59.43 (format, legal descriptions, refusal of fraudulent documents), required free county recording notification systems (§ 59.43(13)) and created the forged-recording felony (§ 946.77).
• 2025 Wis. Act 38 (effective November 1, 2025): added grandparent-grandchild transfers for nominal or no consideration to the § 77.25(8) exemption.
• Department of Revenue (January 12, 2026): moved the Real Estate Transfer Return from eRETR to My Tax Account.

Related

• Quitclaim deed rules by state
• Wisconsin property records
• Quitclaim vs. warranty deeds
• Wisconsin divorce laws
• Wisconsin probate

This article provides general legal information about Wisconsin law on quitclaim deeds, verified on 2026-10-08. It is not legal or tax advice. For your situation, contact your county register of deeds (who cannot give legal advice), a legal aid office, or a lawyer licensed in Wisconsin.

Last updated: 2026-10-08.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I file a quitclaim deed in Wisconsin?

Have each grantor sign the deed and get the signatures acknowledged or authenticated (706.02; 706.05(2)(b)), make sure it meets the register format rules in 59.43(2m), and file the Real Estate Transfer Return electronically through the Department of Revenue (77.22). Then submit the deed with the return receipt and the $30 recording fee (59.43(2)(ag)) and any transfer fee to the register of deeds in the county where the land lies (706.05(1)).

Does a quitclaim deed need to be notarized in Wisconsin?

To be recorded it needs a form of authentication under 706.06 or chapter 140 (706.05(2)(b)). A notary acknowledgment is the usual route, and 706.06(2) also lets any member in good standing of the State Bar of Wisconsin authenticate the signatures. No witnesses are required (706.05(6)).

How much does it cost to record a quitclaim deed in Wisconsin?

The statewide recording fee is $30 per document under 59.43(2)(ag). The register also collects the transfer fee of 30 cents per $100 of value unless an exemption in 77.25 applies (77.22(1)).

Do you pay transfer tax on a quitclaim deed in Wisconsin?

Wisconsin charges a real estate transfer fee of 30 cents per $100 of value on the grantor (77.22(1)). For a gift, value is the open-market price (77.21(3)(b)), unless an exemption applies, such as between spouses (77.25(8m)) or between parent and child or grandparent and grandchild for nominal or no consideration (77.25(8)).

Do I need a transfer return if my quitclaim is exempt?

Yes. Every conveyance offered for recording must be accompanied by the transfer return (706.05; 77.22), and the exemption reason must appear on the face of the deed by reference to the 77.25 subsection. Only a transfer on death designation or a conveyance made before October 1, 1969 needs no return (77.255).

Does my spouse have to sign a quitclaim deed in Wisconsin?

If the deed conveys any interest of a married person in a homestead, each spouse must sign or join by separate conveyance, except for deeds between spouses (706.02(1)(f)). Chapter 766 also requires both spouses to act together for marital property held in both names (766.51(2)) and limits one spouse's gifts of marital property to a third person (766.53), so ask a lawyer licensed in Wisconsin.

Is an unrecorded quitclaim deed valid in Wisconsin?

It can be good between the grantor and grantee, but under 706.08(1)(a) it is void against a later good-faith purchaser for value whose conveyance is recorded first. Recording promptly protects the grantee.

Does Wisconsin have a transfer on death deed?

Wisconsin uses a TOD beneficiary designation under 705.15, which must be submitted for recording with the county register of deeds before the owner dies and does not affect ownership until death. It is exempt from the transfer fee and needs no transfer return (77.25(10m), (11m); 77.255).

Does a quitclaim deed remove me from the mortgage?

No. A deed changes ownership, not the loan; only the lender can release a borrower, for example when the lender and the new owner agree in writing, before the transfer, that the new owner will be obligated on the loan (12 CFR 191.5(b)(4)).