LTO drops stencil as requirement for 'plain' vehicle renewal

The Land Transportation Office (LTO) has removed the stencil as a requirement on vehicles that would undergo “plain” renewal transactions.

In Memorandum Circular JMT-2023-2399 dated May 22, then LTO chief Jose Arturo Tugade said that the removal of stencil is in line with the agency’s move to simplify its processes.

“Consistent with the policy of the Land Transportation Office to streamline its processes to ensure the effective and efficient delivery of its services to the public in line with the provisions of R.A. 11032, known as the Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Service Delivery Act, the stencil of the engine and chassis numbers of a motor vehicle shall no longer be required for ‘plain renewal’ registration transactions,” circular stated.

“It is provided, however, that the motor vehicle, prior to the approval of the application shall have undergone and passed the physical inspection to determine the unit’s roadworthiness, and that such pertinent details in its Certificate of Registration (e.g. plate number, make, year model) should match the actual motor vehicle,” it added.

Meanwhile, the Vehicle Inspection Center Operators Association of the Philippines (VICOAP) expressed support over the initiative.

“VICOAP fully supports any government policy that prioritizes customer convenience without compromising on safety and security.  As world-class facilities, PMVICs (Private Motor Vehicle Inspection Centers) are founded on the same principles.  These principles guide VICOAP’s commitment towards a future where road safety is a shared accountability, and responsible vehicle ownership means complying with vehicle roadworthiness policies,” the group rationalized.

Per VICOAP, PMVIC does not conduct stenciling as its inspectors visually get engine and chassis numbers, which are then verified on the LTO database.

Once verified, the vehicle can then proceed with the rest of the inspection. The Association said that the inspection results are both printed out at the PMVIC and also digitally-uploaded in real-time to the LTO database.  The printout serves as the customer’s copy for verification purposes at the LTO district office.

Lastly, VICOAP clarified that since both emission and roadworthiness inspections are conducted in PMVIC, their customers need only show their inspection results at the LTO district office together with proof of third-party liability (TPL) insurance of their choice.   After paying the registration fee at the cashier, the renewal can be processed.

“Conveniently, vehicle owners also have the option of skipping a trip to the LTO DO entirely, and instead complete their plain registration renewal themselves through the LTO Online Portal – a service launched in February of this year,” it added.

Photos from Vehicle Inspection Center Operators Association of the Philippines, Land Transportation Office

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