Ultimate guide to car registration & renewal in the Philippines


How to renew your car in the Philippines
How to renew your car in the Philippines

Wondering how to renew your car registration at the LTO? Or perhaps wondering what you need to do to register a brand new car by yourself? Check out this guide to help you save time when you go to the LTO.

Where to renew or register brand new car

Proceed to these LTO offices to register your vehicle (click to view location in Google Maps):

LTO Diliman District Office
Location: LTO Main Cmpd., East Avenue, Diliman Quezon City
Contact Number: 921-9017

Quezon City District Office
Location: Butel Bldg., P. Tuazon Blvd. Cubao Quezon City
Contact Number: 480-4962

Pasay District Office
Location: Domestic Road, Pasay City
Contact Number: 851-1954

Caloocan District Office
Location: Butel Bldg., Araneta Avenue, Kalookan City
Contact Number: 364-1183 / 361-2546

How to register a brand new car

Many new car owners would prefer to let their car dealer handle the nitty-gritty details of registering their car and just pay a fee. Some car dealers would even offer “Free Car Registration” to buyers. But you can also do the legwork and register your car on your own.

There are different documents you’ll need depending on which type of vehicle you want to register. There’s a different sets of required documents if you’re registering a brand new car which is locally manufactured, or imported, there’s also a different set of requirements for low-speed vehicles and tricycles.

We’ll focus our discussion on imported brand new cars as your new car, like majority of cars sold here in the Philippines, most likely falls under this classification. Here are the requirements for registration with the LTO:

Required documents

  • Commercial Invoice of MV issued by the country of origin
  • Bill of Lading
  • BOC Certificate of Payment
  • Certificate of Stock Reported (CSR)
  • Sales Invoice of the MV (motor vehicle)
  • PNP-TMG MV Clearance Certificate (Philippine National Police, Traffic Management Group)
  • Duly accomplished and approved Motor Vehicle Inspection Report (MVIR)
  • Appropriate insurance certificate of cover
  • Valid Certificate of Public Convenience duly confirmed by the LTFRB, in case of for hire MV’s
  • Valid Motorized Tricycle Operators Permit (MTOP) for TC only
  • Taxpayer’s Identification Number (TIN)

LTO registration process

  1. Proceed to the transaction counters and submit the documents above to the evaluator so they can compute the fees.
  2. There will be an inspection of the motor vehicle and submission of the filled out MVIR.
  3. Pay the fees and obtain the official receipt at the cashier when your name is called.
  4. Get your certificate of registration, plates, stickers, and other documents at the releasing counter when your name is called. And you’re done!
Notice! No Registration, No Travel in Effect Starting April 1, 2015

An LTO memorandum has been released which bans four-wheeled vehicles from being on the road without a valid registration.

Vehicles without a license plate will be stopped and drivers will be asked to present the Certificate of Registration and the Official Receipt of the vehicle. If you do not have the OR/ CR, you have to present the certificate of stock reported, sales invoice, or certificate of insurance cover. You can be fined PHP 5,000 if you have not attached your plate but have presented the OR/ CR. You’ll be fined PHP 10,000 if you fail to present neither the OR/ CR or the alternate documents.

How to renew your car registration

Here are the steps that you will need to perform renew your car registration.

Requirements for renewal

  • Photocopy of Certificate of Registration (CR) and Official Receipt of payment
  • Appropriate Insurance Certificate of Cover (COC)
  • Duly accomplished and approved Motor Vehicle Inspection Report (MVIR)
  • Certificate of Emission Compliance (CEC)
  • Taxpayer’s Identification Number (TIN)

Where to renew

You can renew your car registration at any LTO online district/extension office.

Registration renewal process

The process is basically the same as when you register your car for the first time.

  1. Proceed to the transaction counters and submit the documents above to the evaluator so they can compute the fees.
  2. Inspection of the motor vehicle and submission of the filled out MVIR.
  3. Pay the fees and obtain the official receipt at the cashier when your name is called.
  4. Get your certificate of registration, plates, stickers, and other documents at the releasing counter when your name is called. And you’re done!

LTO renewal fees

Here are some of the fees that you will have to pay when you register your car for the first time or renew your car registration at the LTO.

  • Initial Fee: 1,000/ category
  • Renewal Fee: 400/ category
  • Annotation of Mortgage, attachment, and other encumbrances or cancellation: 100
  • Cost of stickers and tags: 50
  • Cost of regular plate: 450

Your actual cost can vary depending on your car and your final cost will be determined by your evaluator.

Don’t forget to renew your registration on time as there will be a weekly fine of P200 for late registration. Your renewal date will depend on your plate number.

Here’s a handy infographic from MoneyMax’s Car Renewal and Registration Guide  to help you remember the details. Also, it includes a table that tells you your car’s renewal deadline based on the digits on its’ plate number.

LTO Car Registration Renewal Infographic

This post is brought to you by MoneyMax.ph, the Philippines’ leading financial comparison site where you can save money by comparing financial and car insurance products and services – fast, comprehensive, and free. We aim to give the power of smart purchase decisions back to Filipino consumers by providing everything they need to become financially savvy.

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