Over the weekend, the Land Transporation Office (LTO) reminded motorists to attach license plates to their vehicles, or a P5,000 penalty will be issued.
The agency reiterated that vehicle ownership comes with many responsibilities, one of which is to affix official license plates as soon as they are released. The P5,000 fine is upheld by Republic Act No. 4136, or the Land Transportation and Traffic Code of the Philippines.
“Sa pakikipag-ugnayan natin sa PNP, through their HPG, and even in our own operations, we discovered that some motor vehicles are deliberately ignoring that responsibility,” said LTO chief Atty. Vigor Mendoza II.
Many social media users commented on the LTO’s announcement, reiterating that they are still waiting for their license plates to be released. More than a few comments even mention that some vehicles purchased as far back as 2016 still have no official plates.
OTHER STORIES YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED:
Enforcement of ‘no valid ETC device, no entry’ to begin on expressways effective March 15
Bureau of Customs seizes P1.4-B worth of luxury cars, including a Ferrari SF90 Stradale
In the same announcement, Mendoza stated that the license plate backlog began in 2014, but progress has been made to address the issue and speed up the printing of license plates. For four-wheel vehicles, the LTO claims the backlog was completed as of May 2024. For the two-wheelers, the LTO expects to resolve the backlog for motorcycles by July later this year.
If you’re still waiting on your official license plate, a temporary plate will have to do until then. Driving with no plates, or plates that do not read out your vehicle’s conduction number will be cause for more fines and penalties. For a comprehensive explainer on temporary license plates, check out our guide.
