Vehicle Registration in LTO

Two days after getting my motor vehicle clearance from Highway Patrol Group, I went to the Land Transportation Office (LTO) Manila East branch in Sampaloc, Manila where they keep the physical records of my second-hand bought vehicle. 

Luckily for me, the LTO's connection on insurance companies are offline nationwide. So there are very few cars for registration when I arrived, only those who were able to secure TPL insurance beforehand like myself, hehe.

In contrast with my bad experience at Highway Patrol Group when I secured my vehicle's clearance, the Manila East LTO personnel performed much better than my expectation. The Window 1 personnel checked and arranged my documents, then assigned somebody to stencil my vehicle's engine and chassis numbers. The LTO stencil guy did not asked nor hinted about money for snack or cigarette, which is common with other LTO branches.

The guys at Records section seem to enjoy their job in verifying the vehicle records at their organized files upstairs. From my brief observation, they seem to be honest and clean in doing their jobs. The whole registration process with transfer of ownership took only 1.5 hours. 

I ended up paying Php 2599 on my Official Receipt (OR), including the penalties for late transfer and change of venue. If only they have decent parking space, I may renew my car's registration there next year.

To those who are not familiar with LTO registration of vehicles, below are the requirements and steps:

1. Bring your vehicle's Official Receipt (OR), Certificate of Registration (CR), and Early Warning Device (EWD), the latter you should always have on your vehicle anyway. If there's a transfer of ownership, bring the notarized Deed of Sale, HPG's vehicle clearance, and photocopies of the previous owner's 2 identification cards. Some LTO office requires the copy of TIN numbers of both parties as well.
2. Bring also a certificate of coverage of Third Party Liability (TPL) insurance prior to going to LTO. I suggest that you get if from legitimate insurance companies' offices, as its cheaper by half compared with those offered by insurance agents in LTO compounds. Plus you avoid the risk of getting fake insurance if ever you will need to make a claim in the future.
3. Upon your arrival at LTO compound, have your vehicle undergo a smoke emission test which regularly cost about Php 450 to get the certificate (as of 3/21/13). If your ride runs on diesel fuel, you may want to clean the muffler/exhaust lines prior, to ensure that you pass the emission test.
4. While waiting for your emission test result, you can allow one LTO volunteer to stencil your vehicle's engine and chassis numbers on the Motor Vehicle Inspection Report (MVIR). Usually, he will help you in filling up the MVIR. I normally give an optional tip of Php 20 to the stencil guy.
5. Submit your documents to the concerned LTO windows for validation and assessment of fees.
6. Pay the fees only to the cashier once your name is called. It will be faster if you prepare exact amount by bringing some loose change.
7. Wait for your new OR. If its transfer of ownership, you will also be given a new CR. Have them photocopied if requested by an LTO officer.
8. Once you receive the new stickers, you're done.

To get a softcopy of the MVIR and other LTO forms/guidelines, click here.