Gone are the days when motor vehicles had to wait for weeks and even months before getting the registration documents of their motor vehicle—and it was a big sigh of relief too that motorists will no longer have to wait for years for their license plates.

On Monday, July 21, the Department of Transportation (DOTr), through the Land Transportation Office (LTO), launched an online system that promises to release the Official Receipt/Certificate of Registration (OR/CR) and the license plates within three days after the release of newly-bought motor vehicles.

Dubbed as the Plate Registration Management Information System (PRMIS), DOTr Secretary Vince Dizon said the new system is part of the national government’s efforts to shift all government services to digital platforms.

“This is what our President envisioned amid the perennial problem on vehicle registration that hounded the LTO over the years. And with the LTO finally solving the plate backlog in the past 11 years, we could say that this new platform is the Bagong Pilipinas way of ensuring that we will no longer have a backlog on license plates,” said Dizon.

While the LTO was busy in the past months to wipe out the millions and 11-year backlog on license plates, Dizon said the LTO has been quietly testing the fastest possible time frame wherein both the OR/CR and plates are released.

“And less than a week after the license plates backlog was wiped out, the LTO and the DOTr is now ready to introduce to the millions of motor vehicle owners the PRMIS which would end the culture of waiting for registration documents and license plates,” said Dizon.

For more than half a century, Filipino motorists have shared one bitter experience: buying a brand-new vehicle only to wait weeks, sometimes months, just to receive their registration and license plates, according to the LTO chief, Assistant Secretary during the finalization of the digital platform.

“People bought cars but drove them without plates and registration. Some waited three months, others six. A few waited over a year. And in the chaos, fixers thrived and public trust sank,” said Mendoza.

But that culture, he said, ends now.

“This was a national embarrassment we refused to pass on to another generation. You don’t buy a car and wait months to legally drive it. That ends with us,” said Mendoza.

“The pilot proved what millions had long hoped for, that the system can be fixed. That delays are not inevitable. That the government can deliver, fast. So starting this year, brand-new vehicles can now be registered and released plates within three days they are purchased, directly at the dealership,” he added.

The PRMIS was launched on May 6 this year in Metro Manila, Central Luzon and Calabarzon regions, and on July 15, the entire country followed.

“Every dealership, every LTO office, every brand-new motor vehicle, all subject to the new rule: No vehicle leaves the dealership without its official registration and plate attached,” said Mendoza.

Currently, acting LTO chief Greg Pua said the agency is working in lockstep with dealerships nationwide in implementing a streamlined process that allows registration to be processed on-line, with plates released within minutes to an hour.

“Every document, every system check, every regulatory requirement, all completed before the unit rolls out of the dealership,” said Pua.

“Dealerships have embraced the new policy, fully aware that consumers now expect no less. Motorists, long accustomed to waiting and frustration, are now experiencing what should have always been standard: a government that works the moment you need it.”

“As of today, the system is live. The rules are clear. And the message is firm: If there’s no registration, no plate, there is no release of the vehicle in the dealership,” he added.