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Manila Bulletin devider Drive devider DOTr Sec. Lopez orders LTO to suspend license confiscation, settling violations now 15 working days

DOTr Sec. Lopez orders LTO to suspend license confiscation, settling violations now 15 working days

Immediate changes to LTO procedures for traffic violations

Published Jan 9, 2026 04:26 pm

At A Glance

  • Transportation Secretary, Giovanni Lopez, has stepped in to settle some issues with the LTO, particularly those being discussed lately because of a recent incident.
  • He has instructed the Land Transportation Office (LTO) to immediately suspend the confiscation of driver's license in apprehension cases involving traffic violations.
  • The time period for settling traffic apprehension cases has also been changed from 15 calendar days to 15 working days.
Motorists can breathe a sigh of relief as Transportation Secretary, Giovanni Lopez, has stepped in to settle some issues with the LTO, particularly those being discussed lately because of a recent incident.
The Transportation Secretary has just released a memorandum today regarding license confiscation in traffic violations as well as with regard to the time period to settle these cases.
Photo from the Department of Transportation's official social media account.
Photo from the Department of Transportation's official social media account.
What follows is the Secretary’s official statement:
Transportation Secretary, Giovanni Lopez, has instructed the Land Transportation Office (LTO) to immediately suspend the confiscation of driver’s license in apprehension cases involving traffic violations.
This is in line with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s directive to the Department of Transportation (DOTr) to streamline and clarify procedures in apprehending erring motorists whose driver’s licenses have been confiscated.
In a memorandum issued on January 9, Secretary Lopez ordered the LTO to suspend confiscating licenses of apprehended drivers, and revisit all pertinent issuances to ensure consistency across all existing policies.
The transport chief likewise amended the guidelines for settling traffic apprehension cases by changing the lead time from 15 calendar days to 15 working days, “to afford both the government and the public sufficient time to resolve cases.”
“Ibig sabihin po nito, hindi kasama ‘yung mga holiday at long weekend sa bilang ng araw kapag magse-settle ng violation ‘yung driver, (This means holidays and long weekends are not counted among the number of days given to settle a driver’s violations.)” Secretary Lopez said.
While the confiscation of driver’s licenses is suspended, the LTO is directed to immediately place the violator’s driver’s license under alert and strictly enforce the automatic suspension or revocation of the license should the driver fail to settle the case within 15 working days.
The new memorandum circular shall take effect immediately.

Related Tags

Land Transportation Office Department of Transportation (DOTr)
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