Legal basis and governing requirement
- The annual registration of vehicles is required under BP Bilang 43.
- Government-owned vehicles are covered by the annual registration requirement and are not exempt from BP Bilang 43.
Policy objective and compliance focus
- The directive is based on observed non-compliance: many government and military vehicles are still using old plates.
- The directive aims to ensure that government vehicles use the appropriate license plates and meet registration prerequisites required by law.
- The directive treats registration and proper plate display as mandatory legal compliance for government vehicle use.
Coverage: who must comply and what to do
- All government entities—ministries, bureaus, agencies, offices, and government-owned or controlled corporations—must register their vehicles with the Bureau of Land Transportation.
- Government vehicles must secure and properly display the appropriate license plates as required by law.
- Compliance requires registration with the Bureau of Land Transportation and possession and display of the vehicle plates.
Non-compliance rule and seven-day restriction
- Any government vehicle that does not comply with the registration prerequisites of the Bureau must not be allowed to be used by the agency concerned.
- The restriction applies within a period of seven (7) days from the effectivity of this directive.
- Vehicle use is prohibited until compliance with the registration prerequisites is achieved.
Enforcement: apprehension and impounding powers
- The Bureau of Land Transportation and the Constabulary Highways Patrol Group are instructed to apprehend all violations.
- The same authorities are instructed to impound the vehicles that are in violation.
- Impounding continues until the vehicles have been properly registered.
Budget action for registration fees and plates
- The Ministry of the Budget is instructed to pass upon, with dispatch, funds related to:
- the payment of registration fees; and
- the issuance of vehicle plates for all government vehicles.
- The budget processing duty supports timely compliance by facilitating approval of registration-related funding.
Where and formalization
- The directive is formally DONE in the City of Manila on May 03, 1982.
- It is signed by FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the Philippines.