Cost of re-registration of vehicles older than 15 years to increase: Ministry

As per the Central Motor Vehicle Rules, it is mandatory for all vehicles to be re-registered for five years after 15 years of running, in order to ensure that it is safe for use. Within 60 days of the Registration Certificate expiry, the fresh application for the renewal of the Registration Certificate has to be made.

The procedure for re-registration is the same as that of first-time registration. The vehicle must be brought to the authorities for physical inspection. Only if the vehicle is deemed to be ‘road worthy’  further procedures can be undertaken. Re-registration takes place at the same.

Now, the fee for that re-registration is proposed to be hiked by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways around eight times for personal vehicles, and around 20 times for commercial vehicles. This is ultimately being proposed to boost the application of scrappage policy announced on 2021 a budget day.

According to the draft notification, there would be an increase in the cost of restoration of registration and issuance of fitness certificate of vehicles older than 15 years from 1st October. This is as part of the government’s policy to remove the older fleet of vehicles in India.

The re-registration of old bikes has been proposed to Rs 1,000 as opposed to the present Rs 300. For usual cars and four-wheelers, the charge will be Rs 7500 from the present Rs 500. For imported vehicles, it will be Rs 40,000 as compared to the current rate of Rs 5,000. Similarly, Rs 10,000 will be charged for the restoration of taxis and fitness, as well as Rs 12,500 up from Rs 1,500 at present for heavy passenger vehicles. A fine of Rs 50 per day will be levied for taking a fitness certificate after the expiry date.

The charge for conducting tests for renewal of grants and fitness certificates for 15-year-old vehicles has also been made expensive. For a manual motorcycle, Rs 400 will have to be paid, while for an automated one, a charge of 500 rupees will be levied, the government notification said. While a fee of Rs 800 is payable for conducting tests on manual light vehicles and three-wheelers older than 15 years, Rs 1,000 has been fixed for the automated version of these vehicles.

Apart from this, if the renewal of the registration certificate is delayed, an additional Rs.300 will be charged every month for the motorcycle and an additional Rs.500 will be charged for the remaining vehicles.

Automated Fitness Centres will come up across India in the next two years, where old vehicles will have to be mandatorily tested if they want a re-registration. If they fail the test twice, the vehicle will have to be scrapped.