Draft regulation would exempt motorcycles manufactured within five years from initial emissions testing

The Ministry of Construction has proposed draft amendments to Circular 47 that would keep the initial motorcycle emissions test requirement for motorcycles produced within five years, but would remove the need for owners to bring the vehicle to the registration office for that first test.

The draft Circular, which regulates vehicle inspection procedures, exemptions from the first inspection for motor vehicles and specialised motorcycles, certification procedures for safety and environmental protection in production, assembly, or import, and motorcycle emissions testing procedures, is intended to replace Circular 47/2024/TT-BGTVT issued in 2024.

How the first motorcycle emissions test would work

Under the draft, the first-time emissions test for motorcycles is the process in which the registration center files the vehicle dossier and conducts the emissions test to issue an Emissions Testing Certificate.

For motorcycles with a year of manufacture up to the time of the first test not exceeding five years, the draft proposes that the registration center issue the Emissions Testing Certificate based on the results of safety technical and environmental protection certification for production, assembly, or import. In this case, the vehicle owner would not need to bring the motorcycle to the registration center.

The Ministry says this provision is designed to clarify which motorcycles must be brought for testing and which do not.

Certificate issuance timelines and procedures

Within three working hours of receiving a complete valid dossier, the registration center would issue the Emissions Testing Certificate (electronic version) via the online system for electronic dossiers, or issue the paper version directly to the owner for paper dossiers.

For initial tests where the vehicle is older than five years, the owner must bring the motorcycle to the registration center. The registration center would receive and review the dossier and issue the result within a maximum of three working hours from receipt of the dossier.

The inspection must cover all items specified in the national technical regulation for automobiles, trailers, four-wheel motor vehicles used for freight, and four-wheel motor vehicles used for passengers (QCVN 122:2024/BGTVT) for safety and environmental protection.

If the vehicle has not completed penalties for administrative violations, the system may refuse inspection.

Immediately after the emissions test is completed, the registration center issues the motorcycle emission test certificate (electronic version) or the paper certificate (for paper dossiers) in the form specified in the appendix to the Circular.

Emissions-test cycle and certificate validity

The validity period of the certificate is specified in the appendix to the draft Circular. For motorcycles manufactured up to five years, the emissions-test cycle is 60 months. For motorcycles manufactured more than five years up to 12 years, the cycle is 24 months. For motorcycles manufactured over 12 years, the cycle is 12 months.

The draft states that the emissions-test cycle remains unchanged from Circular 47.

If a motorcycle in the database lacks information on the date of manufacture, the date is counted from December 31 of the year of manufacture.

Transitional rules and reissuance

Certificates and seals issued before the effective date of the Circular remain valid until expiration.

For cases where the emissions-test certificate or seal was lost, damaged, torn, or contained incorrect information before the effective date, reissuance would be conducted under the Circular’s provisions.

For motorcycles that were issued an emissions-test certificate and seal before January 1, 2027, from January 1, 2027 the registration center will only issue a certificate when reissuing.

Roadmap for on-road emissions testing

The draft also references Prime Minister Decision No. 13/2026/QD-TTg issued on April 2, which sets the roadmap for applying national motorcycle emission standards on the road.

• From July 1, 2027: Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City conduct on-road motorcycle emissions testing.
• From July 1, 2028: the policy applies to remaining centrally governed cities, including Hai Phong, Hue, Da Nang, and Can Tho.
• From July 1, 2030: emissions testing is applied to 28 provinces, with the possibility of earlier implementation depending on actual conditions.

Source: Van Duan / Người lao động