The Undersecretary of Revenue for the Sonora Treasury Department, Jorge De la Rosa Flores, indicated that taxpayers will not have to change their license plates due to the new design, introduced recently.
Last Wednesday, De la Rosa presented the new license plate design, raising questions about who will be required to use the new plates and when.
In an interview with Marcelo Beyliss for the morning news program “Expreso 24/7,” the Undersecretary reported that the redesign does not entail additional costs or replacement license plates.
Who will use the new design?
De la Rosa explained that there are three situations in which a taxpayer must use the new license plate design: when registering a new vehicle; when registering a used vehicle; and in the event of theft or loss. “Except for these three scenarios, there are no other reasons why taxpayers will have to change their license plates.”
“Taxpayers who need to register their vehicles must do so as currently implemented. The only difference will be that starting next week, especially for sedan vehicles, we will be issuing the new design,” he explained.
This is because the inventory of license plates for sedans is about to run out, at which point the new design will be introduced. De la Rosa emphasized that the process remains unchanged.
Currently, the cost for vehicle registration is 3,420 pesos, which includes the license plates and the registration card. License plates for sedan vehicles will be the first to be issued because they are the most in-demand; after that, they will be available gradually for other types of vehicles, such as pickup trucks.
The head of the agency emphasized that during the presentation, designs were included that were already in force in Mexico, but not in Sonora, such as the license plates for eco-friendly cars, which are distinguished by the image of a green leaf.
“All electric, hybrid, or semi-hybrid vehicles are currently issued standard license plates because they didn’t have (special) ones, and now they will be issued these types of plates.” This distinction is established in the official Mexican standard by the Ministry of Infrastructure, Communications, and Transportation (SCT).
In addition, as a tax incentive, owners of eco-friendly vehicles are entitled to a 75 percent discount on the registration service.
Meanwhile, the license plate design that includes the illustration of a car is intended to distinguish classic or antique vehicles, also stipulated by the SCT.
In the case of these types of vehicles, the registration procedure is different because it requires a diagnostic test of the vehicle.
“One thing is the model year, which must be 30 years old or more to qualify for this category, but we must also ensure that the vehicle maintains at least 80 percent of its originality; that is, that basic, elementary parts have not been replaced,” he explained.
Through a ruling, the Hermosillo Institute of Technology (ITH) determines the vehicle’s eligibility within this category to validate it with the Ministry of Finance.
De la Rosa recalled that, by law, license plates in Sonora are permanent and reiterated that there will be no replacement or exchange of license plates due to design changes.
“Starting in 2013, to begin 2014, Article 42 of the State Traffic Law and Article 312 of the Treasury Law were amended, and the permanence of license plates was determined: this remains in effect, will continue to be in effect, and quite simply, we will have two designs circulating in the state,” he stated.
Source: expreso
