NTSA
The National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) has clarified that private motorists will not face immediate enforcement of the new mandatory vehicle inspection requirements, saying details on when the rules will take effect will be announced later.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the Authority said traffic police have been instructed not to demand proof of mandatory inspection from owners of private vehicles during roadside checks.
"During route checks, traffic officers shall not enforce the mandatory inspection requirement on private motor vehicle owners," NTSA said.
The clarification follows the Authority's earlier announcement that annual inspections for private vehicles older than four years are set to begin from July 1 as part of a new road safety framework.
While motorists are expected to book inspections through the NTSA services portal on eCitizen, the Authority said enforcement of the inspection requirement will only begin once the implementation framework is fully in place.
"Information on implementation and enforcement of the abovementioned sections/rules shall be communicated to the public in due course," NTSA said in a statement.
NTSA also announced a temporary reprieve for school transport and commercial service vehicle operators on some of the new technical requirements.
School transport operators will not be penalised for failing to install reflectorised red stop mechanical signal arms and telematic systems as required under Rules 13 and 14 of the Traffic (School Transport) Rules, 2026.
"School transport operators shall not be penalized for non-compliance with Rule 13 (Reflectorised red stop mechanical signal arms) and Rule 14 (Telematic system) of the Traffic (School Transport) Rules, 2026."
Likewise, operators of commercial service vehicles will not face penalties for failing to comply with the requirement to install telematic systems under Regulation 9(d) of the NTSA (Operations of Commercial Vehicles) Regulations, 2026.
"Commercial service vehicle operators shall not be penalised for non-compliance with paragraph d (Telematic system) - Regulation 9 of the NTSA (Operations of Commercial Vehicles) Regulations, 2026."
The Authority said implementation and enforcement of those specific provisions will be communicated separately.
The latest clarification comes after motorists raised questions over how the new inspection regulations would be implemented and enforced.
NTSA also cautioned the public against relying on inaccurate information circulating online, saying only official communication issued through its authorised platforms should be treated as accurate.
"The Authority has noted the circulation of inaccurate and misleading information regarding motor vehicle inspection. We strongly urge the public to rely exclusively on official communication issued directly by the Authority through its official channels/platforms," the statement said.
Under the new inspection framework announced earlier, school transport and commercial service vehicles will continue to undergo inspections at NTSA inspection centres and are required to display valid inspection stickers before operating on public roads.
