At Cultura Legal: ¡Abogados más allá de lo común! we want to share a set of recommendations that will be very useful to you in case the municipal traffic police stop you and try to issue you a citation. We invite you to share this information with family and friends so they also know what to do.
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW:
The conduct of the Municipal Traffic Police (Policía Municipal de Tránsito, or PMT) is regulated by the “Traffic Law” (Decree 132-96) and its amendments, as well as its regulations. The Municipal Traffic Police has the authority to verify and ensure strict compliance with the provisions of the Traffic Law and its regulations. The Municipal Traffic Police carries out this function through: a) checkpoints; b) approaching the driver of the vehicle directly; and/or c) leaving a notice slip on the vehicle, if the owner cannot be located.
WHAT YOU SHOULD HAVE ON YOU IN CASE YOU’RE STOPPED:
When stopped by a Municipal Traffic Police officer, you are required to have the following documents on hand:
- A valid driver’s license;
- The original vehicle registration card (tarjeta de circulación) or a notarized photocopy. Notarization is not required if the vehicle is registered in SAT’s (the tax authority’s) virtual portal;
- The sticker proving payment of the circulation tax; and
- License plates in good condition and clearly visible.
Under Article 31 of the Traffic Law, the Municipal Affairs Court (Juzgado de Asuntos Municipales) is the only body with authority to impose administrative sanctions, which include warnings, fines, seizure of documents, wheel locks (cepo), vehicle impoundment, and/or suspension or cancellation of a driver’s license. In addition, Article 32 of the Law establishes that the traffic authority—that is, the Municipal Affairs Court—will impose, as set out in the regulations, warnings and/or fines on those who fail to comply with the provisions of the law and its regulations, particularly regarding the place, timing, manner, and speed limits for driving on public roads.
A Municipal Traffic Police officer does NOT have the authority to impose a fine or seize documents and/or vehicles. What they do have the authority to do is issue a notice slip—which is not the same thing. IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THE NOTICE SLIP IS NOT A FINE, as we’ll explain below.
WHEN CAN A MUNICIPAL POLICE OFFICER IMPOSE A POSSIBLE SANCTION THROUGH A NOTICE SLIP?
Municipal Traffic Police officers are authorized to issue notice slips when they believe a driver’s conduct violates the provisions of the Traffic Law and its regulations.
Below are common cases and the monetary value of the sanction that a Municipal Affairs Judge imposes:
Q200.00 fine:
- For not carrying the vehicle registration card or a notarized photocopy, where applicable.
- For not carrying a driver’s license.
- For producing exaggerated or unnecessary loud or strident noises, through the vehicle itself, exhaust systems, horns, or other attachments.
- For refusing to accept the notice slip, payment demand, or summons.
- For driving with an expired license.
- For failing to comply with maximum speed limits.
Q400.00 fine:
- For driving without a license—that is, without having taken the licensing exam and arranged to receive it physically at MAYCOM.
- For driving using lights reserved exclusively for emergency vehicles and road/urban maintenance vehicles.
Q500.00 fine:
- For driving without license plates.
- For not having a vehicle registration card.
- For parking in areas marked as no-parking zones.
Q1,000.00 fine:
- For disrespecting, offending, assaulting, or insulting a traffic authority.
Q25,000.00 fine:
- For using public roads for races, contests, or similar activities.
WHAT IS THE PROCEDURE FOR IMPOSING A SANCTION OR FINE?
Step #1:
A Municipal Traffic Police officer or a delegate of the Municipal Affairs Traffic Court will hand the driver who may have committed the infraction a notice slip, duly authorized by the municipality. This slip will specify the infraction committed, the article violated, and the sanction imposed. If it involves a vehicle left on a public road whose driver is not present, the authority will leave the notice slip on the vehicle in a visible, secure location.
NOTE: Any payment made without objection will be considered as exhausting the administrative appeal process.
Step #2:
The driver has the right to file an objection with the Municipal Affairs Court within 5 days of physically and personally receiving the notice slip, and must provide any evidence supporting the objection. What the Municipal Traffic Police officer states on the slip constitutes a rebuttable presumption that the alleged facts are true. The evidence of the infraction is the offender’s signature on the slip, or the officer’s notation stating that the offender refused to sign or was unable to do so for any reason.
Step #3:
The Municipal Affairs Traffic Court will, as applicable, decide within a period of no more than thirty days whether the sanction imposed in the notice slip is valid or not.
Step #4:
CAN I RECORD MUNICIPAL TRAFFIC OFFICERS ON VIDEO OR AUDIO?
Yes, you can. Since there is no prohibition against doing so, and under Article 5 of the Political Constitution of the Republic of Guatemala, any person may do what the law does not prohibit; this grants the right to record the incident and use it in the future as evidence that the sanction being imposed is unlawful. In this case, it’s advisable to refrain from using the recording as a means of coercion, blackmail, or intimidation, as this could cause the officer to react aggressively.
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A FINE OR INFRACTION IS IMPOSED THROUGH DIGITAL MEANS AND NEVER IN PERSON BY A TRAFFIC OFFICER?
Based on Article 12 of the Political Constitution of the Republic of Guatemala and Article 154 of the Municipal Code, no one may be sanctioned without the alleged offender having the opportunity to object before a competent authority—in this case, the Municipal Affairs Traffic Court. Consequently, for any infraction to be enforceable against the alleged offender, notice slips must be delivered personally to the alleged offender. If the Municipal Traffic Police officers do not personally and physically deliver the notice slips, neither the Municipal Traffic Police officers nor the Municipal Affairs Traffic Court can demand immediate payment of the infraction, or seize the driver’s license, the vehicle registration card, or the motor vehicle.
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN MUNICIPAL OFFICERS SET UP CHECKPOINTS AND DEMAND PAYMENT OF OUTSTANDING TRAFFIC FINES, THREATENING TO CONFISCATE THE LICENSE, THE REGISTRATION CARD, AND/OR THE VEHICLE IF THE “FINES” ARE NOT PAID?
The threat to confiscate your vehicle and registration card if you don’t give in to the extortion of paying the fine on the spot when the PMT officer demands it is even more unlawful. Article 35 of the Traffic Law establishes vehicle impoundment as a sanction that a Municipal Affairs Judge can impose, but under no circumstances does it authorize that sanction to be imposed for failure to pay fines. PMT officers often claim that the Traffic Law Regulations (not the Law itself) authorize them to impound the vehicle. However, Article 190 of the Traffic Law Regulations they refer to establishes that transferring the vehicle to the municipal impound lot can only happen after thirty days have passed since the fine was imposed—and as noted above, that fine must be imposed by the Municipal Affairs Court.
WHAT HAPPENS IF THEY PUT A WHEEL LOCK (CEPO) ON MY CAR?
Legally, the wheel lock is simply a notice of infraction, and therefore the affected person is not required to pay what the municipality demands for its removal. However, it’s important to keep in mind that the wheel lock is used as a pressure tactic to force payment and bring the objection process to an end. So, if there’s an urgent need to move the vehicle from the public road, it’s recommended that a notarial record be drawn up, stating the facts and that the payment is being made under protest, while reserving the right to object to the sanction before the competent authority—the Municipal Affairs Traffic Court. This will allow the wheel lock to be removed from the vehicle while still pursuing the objection process to have the fine withdrawn.
IN WHAT CASES CAN THE AUTHORITY—THE MUNICIPAL AFFAIRS TRAFFIC COURT—SEIZE AND HOLD A DRIVER’S LICENSE?
- During breathalyzer tests and/or tests to detect the influence of drugs, narcotics, or psychotropic substances. If these tests come back negative, the documents and vehicle will be returned without further process, and the driver may continue driving freely. If they come back positive, the traffic authority will turn the driver, the vehicle, and the documents over to the National Civil Police.
- When the driver is carrying an expired, forged, or altered license.
- When the driver is involved in a traffic accident resulting in injuries or deaths.
- If the driver is involved in a traffic accident causing damage to someone else’s property, unless immediate repair is offered by agreement. In any case, this agreement must be executed before a Notary.
- If the driver is operating a vehicle without carrying the registration card or a notarized photocopy of it.
- If the driver is operating a vehicle without license plates.
- If the driver has a license suspended or cancelled by the competent authority.
- If the driver disrespects or insults traffic police officers.
- During breathalyzer tests and/or tests to detect the influence of drugs, narcotics, or psychotropic substances. If the results of these tests are negative, the documents and vehicle will be returned without further procedure, and the driver may continue on their way freely. If the results are positive, the traffic authority will turn the driver, the vehicle, and the documents over to the National Civil Police.
- In the case of a driver involved in a traffic incident resulting in injured or deceased persons.
IMPORTANT CONSIDERATIONS:
- You are not required to pay fines that were not notified to you through a physical slip. Reference Article 31 of the Traffic Law and Article 186 of the Traffic Law Regulations when speaking with a PMT officer.
- For a fine to be considered validly imposed, after receiving the notice slip you must have had a 5-day period to appear before the Municipal Affairs Court and state your objection, providing supporting evidence. Base your position on Article 154 of the Municipal Code and Articles 31 and 186 of the Traffic Law when speaking with a PMT officer.
- A PMT officer cannot hold your license for fines that have not been imposed by a Municipal Affairs Court. Cite Article 33 of the Traffic Law when speaking with a PMT officer.
- Your vehicle cannot be impounded for failing to pay traffic fines. Rely on Article 5 of the Constitution and Article 31 of the Traffic Law when speaking with a PMT officer.
