The Ministry of Home Affairs, through the Guyana Police Force (GPF), is considering transitioning the application and payment for vehicle tint permits to an online portal in the New Year.
This effort follows the ministry’s recent collaboration with GTT’s Mobile Money Guyana (MMG) for payment facilities at the General Registers Office (GRO) and immigration services.
Subject Minister Robeson Benn, in an invited comment, told the DPI that the GPF should be commended for taking the lead in implementing the services since, “tinting is a tedious job now in the way it is being administered”.
He said the new process, which the ministry hopes can become a reality in the new year, will reduce the inconvenience police officers face when dealing with drivers who either have too much tint or have tinted vehicles without permits.
“This inconsistency creates unwanted confrontation that is not needed and we want to take away all of that” the home affairs minister noted.
He said the MMG payment portal would reduce the burden sometimes caused by the application process.
“What we are going to establish with MMG and our people [home affairs ministry] is to establish a way for people to put in their application online, verifying that application, having the payment being made for the application, and with a reduction in paper and [with the] verification of payment, and the approval, which will then be forwarded to the police and the applicant, this [process] will also identify the period for which the tint permit is valid for [when approved]”, the minister said.
He added that, “The verification process tends to cause unnecessary delays because applicants fail to submit all the relevant information and, in many cases, submit incorrect information.”
The Motor Vehicle Traffic Act permits 35 per cent light penetration into the vehicle, which a tintometer can measure.
This permissible percentage of tint complies with the law, which requires that a person looking from outside must be able to recognise all individuals in the vehicle without difficulty.
If a vehicle fails the required level or the light penetration, the certifying officer can revoke the tint permit, which could lead to the prosecution of the driver. (DPI)
