If you repaint your vehicle or put in a different engine, the record SAT holds for it no longer matches the vehicle on the road. Fixing that takes two steps:
- A current physical inspection of the vehicle. SAT says the DEIC must do it.
- A SAT registry update. You pay for it with form SAT-8933, and then you obtain an electronic circulation card and ownership certificate.
The PNC also runs an expertaje website with its own requirements for a color or engine change.
SAT handles this under one procedure, Cambio de color, motor o asientos (change of color, engine or seats). This page covers the color and engine cases.
Quick summary
- Who can file: the owner, a mandatario (agent) or a company’s legal representative. Bring a valid DPI, or a passport if you are a foreign national.
- Inspection: SAT requires a current physical inspection of the vehicle by the DEIC. The PNC expertaje site separately lists requirements for a color or engine change. The Ministerio de Gobernación says the PNC expertaje is free.
- SAT payment: fill in form SAT-8933 in Declaraguate and pay with Boleta SAT-2000 at an authorized bank. Then go to a SAT office or agency with your documents.
- Fees (SAT):
- Q60.00 for the change of color, engine or seats.
- Q60.00 for the ownership certificate.
- A further Q60.00 if you do not have the circulation card.
- Deadline: report the change within twenty (20) business days.
- Not published: the processing time, and how long the inspection stays valid.
Why the change must be registered
A copy of the regulation published on a municipal website (Acuerdo Gubernativo 134-2014) states in Article 27 that, to keep the vehicle register up to date, “los cambios en las características de los mismos deberán inscribirse en el Registro”. In English: changes in the vehicles’ characteristics must be registered.
SAT’s procedure page sets the deadline. You must report any change in the vehicle’s characteristics “dentro del plazo veinte (20) días hábiles de acuerdo con la ley”. That means within twenty business days, as the law provides. If you miss it, SAT says the sanction is the one in Article 94 of Decreto 6-91, the Código Tributario.
Before you start: SAT conditions
SAT’s procedure page sets the following conditions. Each one names its own scope, so check which applies to you:
- Agencia Virtual and digital RTU. Have a SAT Agencia Virtual account and up-to-date data in the digital RTU. SAT applies this to the owner, the agent, or the company and its legal representative.
- Circulation tax. Be up to date on the Impuesto Sobre Circulación de Vehículos Terrestres for all registered vehicles, not just the one being changed. SAT limits this condition to the “propietario o persona jurídica”, meaning the owner or the company.
- Tax solvency to download the new documents. SAT’s wording is “Estar solvente en obligaciones tributarias (IVA, ISR, ISO, otros.) para descargar los distintivos electrónicos”. In other words, you must be current on your taxes to download the electronic documents. SAT does not say which party this condition applies to.
Step 1: the vehicle inspection
SAT’s list asks for “Revisión física vigente del vehículo realizado por la DEIC”. That is a current physical inspection of the vehicle by the DEIC. Our sources do not say whether the DEIC inspection is the same procedure as the PNC expertaje described below. Confirm with SAT which inspection it will accept before you go.
The PNC runs a separate expertaje website. Its requirements page has a section for a color or engine change, which lists these documents:
| Document (PNC expertaje) | Notes |
|---|---|
| Original DPI, or passport if you are a foreign national | |
| Invoice for the new color or engine | Original wording: “FACTURA DEL NUEVO COLOR O MOTOR” |
| Circulation card or ownership certificate | If you have neither the card nor the title, bring an “ALZA EXTENDIDA POR LA SAT CON SUS RESPECTIVOS SELLOS Y FIRMA”. This is an ALZA issued by SAT, with its seals and signature. |
On cost, a Ministerio de Gobernación statement says you need to “realizar un expertaje el cual es gratuito en la PNC”. In English: the PNC expertaje is free.
When we checked on 15 October 2026, the PNC expertaje site was blocking automated access. We could not confirm its office locations or how its appointments work.
Step 2: pay form SAT-8933
- Log in to Declaraguate and fill in form SAT-8933. This is SAT’s form for replacing distinctives (distintivos), modifying or correcting data, and changing a vehicle’s use.
- Generate the Boleta SAT-2000 and pay it at one of the banks authorized in the system.
- Once you have paid, the system generates an annex: the Declaración para Modificaciones y Reposiciones (declaration for modifications and replacements). The owner, agent or legal representative must sign it.
Step 3: go to a SAT office or agency
Go to a SAT Oficina or Agencia Tributaria with the documents below. Your payments must already be made.
| Document (SAT) | Color change | Engine change |
|---|---|---|
| Valid DPI, or passport if a foreign national (owner, agent or legal representative) | Yes | Yes |
| Original current circulation card | Yes | Yes |
| Original ownership certificate | Yes | Yes |
| Proof of payment of form SAT-8933 | Yes | Yes |
| Signed annex (Declaración para Modificaciones y Reposiciones) | Yes | Yes |
| Current physical inspection by the DEIC | Yes | Yes |
| Proof of the change (see the sections below) | Invoice or notarial sworn statement | Invoice or deed, plus import papers if applicable |
| Third-party requirements | If someone else files for you | If someone else files for you |
If you do not have the original circulation card or ownership certificate, SAT refers you to a special-cases section. That section was not part of what we captured, so check it on SAT’s page before you go.
Engine change: the extra documents
Invoice or deed for the engine. Bring one of these:
- the original and a photocopy of the invoice for the engine change, in the vehicle owner’s name; or
- the testimonio (certified copy) of the public deed of sale of the engine, plus a photocopy.
The document must show the engine number. It must also show the displacement, cubic centimeters and fuel type, but SAT says those are needed “únicamente cuando difieran de los registrados”. That means only when they differ from what is already registered.
Imported engine. Bring the DUCA, DUA or Constancia de Levante de Mercancías (goods-release certificate), plus a photocopy.
Engine moved from another of your own vehicles. Bring an Acta Notarial de Declaración Jurada (notarial sworn statement). It must give the engine number and the plate of the vehicle receiving the engine. SAT warns that the vehicle the engine comes out of must be inactive through Retiro Definitivo (permanent withdrawal). See taking a vehicle off the SAT register.
Color change: the extra documents
- If a workshop did the work: bring an invoice in the vehicle owner’s name for the color-change service, “especificando el número de placa del vehículo y el nuevo color”. The invoice must state the vehicle’s plate number and the new color.
- If you did the work yourself: bring an Acta Notarial de Declaración Jurada in which you state that you made the color change yourself. It must give the plate number and the new color.
Fees
| Item | Amount | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Change of color, engine or seats (form SAT-8933) | Q60.00 | SAT |
| Ownership certificate (form SAT-8933) | Q60.00 | SAT |
| Additional charge if you do not have the circulation card | Q60.00 | SAT |
| PNC expertaje | Free | Ministerio de Gobernación |
SAT’s exact wording is “Por cambio de color, motor o asientos: Q60.00 y certificado de propiedad Q 60.00”. It adds: “En caso de no poseer tarjeta de circulación agregar el pago de Q 60.00 por la gestión”.
Step 4: get the new circulation card and certificate
SAT says you obtain the electronic circulation card and the electronic ownership certificate through the Agencia Virtual. You must be current on your tax obligations before you can download them. For background on the card itself, see our circulation card page.
From abroad, and for foreign residents
- Foreign residents use their passport where Guatemalans use a DPI. Both SAT and the PNC say so.
- Guatemalans abroad can act through a mandatario. SAT asks for the testimonio of the public deed of a current mandate, “debidamente inscrito en el Archivo General de Protocolo”, plus a photocopy. That means duly registered in the Archivo General de Protocolo.
- Authorized third parties: if someone else files for you, SAT says you must also present its third-party requirements. Those were not part of what we captured.
- No consular or fully remote option: we found none. SAT directs applicants to an office or agency, and the vehicle itself has to go through the physical inspection.
What is not published
- How long the procedure takes.
- How many days the physical inspection stays current. SAT only says it must be current.
- Any procedure for undoing an approved color or engine change.
Sources
- SAT, procedure page for a change of color, engine or seats: portal.sat.gob.gt (retrieved 15 October 2026).
- PNC, expertaje requirements: expertaje.pnc.gob.gt/requisitos (indexed official text, 15 October 2026).
- Ministerio de Gobernación, statement that the expertaje is free: mingob.gob.gt (retrieved 15 October 2026).
- Copy of the regulation, Article 27, hosted by the Municipalidad de Casillas: municasillas.gob.gt (retrieved 15 October 2026).