PUC Parivahan: Validity, Online Download and Penalties

What Rule 115(7) requires

Rule 115(7) of the CMVR (Central Motor Vehicles Rules), 1989, says every motor vehicle must carry a valid PUC certificate issued by an agency authorised by the state government once one year has passed from the date the vehicle was first registered. So the rule does not require a PUC in the vehicle's first year; a new vehicle comes with the manufacturer's Form 22, which is the maker's first pollution and roadworthiness certificate for it. The certificate must be kept in the vehicle and shown on demand. Since a November 2018 change to Rule 139, reported by legal websites, it can be shown in physical or electronic form. Electronic documents shown through DigiLocker or the mParivahan app are accepted under a 2018 MoRTH advisory.

PUC validity under the current rule

The 12-month period for BS-IV came from an amendment notified on 23 February 2012, as stated in a Lok Sabha reply. When a state order fixed six months for BS-IV and BS-VI vehicles, the Kerala High Court held in November 2023 that it breached Rule 115(7), so the 12-month period applies to those vehicles.

How to read the calculator result

The calculator adds 6 or 12 months to your last PUC date, depending on the emission norm you choose. If you have never taken a PUC, it counts one year from the first registration date. For the RC, it adds 15 years to the first registration date, which is when a private (non-transport) vehicle's registration needs renewal under Section 41(7). For transport vehicles, Andhra Pradesh treats renewal of the fitness certificate as renewal of registration, so that date does not apply to them.

The common PUC format

MoRTH, the central road transport ministry, notified a single PUC format for the whole country on 14 June 2021. Its main features:

• A QR code on the certificate.
• PUC data linked to the National Register of vehicles.
• The owner's mobile number is mandatory, and an SMS alert is sent for validation and fees.
• A rejection slip when a vehicle fails the emission test.

Linking PUC data with Vahan goes back to G.S.R. 527(E) of 6 June 2018. A sample Uttar Pradesh certificate in Form 59 says it is produced by the system through the national register and needs no signature. Under the 2021 rules, an enforcement officer may direct in writing or electronically that a vehicle be tested at an authorised centre. If the owner ignores that, the registering authority may suspend the RC and any permit until a valid PUC is produced.

Checking and downloading your PUC on the PUC parivahan portal

The page usually cited for this is vahan.parivahan.gov.in/puc, which people type as vahan parivahan gov in puc, www vahan parivahan gov in puc or puc parivahan.gov.in. Another secondary source cites puc.parivahan.gov.in; neither could be opened by us, and the Vahan path is the more commonly cited one. As described by a secondary source, the steps are:

1. Open the Vahan PUC page and choose the PUC Certificate option.
2. Enter the registration number.
3. Enter the last 5 characters of the chassis number and the captcha.
4. If a valid certificate exists, view it and print or download it.

Labels on that page get renamed from time to time, so rely on what you see on screen. Searches such as parivahan sewa puc, puc parivahan sewa or parivahan pollution check all lead to this same Vahan page. If the search returns nothing, ask the PUC centre that tested your vehicle. Third-party guides also say the Vahan vehicle search shows PUC details; see vehicle details.

PUC renewal online and test fees

PUC renewal online is not possible in the sense of skipping the test. Renewal means taking the vehicle to an authorised PUC centre for a fresh emission test. The certificate is issued by the system through the national register, and only checking and downloading it happen online. Keep your mobile number on the vehicle record up to date, because the PUC system sends SMS alerts to it. Andaman and Nicobar authorities have asked PUC centres to check this before giving service. Our Vahan 4.0 guide explains mobile number updates.

Test fees are set by states and change from time to time. These examples exclude GST:

Penalty for driving without a valid PUC

Driving a vehicle that breaks air pollution, noise or road safety standards, which covers having no valid PUC, is an offence under Section 190(2) of the MV Act as amended from 1 September 2019.

Before the 2019 amendment the fine was Rs 1,000 for a first offence and Rs 2,000 for later ones. These are upper limits set by the Act. A fresh PUC test costs a small fraction of the maximum fine.

Delhi and NCR no PUC, no fuel rules

These rules have changed several times, so the dates matter.

• 18 December 2025: Delhi began enforcing "No PUC, No Fuel". Petrol pumps refuse fuel to vehicles without a valid PUC, with ANPR (automatic number plate recognition) cameras, voice alerts at pumps and transport and police teams. Non-BS-VI vehicles registered outside Delhi were barred from entering at the same time.
• 23 December 2025: the Delhi Cabinet decided to keep "No PUC, No Fuel" all year, even after GRAP-IV curbs were lifted.
• 15 May 2026: CAQM Direction No. 101 required petrol and CNG stations across Delhi-NCR to stop refuelling vehicles without a valid PUC from 1 October 2026.
• 3 October 2026 (news report): Haryana's transport department told fuel stations in its NCR districts, covering petrol, diesel and CNG, to check PUC before refuelling and display no-PUC boards, with manual checks until ANPR cameras are installed.

The exact list of NCR districts and the camera rollout are not clear from our sources, and enforcement updates we confirm are added to the status panel. If you drive into Delhi-NCR, keep a valid PUC.

Draft PUC validity changes of July 2026

This is a draft proposal, not law. MoRTH published draft amendment G.S.R. 664(E) on 24 July 2026, inviting objections for 30 days from 27 July 2026. As of October 2026 we have not confirmed that it was made final. It proposes:

Under the draft, new periods would apply only from the first renewal after the rule takes effect, and a renewal done within 10 days before expiry would run from the expiry date. Until then the calculator and the table above use the current 6 and 12 month rule.

PUC, RC renewal and other records

A PUC is separate from the RC (Registration Certificate), but they meet at two points. First, a lapsed PUC can lead to suspension of the RC if you ignore an officer's direction to get tested. Second, a private vehicle's RC is valid for 15 years from issue and must then be renewed in five-year blocks, with higher fees for older vehicles; see vehicle registration for the fee table. Our RC status and RC download guides cover the registration side. The home page links every other Parivahan service we explain.