In short
The bank must have disclosed any fee for it before you signed. China Bank charges nothing to pre-terminate its AutoPlus loan, and Metrobank charges a flat PHP 7,500 fee.
Several banks, including BPI and BDO, state no pre-termination fee at all. Paying off early usually beats letting interest keep building in the 25.80% to 32.52% range, once you confirm your own bank's fee in writing.
- Right to prepay
- RA 11765 lets you prepay in full or in part any time before maturity
- Bank with zero pre-termination fee
- China Bank AutoPlus
- Flat pre-termination fee
- Metrobank charges PHP 7,500 (fee table covers both car and home loans, not split by product)
- Conflicting fee claim
- RCBC's marketing page says zero fees; its own loan contract sets an unpublished service-fee rate
- Payoff statement turnaround
- China Bank same day by email; BDO 3 banking days; BPI 1 to 2 days
Can you pay off a car loan early in the Philippines?
Yes. Republic Act 11765 lets you prepay a car loan in whole or in part at any time before the loan matures.
The bank cannot refuse a payoff request just because the term is not finished.
The same law requires the bank to disclose any prepayment fee before you sign, not after. BSP Circular 1160 repeats this rule for every bank and adds detail.
A bank may charge a reasonable administrative cost for paying early. For a fixed-rate loan, it may separately charge a cost tied to the gap between your rate and the current market rate.
On a variable-rate loan, the bank may not charge you for interest it would have earned in the future.
The bank must also be able to show you how it worked out the fee, using your amount prepaid, your remaining term, and the rate.
If a staff member cannot explain the computation, ask for it in writing before you pay.
This guide covers paying off your own loan early with your own cash. If you want to move the loan to a new lender instead, read our refinancing guide.
If your current lender is changing your terms because of hardship, that is restructuring, a different process. For the full catalogue of fees a car loan can carry, see our penalty charges guide.
- Legal basis
- RA 11765, Sec. 8(b)(3)
- Regulator rule
- BSP Circular 1160, Series of 2022
- What a bank may charge
- Reasonable administrative costs, plus a rate-difference cost on fixed-rate loans
- What a bank may not charge
- Foregone future interest on a variable-rate loan
How much do banks charge to pay off a car loan early?
The fee is not the same everywhere. China Bank's AutoPlus loan can be pre-terminated free of charge, confirmed on its own servicing FAQ.
Metrobank charges a flat PHP 7,500 Pre-payment Processing Fee. Its fee table covers both car and home loans without splitting the two.
Confirm with Metrobank that the figure applies to your account before you budget for it.
RCBC is the one to watch closely. Its own marketing page advertises zero pre-termination fees.
But its Promissory Note with Chattel Mortgage sets a service fee equal to the Disclosure Statement rate times the amount you prepay. That rate is left blank in the template.
Ask RCBC for your own Disclosure Statement rate before you assume the marketing claim applies to your contract.
EastWest states only that a prepayment processing fee applies "in such amount as may be determined" by the bank, with no stated figure.
UnionBank does not charge a separate pre-termination fee; you pay the outstanding balance plus interest computed on an annuity basis. BPI, BDO, and Security Bank state no pre-termination fee for a standard car purchase loan on their own fee pages.
One figure you may see online does not apply here. Landbank's own fee poster lists a 1% pre-termination fee, minimum PHP 500, but that row sits under its Salary Loan section, not its Vehicle Loan.
| Bank | Product | Pre-termination fee | Source note |
|---|---|---|---|
| China Bank | AutoPlus car loan | None. Pre-termination is free of charge. | Stated on China Bank's own AutoPlus servicing FAQ |
| Metrobank | Car loan | PHP 7,500 flat Pre-payment Processing Fee | Fee table covers both home and car loans, not split by product |
| RCBC | Car loan with Chattel Mortgage | Marketing page says zero fees; the loan contract sets a service fee equal to the Disclosure Statement rate times the principal prepaid, rate left blank in the template | Conflict between RCBC's marketing page and its own contract |
Always get the fee in writing before you pay. A bank's marketing page and its loan contract can say different things, as RCBC's own documents show.
How to pay off your car loan early
Follow these steps once you have decided to pay off the balance with your own cash, not through a new loan.
- Request your payoff statement
Contact your bank's loan servicing desk and ask for a Statement of Account to fully pay, also called a payoff quote. China Bank issues this by email at cbgopautopru@chinabank.ph; Metrobank's Consumer Lending Group can be reached at (02) 88-700-700. Ask how many days the quoted amount stays valid, since BPI's own payoff quote is valid for the same day only.
- Loan account number
- Valid government ID
- Confirm the fee and the computation
Ask the bank to show how it worked out any pre-termination fee. Also ask whether it is crediting back interest you already paid on an add-on-rate loan. BSP requires the bank to be able to show this working, not just hand you a total.
- Statement of Account
- Fee computation breakdown
- Pay the exact confirmed amount, on the confirmed date
China Bank's process is typical: the confirmed date cannot fall on a non-banking day, and you pay over the counter or by authorization to debit. Paying a different amount, or on a different date, can void the quote and force a new request.
- Official receipt
- Proof of payment
- Collect your release documents
Ask for your Cancellation of Mortgage, PHP 800 at both BPI and Metrobank, and your OR/CR. The chattel mortgage encumbrance still needs to be cleared from your registration; see our chattel mortgage guide for the LRA Terminate Notice and LTO steps.
- Cancellation of Mortgage
- OR/CR
- Valid IDs of all signatories
Can you make a partial prepayment instead?
Yes, most banks let you pay a lump sum toward the principal without closing the loan. BPI charges a PHP 500 processing fee for every partial payment request.
It applies the amount to lower your monthly amortization while keeping the same term.
RCBC does not charge its service fee on a partial prepayment, only on paying the full loan before maturity. China Bank asks for at least six months of amortization already paid, plus 2 to 3 banking days' notice.
Then it applies a lump sum and sends you a revised schedule.
Is paying off your car loan early worth it?
Paying off a China Bank AutoPlus loan early costs nothing extra, since its pre-termination fee is zero. It is worth doing as soon as you have the cash.
On an add-on-rate loan elsewhere, a flat fee like Metrobank's PHP 7,500 is usually smaller than months of interest still building. That interest builds at the current 25.80% to 32.52% range.
So paying early still tends to save money, once you confirm your bank is not charging back a waived promo fee on top.
The one case to pause on is RCBC, until you get your own Disclosure Statement rate. A service fee with an unpublished rate could offset some of the interest you save, so ask before you commit the cash.
What to check before you pay
A few checks protect you from paying more than you should, or waiting longer than you should for your release.
5 of 5 still to check