In short
The other is cash-out refinancing that borrows against a car you already own. Security Bank and Metrobank support the takeout route; EastWest, Maybank, Asialink and SB Finance Car4Cash offer cash-out loans against your car's value.
Metrobank's own switching fee on the loan you are leaving is 2% of your balance or PHP 15,000, whichever is higher. Before you apply anywhere, compare terms across our full table of 18 lenders.
Switching lenders carries its own fees on the loan you are leaving.
- Bank-to-bank takeout lenders
- Security Bank, Metrobank (named purpose or fee, no rate stated)
- Cash-out refinancing lenders
- EastWest AutoCash, Maybank, Asialink, SB Finance Car4Cash, China Bank, BPI
- EastWest AutoCash rate range
- 0.68% to 0.88% add-on per month, by loan-to-value
- Metrobank takeout/refinancing fee
- 2% of outstanding loan balance or PHP 15,000, whichever is higher
- Metrobank pre-payment processing fee
- PHP 7,500, separate from the takeout fee
- Maybank Auto Loan Refinancing
- Up to 60% of appraised value, up to 24 months, 3 days to process
- Break-even formula for refinancing
- Not stated by any Philippine lender or regulator
What does refinancing a car loan actually mean in the Philippines?
Refinancing a car loan in the Philippines means one of two different things. Lenders do not use the word the same way you might expect.
The first is a bank-to-bank takeout. Your new lender pays off your current loan directly, then registers a fresh chattel mortgage on your car.
Security Bank names this purpose outright: "Refinancing of a second hand car loan take-out". Metrobank does not state a takeout product page, but its own fee schedule lists a processing fee for a "loan takeout/refinancing".
That means the bank clearly processes these requests.
The second is cash-out refinancing. You use a car you already own, fully paid or with a low remaining balance, as collateral for a new loan.
You are not paying off an old loan; you are borrowing against equity you already have. EastWest AutoCash, Maybank Auto Loan Refinancing, Asialink Car Refinancing Sangla OR/CR, and SB Finance Car4Cash all work this way.
Most people searching for a car loan refinance actually want the second product. No Philippine lender states a program that simply lowers your rate on a loan you are still paying somewhere else.
The only route is a full takeout that requalifies you from scratch.
- Bank-to-bank takeout
- New lender pays off the old lender, registers a new chattel mortgage (Security Bank, Metrobank)
- Cash-out refinancing
- Borrow against a car you already own or nearly own (EastWest, Maybank, Asialink, SB Finance Car4Cash)
How does a bank-to-bank car loan takeout work?
A takeout replaces your current loan with a new one from a different lender. Security Bank lists refinancing of a second-hand car loan take-out as an accepted purpose.
This appears on both its main car loan page and its pre-owned car loan page. Its stated second-hand car loan terms, which are not stated as takeout-specific, run up to 70% of appraised value over 12 to 48 months.
Approval comes in 3 to 5 banking days once your documents are complete.
The process runs through five steps, and each one produces paperwork you need to keep.
- Get a payoff statement from your current lender
Ask your current bank for a written statement of your outstanding balance as of a specific date. The new lender needs this exact figure to size your takeout loan.
- Outstanding balance / payoff statement
- Apply to the new lender
Submit the payoff statement with your OR/CR copy, valid ID, and income proof. The new lender underwrites this as a fresh loan, not a simple transfer.
- OR/CR copy
- Valid government ID
- Proof of income
- Payoff statement
- New lender disburses funds to settle the old loan
Approved proceeds go to your old lender to close that account, not to you directly.
- Loan agreement
- Disclosure statement
- New lender registers its own chattel mortgage
The new lender records a fresh security interest over your car. See how chattel mortgage registration works for the mechanics; a takeout does not skip this step.
- Chattel mortgage / security agreement
- Old lender releases the old encumbrance
Your original lender must file a release once its balance is fully settled, so the old lien no longer shows against your car.
- Cancellation of mortgage / termination notice
- Updated LTO Certificate of Registration
How does cash-out refinancing against your own car work?
Cash-out refinancing treats your car as collateral for new money, not as something you are paying off elsewhere. EastWest calls AutoCash "a refinancing solution" in its own March 2026 announcement.
It lends up to 70% of your car's appraised value over terms up to 48 months. The credit decision comes in 1 to 3 banking days.
The rate depends on how much you borrow against the car's value, not on one flat headline number. At 50% loan-to-value the add-on rate is 0.68% a month.
Above 50% up to 60% LTV it rises to 0.78%. Above 60% up to 70% LTV it is 0.88%.
Your car must be registered in your name and no more than 10 years old. If it is still encumbered with a bank other than EastWest, EastWest will not accept it.
If it is encumbered with EastWest itself, your new loan must be larger than what you still owe there.
Maybank Auto Loan Refinancing lends up to 60% of appraised value over terms up to 24 months, and Maybank states processing takes 3 days. It accepts cars almost 10 years old.
Asialink offers Car Refinancing Sangla OR/CR, where your OR and CR sit with the lender as collateral, for cars from 2009 model year onward. Asialink does not state a rate or LTV cap.
Applications usually take 5 business days. SB Finance's Car4Cash is a related product: an unsecured loan based on a copy of your OR/CR.
It lends PHP 100,000 to PHP 2,000,000, up to 80% of appraised value, over 12, 18, 24 or 36 months. The rate runs 1.25% to 2.00%, depending on the car's age and term.
China Bank and BPI both allow a multi-purpose loan secured by your car, though neither states a rate.
| Lender | Maximum loan-to-value | Term | Processing |
|---|---|---|---|
| EastWest AutoCash | 70% of appraised value | Up to 48 months | Credit decision in 1-3 banking days |
| Maybank Auto Loan Refinancing | 60% of appraised value | Up to 24 months | 3 days to process |
| SB Finance Car4Cash | 80% of appraised value | 12, 18, 24 or 36 months | 5-7 banking days once complete |
| Asialink Sangla OR/CR | Not stated | Not stated | Usually 5 business days |
EastWest will not accept a car that is encumbered with another bank. Check your target lender's stance on this before you apply.
What does it cost to switch lenders?
Two fees show up on Metrobank's own stated fee schedule and apply to anyone taking a loan out to another bank. The first is a processing fee for the takeout itself.
The second is a separate pre-payment processing fee. Settling your balance early to move to another lender is, from your old lender's side, an early payoff.
RCBC states a Loan Take-out fee of PHP 5,000, but only under its housing loan fee table. RCBC does not confirm this applies to auto loans.
Treat it as unverified for a car takeout until you ask RCBC directly.
On the releasing side, BPI charges a Cancellation of Mortgage fee of PHP 800 and an LTO Encumbrance fee of PHP 500. These apply when a BPI loan closes and the lien comes off your car.
Your new lender then charges its own new-loan costs, because a takeout is legally a new loan. These are chattel mortgage fees, documentary stamp tax, and notarial fees, the same charges anyone taking a first-time car loan would pay.
| Fee | Amount | Charged by | When it applies |
|---|---|---|---|
| Loan takeout/refinancing processing fee | 2% of outstanding balance or PHP 15,000, whichever is higher | Metrobank | Taking your loan out to another lender |
| Pre-payment processing fee | PHP 7,500 | Metrobank | Settling your Metrobank balance early to switch |
| Collateral-related request fee | PHP 5,000 | Metrobank | Change of collateral, registered owner, or substitution |
| Loan take-out fee | PHP 5,000 | RCBC | Stated under housing loans only; auto applicability not confirmed |
| Cancellation of mortgage fee | PHP 800 | BPI | Releasing the lien once your BPI loan is settled |
| LTO encumbrance fee | PHP 500 | BPI | Removing the encumbrance from your LTO registration |
How do you protect yourself when refinancing?
A takeout or a cash-out loan is a new contract with new terms. Work through this list before you sign anything.
5 of 5 still to check
What does the law require when you compare rates?
Philippine banks must disclose an effective interest rate on top of any add-on rate they quote. This falls under Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Truth in Lending disclosure rules.
An add-on rate looks smaller because it is calculated on your original loan amount for the whole term. It is not calculated on the shrinking balance you actually owe.
Ask any lender you are comparing for its effective rate before you decide a takeout is worth the switching cost.
Once your old loan is fully paid, the Land Registration Authority's Personal Property Security Registry comes into play. It requires a Terminate Notice to close out the registered security interest.
Confirm this filing happened. A takeout is not finished until your old lender's claim is actually removed from the registry, not just paid off on paper.