New Delhi: People skipping toll fee on National Highways will now have to pay double the toll fees. Nonpayment beyond 15 days would attract vehicle-related curbs and restrictions on their movement, said the government. The Union Ministry of Transport and Highways came up with the new rules and decided to send e-notices to the defaulters.

The “unpaid user fee” is defined as toll applicable to a vehicle whose passage has been recorded by the electronic toll collection (ETC) infrastructure, but where applicable user fee was not received.

Delayed payment to attract higher penalties: Ministry

According to the National Highways Fee (Determination of Rates and Collection) (Second Amendment) Rules, 2026, if the fine is paid within 72 hours of the e-notice, then only the original toll fee will have to be paid. There will not be any extra fees in this case. Howevet, in case the payments are delayed, then higher penalty will have to be paid by the user.

The changes in methods of toll fee collection further strengthens the recovery mechanisms of unpaid toll fees. It also allows for digital enforcement of the tolls, specially on Highways which are barrier free.

What are e-notices?

According to a report in Network 18, vehicle owners will receive an e-notice in case they skip tolls. This is a technology-driven electronic notice (e-notice) system, which will be issued to registered vehicle owners. The notice will contain their vehicle details, date and location of passage.

Those who skip tolls on National Highways will receive these notices via either SMS, Emails, mobile-based applications or any other electronic means. These will also be available on certain online portals, designated specifically for this purpose.

The national electronic toll collection system will also now be linked to the VAHAN database, so as to easily identify the vehicles involved in the act and then make toll collections much easier and faster.

Apart from this, the government has also made provisions for addressing grievances. Any affected driver can submit a representation on the designated portal within 72 hours of receiving an e-notice regarding unpaid toll fees. This representation needs to be examined and disposed of by the concerned authorities within 5 days.

This amendment is set to enhance transparency in toll collections at the National Highways in India.