Cash Ends at National Highway Toll Plazas From April 2026

You roll up to a National Highway toll booth on 11 April 2026 with cash in hand, and the cashier waves you off: from 10 April 2026, cash payment is being discontinued at National Highway fee (toll) plazas. You must pay digitally, primarily through FASTag or UPI. If you have no valid FASTag, you can still pass, but you pay through UPI at 1.25 times (125 percent) of the normal toll fee.

Short on time? Jump to the “What to do before 10 April” checklist below and make sure your FASTag is active and recharged.

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), acting through the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), has moved National Highway tolling to a fully digital model. The change comes through a Gazette notification amending the National Highways Fee (Determination of Rates and Collection) Rules.

From 10 April 2026, the cash lanes at National Highway fee plazas are being removed. Toll is to be collected digitally. FASTag stays the main method, and UPI is the backup at the booth.

This is the next step after an earlier amendment that took effect on 15 November 2025. That earlier change already set higher charges for vehicles without a valid FASTag. The April 2026 step goes further and ends cash collection itself.

The stated purpose is simple: cut queues at toll booths, speed up highway travel, and make toll collection fully digital.

Note: there is no nationwide satellite or GNSS based tolling running on the ground yet. For now, the rules you face at the booth are FASTag and UPI only.

FASTag is an RFID (radio frequency identification) prepaid tag stuck to your windscreen. Banks and NHAI issue it, and you recharge it like a wallet. It runs on the National Electronic Toll Collection (NETC) system, which reads the tag and deducts the fee as you pass.

1. Check that a FASTag is fixed to your windscreen and is not blacklisted or expired.
2. Recharge the FASTag so the balance covers your trip. A low balance can hold you up at the lane.
3. Link the FASTag to a bank account or wallet you actually use, so auto top-up works.
4. Keep a working UPI app on your phone as a backup for the booth.
5. If you have no FASTag, apply for one now so you are not paying 1.25 times the fee by UPI.

Dr. Shrawan Kumar Pathak drives from his town to the district court most weeks on a National Highway. Through March 2026 he paid cash whenever his FASTag balance ran low. In early April he checked his tag, found it almost empty, and recharged it with enough for a month of trips. On 11 April he crossed the same plaza without slowing down, because the cash window he used to rely on was already closed. His neighbour, who had no FASTag, paid by UPI that day at 1.25 times the fee and decided to apply for a tag the same evening.

If a toll charge looks wrong, or a stretch of highway is tolled in a way you cannot explain, the RTI Act 2005 is a direct tool. You can file a Right to Information application with NHAI or MoRTH to obtain the fee notification for a specific plaza, the approved toll rate for a stretch, or records behind a disputed FASTag deduction.

A clear RTI request names the plaza, the highway section, and the exact information you want, such as the current rate notification or the basis for a higher charge. The Public Information Officer (PIO) must reply within 30 days. If you get no reply or an evasive one, you can file a first appeal.

For fast service issues, also use NHAI's 1033 highway helpline to raise FASTag complaints. RTI is for the records and the paper trail; 1033 is for the immediate fix.

You can draft your application with the AI RTI Drafter, track the 30 day clock with the Timeline Tracker, and if the PIO stalls, escalate with the First Appeal Builder. For the full method, read The RTI Playbook and the RTI Act 2005.

No. From 10 April 2026, cash payment is being discontinued at National Highway fee plazas. You pay digitally, mainly by FASTag or by UPI at the lane.

You are still allowed to pass. But you must pay through UPI at 1.25 times, that is 125 percent, of the applicable toll fee. A valid, recharged FASTag is the cheaper option.

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, acting through NHAI, ordered it. It comes through a Gazette notification amending the National Highways Fee (Determination of Rates and Collection) Rules, effective from 10 April 2026.

Yes. An amendment effective 15 November 2025 already set higher charges for vehicles without a valid FASTag. The April 2026 step builds on that by removing the cash lanes entirely.

No. There is no nationwide satellite or GNSS based tolling running on the ground. At the booth, the rules are FASTag and UPI. Do not assume any other system applies.

File an RTI with NHAI or MoRTH naming the plaza and the highway stretch, and ask for the current fee notification. The PIO must reply within 30 days. You can also call the 1033 helpline.

Raise it on the 1033 helpline first. For records and a formal trail, file an RTI to NHAI asking for the deduction details and the rule behind the charge. Use the reply to support any refund claim.

The aim is to cut queues at toll booths, make highway travel faster, and move toll collection fully digital. Removing cash lanes is meant to keep traffic moving through the plaza.

• Confirm a FASTag is on your windscreen and is active, not blacklisted.
• Recharge the FASTag so it has enough balance for your next trip.
• Install or update a UPI app as a booth backup.
• If you have no FASTag, start a fresh application today.
• Save NHAI's 1033 helpline number in your phone for FASTag complaints.

• How to apply for a FASTag in 2026
• New vehicle registration and RC in 2026
• Challan payment made under the wrong PAN
• How to claim vehicle insurance in 2026
• Vehicle NOC for inter state transfer in 2026

• MoRTH and NHAI Gazette notification, National Highways Fee (Determination of Rates and Collection) Rules amendment, 2025 to 2026.
• newsonair.gov.in, “Government to end cash payments at all National Highway toll plazas from April”.
• Business Standard and Autocar India coverage, April 2026.