The Indian government appears to be linking clearance of pending toll dues to key vehicle-related services such as ownership transfer, fitness renewal, and permits, so skipping tolls on national highways (NH) may now land vehicle owners in a series of administrative roadblocks.
Improving User Fee Compliance & Enhancing Efficiency of Electronic Toll Collection (ETC)
The notification of the Central Motor Vehicles (Second Amendment) Rules, 2026 was announced on Tuesday by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.
The introduced changes are mainly aimed at improving user fee compliance, enhancing the efficiency of Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) systems, and discouraging toll evasion on National Highways.
The Ministry further informed, “As per the provisions, a No Objection Certificate (NOC) for transfer of ownership or transfer of a vehicle from one State to another will not be granted until any unpaid user fee is cleared. In addition, renewal or generation of a Certificate of Fitness for vehicles will not be permitted unless outstanding user fee dues have been paid. For commercial vehicles seeking a National Permit, the amended rules make it mandatory that the vehicle must not have any unpaid user fee.”
It appears that the Ministry issued draft rules in July 2025 and “only after careful consideration of the feedback received, the Government of India has finalised and notified the amended rules”.
A New Definition Of ‘Unpaid User Fee’
The Ministry stated, “Under the amended rules, a new definition of ‘unpaid user fee’ has been introduced and it refers to the user fee payable for the use of a National Highway section, where Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) system has recorded the vehicle’s passage, but the applicable fee has not been received…”
Besides this, they have also made corresponding changes to ‘Form 28’ – an application for a NOC – which now requires applicants to disclose whether any demand for an unpaid user fee at a toll plaza is pending against the vehicle, along with relevant details.
The rules also enable the electronic issuance of relevant portions of ‘Form 28’ through the designated online portal while promoting the digital processes.
Here mentioned ‘Form 28’ is a key document which is required for transferring vehicle ownership to another state or district, confirming the vehicle has no pending taxes, challans, or legal issues.
According to the ministry, “These Amendments will also help in user fee collection after the implementation of the Multi-Lane Free Flow (MLFF) system, that will enable barrierless tolling on the National Highway network.”
They have further added that these changes will help NHAI move towards a transparent and technology-driven tolling system for sustained development and maintenance of the National Highway network across the country.
It seems that the Ministry has introduced a series of changes for more efficient toll collection on the national highways over the last few years.
