NHAI has made it mandatory to install a FASTag on your car before December 15th. The easiest way to get your FASTag is through Paytm. You would need to pay double the tax if you do not have a FASTag on your vehicle while crossing a toll after Dec 15.
In December 2017, the government made it mandatory for all new vehicles to have FASTag. Earlier, NHAI had installed one FASTag lane on all the 370 Toll Plazas to facilitate vehicles who want to avail the facility of the smart toll payment system. But on 19, October 2019, the government of India has made it mandatory to use FASTag on all National Highways from the 15th of December 2019. Drivers with no FASTag on their vehicles will be charged double the toll amount.
It is important to remember that a FASTag account is prepaid. You would need to recharge it before crossing a toll plaza. Your FASTag account can get blacklisted if adequate balance is not maintained in it.
How FASTag Works?
Vehicle owners must fix their Tag in the middle of the windscreen of their vehicle. The FASTag system automatically reads these RFID tags affixed on the vehicles. The payment is processed directly from the prepaid or savings account linked to the FASTag ID of the owners’ account
As a result vehicle doesn’t need to stop at the toll plaza to make the payment.The electronic toll collection system uses Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology to collect toll payments from vehicle owners.
How to Buy a FASTag for your car?
You can buy your FASTag through participating banks, or can directly apply for it on the Paytm app.
Paytm just requires you to upload a picture of the registration certificate (RC) of your vehicle, and pay ₹500. The FASTag is then delivered to your registered address.
You can find the list of such banks at https://www.npci.org.in/netc-live-members. You can directly link your bank account or your Paytm account with your FASTag. So whenever you cross a toll, the amount would be directly debited from your bank account.
You can also get your FASTag from a Toll plaza or registered issuing authority by submitting a form and vehicle documents.
Documents Needed to Create FASTag Account
Here is the list of documents you need to keep handy for successful registration of your FASTag account.
- Registration Certificate (RC) of your vehicle
- Passport Size picture of the vehicle owner
- Personal identification and address proof document of the owner. You can use your driving licence, Aadhar Card, or Voter ID card among others for the same.
How to Recharge your FASTag?
You can operate your FASTag account from the issuer’s agency’s online platform. You can recharge your account online through debit/credit card, RTGS, NEFT or by Net Banking. However, there is nominal convenience fees levied as a transaction processing fees for online recharges.
You can also use My FASTag app available on Android to monitor your account.
If you get your FASTag through Paytm, you can directly add money to it from the app itself.
Price of FASTag?
A one-time payment of ₹ 200-500 depending upon the class of your vehicle is charged for the new FASTag. The amount is refundable and refunded after the closure of the FASTag account.
At present, there are more than 470 toll plazas with the facility of FASTag. The smart system will surely save a lot of fuel and time for commuters.
So, in order to avoid last minute rush, and paying double the toll amount, apply for your FASTag today!
Happy Driving!
