India has revised the validity of exempted FASTags for eligible Divyangjan and persons with disabilities (PwD) vehicles from 2 October 2026. The tag will now be valid for five years where the recorded disability is 70%–100% and three years where it is 40% to below 70%, replacing the earlier annual renewal cycle.
Key takeaways
- The revised guidelines take effect on 2 October 2026.
- Recorded disability of 70%–100% maps to five-year exempted FASTag validity.
- Recorded disability of 40% to below 70% maps to three-year validity.
- The exemption continues to depend on eligibility, supporting documents and the National Highways Fee Rules, 2008.
Illustrative image of an accessible toll-exemption process at an Indian highway plaza; not a photograph of a specific location. Credit: FuelPrice AI illustration.What changed from 2 October
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways said in its 1 October PIB release that the new framework will reduce repeated procedural formalities and bring more uniformity to the issuing and renewal of exempted FASTags. Earlier guidelines required eligible Divyangjan beneficiaries to renew the exemption every year.
Under the revised system, the validity period is linked to the disability percentage recorded in a valid Disability Certificate, Unique Disability Identity (UDID) Card or another applicable record. A FASTag issued for a recorded disability of 70% to 100% will be valid for five years. A tag issued for 40% to less than 70% will be valid for three years.
The thresholds describe the disability percentage recorded in the supporting document used for the application. They are not a new toll charge or a change to the mandatory FASTag system for ordinary private or commercial vehicles. This is a change to the validity of the exempted tag used by eligible beneficiaries.
Who can use the exempted FASTag
The government’s release covers vehicles specially designed and constructed for use by persons with physical disabilities, as well as vehicles registered under the ownership type “Divyangjan”. The exempted FASTag is issued against the disability percentage recorded in the accepted documents, so the vehicle category and the paperwork both matter.
The exemption described here is for the national-highway toll framework. It should not be read as a blanket waiver for every toll road operated by a state agency, local body or private concessionaire. Travellers need to check the rules that apply to a particular road if the route includes more than national-highway fee plazas.
What the change means for families and vehicle owners
The practical gain is fewer renewal cycles. A qualifying owner with a 70%–100% disability record will not face the same annual exempted-FASTag renewal cycle under the new validity rule; the corresponding period is five years. For a 40% to below 70% record, the period is three years. The longer validity is not a permanent exemption: renewal after expiry remains subject to continued eligibility and the applicable fee rules.
The PIB release sets out the new periods but does not describe an automatic re-dating process for every exempted tag issued under the earlier one-year system. That operational detail matters for anyone whose current tag is close to expiry. Check the tag’s status with the issuing channel and keep the relevant disability document, UDID record and vehicle-registration details consistent before a planned highway journey.
Checks before a highway trip
- Confirm that the disability percentage on the valid supporting document falls within the 40%–below 70% or 70%–100% band used by the revised guidelines.
- Check that the vehicle is in an eligible category, including the required “Divyangjan” ownership registration where applicable.
- Verify that the exempted FASTag is active and that its validity date is visible in the issuing system; do not assume that the new period has been applied automatically.
- Carry the documents used for the exemption and check the route’s toll coverage if the trip includes non-national-highway roads.
For the ordinary toll amount on a route, the toll-charge and trip-cost calculator can help separate the national-highway portion from other road charges. The calculator does not replace the exemption approval or the issuing authority’s tag-status record.
For a longer drive, the road-trip planner can help map stops and route details, while the FASTag guide on recharge, KYC and avoiding double charges explains the wider tag system. These are separate from the eligibility and validity decision for an exempted Divyangjan FASTag.
What to watch next
The immediate change is the move from annual renewal to a three-year or five-year validity period. The next practical test will be how issuing channels display the revised expiry date for new and renewing beneficiaries, and how applicants resolve mismatches between the disability record, vehicle registration and FASTag account.
Until those operational details are clear, the safe reading of the rule is limited: the exemption remains document-based, tied to the recorded disability percentage and renewable only while eligibility continues. A longer validity reduces paperwork, but it does not remove the need to keep the underlying records valid.
Sources
- Press Information Bureau, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, “Government of India Revises Guidelines for Issuance of Exempted FASTags for Divyangjan and PwD Vehicles”, 1 Oct 2026.
- The Times of India, “PwD car owners get longer FASTag free-pass validity”, 30 Sep 2026.
- Moneycontrol, “FASTag rules changed for Divyangjan: Who gets 3-year, 5-year toll exemption from October 2?”, 1 Oct 2026.
