Effective from: as of 1 January 2021 Decree No. 45/2020. (XI. 28.) of the Minister for Innovation and Technology on motorways, expressways and main roads subject to toll payment and on the tolls payable Based on the powers granted by Section 48 (3) (g) of Act I of 1988 on Road Transport, and acting in my competence under Section 116 (18) of Government Decree No. 94/2018 (V. 22.) on the functions and competences of members of the Government – in agreement with the Minister of Finance acting in their competence under Section 64 (1) (1) of Government Decree No. 94/2018 (V. 22.) on the functions and competences of members of the Government – I hereby order the following: 1. Toll payment obligation Section 1 A user charge (hereinafter: road toll) and, where the user charge was not paid, a surcharge shall be paid for the use – under a relationship governed by civil law – of highway sections specified in Annex 1 by vehicles falling into a vehicle category as per this Decree and their trailers (hereinafter collectively: vehicle), with the exceptions set out in Section 2. Section 2 (1) No road toll shall be paid for: a) motor vehicles operated by the Hungarian Defense Forces, the Parliamentary Guard, and the law enforcement agencies of Hungary, b) motor vehicles operated by foreign armed forces or international military organizations stationed, serving in or passing through Hungary, c) motor vehicles with registration numbers issued in Hungary and entitled to use emergency lights and sirens, regardless of whether such signals are on when driving on the toll section, d) motor vehicles – operated by the road operator managing the relevant toll sections – performing operator tasks, e) motor vehicles – operated by the transport authority – performing roadside inspection, f) motor vehicles not falling under the scope of Subsection e), operated by toll enforcement organizations and performing toll enforcement functions, g) motor vehicles ordered to perform transportation tasks in crisis situations caused by mass migration, h) on the basis of the principle of reciprocity, motor vehicles operated by the diplomatic corps of countries that grant the same exemption to vehicles operated by the Hungarian diplomatic corps, i) operators of motor vehicles transporting humanitarian aid, during the discharge of such duties, j) operators of motor vehicles involved in the prevention or control of damage caused by disasters as specified within the meaning of the Disaster Relief Act, during the discharge of such duties, as well motor vehicles used by members of volunteer fire brigades, municipal and institutional fire departments, and voluntary or mandatory civil protection units, in the course of the exercise ordered. (2) Authorized persons and entities under paragraph (1) shall only be exempted from toll payment on toll sections when using a vehicle whose registration number has been reported in advance in writing or by electronic means, verifying authorization, to the transport administration authority and which has been registered accordingly by the transport administration authority. Authorized persons and entities under paragraph (1) shall report any and all changes to the authorization as per paragraph (1) to the transport administration authority without delay. (3) The authorized persons and entities under paragraph (2) – with the exception of vehicles set out in paragraph (1) c) – are eligible for toll-free road use as long as the toll exemption under paragraph (1) applies in respect of the given vehicle, but no later than 31 January of the year following the year of notification as per paragraph (2). The toll payment exemption for a vehicle as set out in paragraph (1) c) applies as long as such vehicle is entitled to use emergency lights and sirens. (4) If the authorized persons and entities under paragraph (1) have failed to fulfil their reporting obligations as per paragraph (2) and incur surcharge payment obligations as a result of failure to pay toll, they can be exempted from surcharge payment upon subsequent certification by the transport administration authority of the existence of the conditions set out in paragraph (1) and by paying the administrative fee as per Section 20 for each registration number, which is payable within the 90-day limitation period from the receipt of the first payment notice. This 90-day deadline shall be deemed observed if the authorized person or entity has submitted its request to the transport administration authority in due time. (5) No surcharge shall be imposed for road use on an otherwise toll section as long as the public road is closed for traffic or traffic is restricted along and diverted from such road, if the toll road section concerned has been designated as a diversion by the bodies under Section 14 (1) (a) and (b) of the Act I of 1988 on Road Transport (hereinafter: Public Roads Traffic Act) and the road operator and the body entitled to control toll payment has been notified in advance or simultaneously where appropriate. Unless the body ordering the restriction or diversion otherwise notifies, vehicles without a road use authorization shall only use the toll road designated as a diversion between the point of entry to the toll section and the next exit to a road junction or, in the case of the closure of such exit to a road junction, the next open exit to a road junction along the toll road section concerned. The body ordering the road closure or traffic restriction or diversion shall inform road users, by way of media service providers, about the toll road sections designated as a diversion as well as about the duration of the closure, restriction or diversion. (6) No surcharge shall be imposed if the body legally authorized to control traffic diverts road traffic or part thereof – without designating a diversion as per paragraph (5) – to a road section subject to toll payment in respect of road use justified by this measure. (7) No road toll shall be payable for the duration of the prevention or control of damage by vehicles participating therein, if such vehicles perform these activities free of charge and their registration numbers have been reported to the public road operator or National Toll Payment Services Plc. (hereinafter: NTPS Plc.) in advance, or their registration numbers or the expected duration of such activities are reported to NTPS Plc. and the transport administration authority before the commencement thereof or on the second business days after at the latest by the body established in order to perform general police activities. (8) Vehicles involved in cross-border activities based on an international treaty entered into with a view to enabling cooperation on preventing cross-border crime and combatting organized crime shall, based on a certificate issued by the approving body under the treaty concerned, be exempt, for the duration of the operation, from the payment of the surcharge. 2. Method of toll payment Section 3 (1) Pursuant to this Decree, the payment of the toll shall give rise to road use authorization (hereinafter: authorization) in respect of a vehicle falling into the given vehicle category and with the vehicle registration number. The authorization shall be purchased in advance of starting the use of the toll section, for a period under paragraph (2) and a vehicle category under Section 8 (1). The authorization thus purchased shall give rise to road use authorization from the time of purchase for the subsequent period specified in paragraph (2), with the exceptions set out in Section 16 (1). (2) The authorizations providing road use authorization for the toll sections specified in Annex 1 may be purchased for the following durations: a) weekly authorization: for the starting day specified by the customer and for the following 9 days, until the 24th hour on the 9th day; b) monthly authorization: from the starting date specified by the customer until the 24th hour of the same day (by number) of the following month. If there is no such day in the month of expiration, then until the 24th hour of the last day of the month; c) annual authorization: from the first day of the given year until the 24th hour of 31 January of the following year. (3) In respect of points a) and b) of paragraph (2), if the day of the purchase of authorization and starting day of the duration of authorization as specified by the customer falls on the same day, authorization shall be valid from the time of purchase. In respect of point c) of paragraph (2), in case of purchase during the year, the annual authorization provides road use authorization from the time of purchase, with the exceptions set out in Section 16 (1). (4) An authorization valid for the toll road network of one or more counties (hereinafter: county authorization) may be purchased for vehicles falling into one of the vehicle categories set out herein. County authorization provides road use authorization from the first day of the given year until the 24th hour of 31 January of the following year. In the case of the purchase of county authorization purchased during the year, it provides road use authorization from the time of purchase. The scope of highways that may be used with county authorization is contained in Annex 1. (5) The county authorization purchased for Pest County also provides authorization to use the toll road network within the administrative borders of Budapest. No county authorization may be purchased solely for the territory of the capital city. (6) The authorizations are available to purchase at a) NTPS Plc.’s own points of sale or b) at the points of sale of resellers contracted with NTPS Plc. (hereinafter: sellers), as well as through electronic sales channels.