HIGH-SPEED TOLL SYSTEM (HGS) FOR FOREIGN PLATED VEHICLES
High-Speed Toll System (Hızlı Geçiş Sistemi, Fast Transit System or HGS) is a highway payment and transit system that eliminates the need to stop at toll booths. HGS, which was first utilised in Turkey in 2012, uses RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) technology to pay at bridge and highway toll booths. This implies you won't be able to pay for tolls on highways or bridges using cash or a credit card. A toll-payment device must be installed in your car, whether it is your own or rented. An HGS toll sticker on a car windshield or windscreen looks like in Figure 1.
If your automobile is not equipped with such a device, traffic cameras will record your passing and levy a substantial fine on the car's owner, or the toll will be charged to your credit card by the car rental company.
PAY TOLL BY HGS FOR FOREIGN PLATED VEHICLES
Vehicles with foreign licence plates crossing Turkey's toll highways and bridges must be OGS or HGS subscribers with at least enough balance in their HGS accounts to cover the toll fee in order to avoid being punished.
Vehicle owners who cross the highways and bridges operated by the General Directorate of Highways without an HGS account or with insufficient balance in their accounts should open an HGS account within 15 days of the transition date and have enough balance to cover the minimum toll fee to avoid being penalised. Otherwise, these vehicles are not allowed to leave the country without paying the tolls at the customs gates if they exit the gates within 15 days after the date of illegal crossing. The payment method used on the website in question is especially significant since it allows vehicles with foreign licence plates to make payments without having to stand in line at the customs gates or create large lines.
In order to be able to make a payment, vehicle owners must first go to the Interactive Tax Office (ivd.gib.gov.tr) home page, as illustrated in Figure 2, and then choose the "Foreign Vehicle Payments" button under the "Fast Payment" section.
When the relevant section is opened, a payment screen as in Figure 3 will be encountered. When the needed information on this page is filled out, the payment procedure will be completed.
TRAFFIC FINES
In addition to HGS fines, traffic fines can also be paid through the Interactive Tax Office (ivd.gib.gov.tr) portal. Fines reflected in the system can be paid in a similar manner on the same website, as shown in Figure 4. Vehicles that have not paid their traffic fines are not permitted to leave the country through customs. The payment procedure will be finished after all of the required information on this page has been filled out.
An Alternative for Your Own Car:
If you drive a car registered in another country into Turkey, stop at the first PTT branch you see, give them a photocopy of your auto registration certificate and your passport, pay 15 TL to enrol in the HGS system, and receive an HGS registration sticker/label or an HGS registration card. Make sure these are visible on your front windshield, since they will help the HGS system identify you.
You must then deposit a minimum of 30 TL into your HGS account to be utilised for toll payment. (This rate is for a Class 1 vehicle, such as a motorbike, regular passenger car, pickup truck, or minivan with a front and rear axle distance of no more than 3.20 metres (10.5 feet).
If you found the information about HGS explanatory, you can also review our International Driver Permit page.
Blog Writer: Aslıhan Yesir
