Non-stop toll collection (ETC) helps vehicles pass through toll roads without having to stop to pay directly. Depending on the system, in addition to road fees, users may incur additional fees such as fees for renting identification equipment, account maintenance fees, handling fees when vehicles do not have equipment, or fees related to payment methods.
These fees are not applied uniformly in different countries. Even in the same country, policies may vary between toll road operators or service providers.
Some examples in France, Canada and Australia show this difference quite clearly.
France
In France, drivers can register for the telepéage (automatic toll collection) service to use electronic devices mounted on the vehicle when passing through the toll station. One of the popular services is Ulys.
According to the fee schedule effective from January 2, 2026, the Ulys Classic package charges 2.20 euros/month of use (about 2.56 USD). This is a management fee, calculated in the months the device is used; unused months are not charged this amount. Services include toll collection devices, online account management and transaction tracking, invoices on the website and Ulys application. Expressway fees are charged separately.
Ulys also stipulates that if the device is not used for 14 consecutive months, customers must pay a fee of 15 euros for not using it in the 15th month.
Canada
In the province of Ontario, Canada, Highway 407 ETR applies different fees depending on whether the vehicle uses a transponder (electronic identification device) or not.
For vehicles without transponders, the account is charged a fee of 5 CAD/month (about 3.60 USD) when a journey arises in the month. Each trip recorded by camera is also charged a fee of 5.30 CAD (about 3.81 USD), in addition to road fees.
If you rent a transponder, users pay 5 CAD/month or 31.50 CAD/year (about 22.66 USD), and get free account and camera fees.
407 ETR provides a private account to manage license plates and equipment of the fleet. Corporate customers bear additional account fees; the transponder has a rental rate of 5 CAD/month or 31.50 CAD/year for the first device, and may have to deposit 50 CAD/device, about 36 USD, for up to 20 devices.
Australia
In Australia, Linkt provides accounts for paying road fees on toll routes. With the Tag Account for personal users, Linkt announced no periodic maintenance fees. The amount of 20-30 AUD (15 - 20 USD) when opening an account is the balance used to pay road fees, not service fees.
For Commercial Accounts, the maintenance fee is AUD 5/month (about USD 3.55) in Sydney. Linkt said that this fee is used to maintain the account, accompanied by vehicle fleet management tools, transaction data and periodic invoices.
Thus, the surveyed electronic toll collection systems may collect additional fees for account services or equipment in addition to road tolls, but have different models depending on each country, as well as different calculations between individual and business customers.
