SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure | SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities
National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) | Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH)
In a significant reform announced on January 1, 2026, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has decided to discontinue the Know Your Vehicle (KYV) process for cars (Car/Jeep/Van category) for all new FASTag issuances starting February 1, 2026. This measure aims to eliminate “post-activation harassment” and the delays frequently faced by highway users after tag issuance, even when valid vehicle documents were provided.
Key changes under the new framework include:
Discontinuation of Routine KYV: For existing car FASTags, KYV will no longer be a mandatory routine requirement.
Complaint-Based Verification: Verification for existing tags will only be triggered in specific cases of suspected misuse, incorrect issuance, or issues like “loose FASTags”.
Upfront Validation: To maintain system integrity, NHAI has shifted the entire responsibility of vehicle verification to Issuer Banks prior to tag activation.
VAHAN-Based Integration: Activation is now permitted only after mandatory validation of vehicle details from the central VAHAN database.
Online Sales Coverage: FASTags sold through online channels must also undergo complete pre-activation validation by banks.
What is the VAHAN-based validation? It is a mandatory pre-activation check where Issuer Banks must verify the vehicle’s registration and category details directly from the government’s centralized VAHAN database. This ensures that the FASTag is correctly mapped to the vehicle’s actual category (e.g., Car/Jeep/Van) before it is activated, removing the previous need for users to upload photos or documents for “Know Your Vehicle” checks after the tag had already been issued.
Policy Relevance
This reform represents a shift toward a “citizen-friendly and technology-driven” tolling ecosystem by removing redundant compliance layers for private road users. By enforcing accountability on banks and utilizing the VAHAN API, NHAI is reducing administrative friction while simultaneously strengthening revenue protection against vehicle category misclassification. This is a critical step toward the goal of seamless, barrier-less tolling (Multi-Lane Free Flow) across India’s National Highway network.
Relevant Question for Policy Stakeholders: How will NHAI monitor Issuer Banks to ensure that ‘exceptional’ RC-based validation—used when VAHAN data is unavailable—does not become a loophole for bypassing the more stringent pre-activation checks?
Follow the full news here: NHAI Announces Major Public Relief