Which roads require the vignette
Slovakia's electronic vignette covers the country's motorways (D roads) and expressways (R roads), run by the National Motorway Company (NDS) through its eznamka.sk portal. A valid vignette is required on any tolled section, even for a short stretch.
A few sections are excluded. About 12 km of the D1 between Poprad-Vychod and Spissky Stvrtok, and about 5 km of the D2 between Brodske and Kuty, remain temporarily free during construction. Around Bratislava, since the D1/D4 interchange fully opened in June 2026, passenger cars can use the whole outer D4 bypass and nearby sections of the D1 and R7 without a vignette; lorries and buses over 3.5 tonnes still pay the standard toll there.
Vehicle categories and validity periods
Two paid categories exist: a vehicle vignette for any two-track motor vehicle or combination up to 3.5 tonnes, and for any M1 passenger car regardless of weight; and a trailer vignette for an O1 or O2 trailer whenever its weight, added to the towing vehicle's, takes the combination over 3.5 tonnes, in which case the trailer needs its own vignette on its own plate. Motorcycles, being single-track, are exempt and use the network free of charge.
Four validity periods are on sale for 2026: 1-day, 10-day, 30-day and 365-day. The 1-day option, added in 2024, has proved popular for short trips; NDS reported that about one in four vignettes sold in early 2026 was a 1-day one. Since 2024 the long option is also no longer a fixed calendar-year sticker: the 365-day vignette runs for 365 consecutive days from whatever date the buyer chooses, so it can start at any point in the year.
Buying and activation
The vignette has been fully electronic since 2016, registered to the licence plate rather than displayed as a sticker. Through Vignette ID it is registered to your plate and confirmed by e-mail and in your account; payment is by card, Apple Pay or Google Pay, no account is required, and activation is normally completed within minutes of payment being verified. You can choose a start date in advance.
A Flex add-on lets you update the plate on an existing vignette for a fee if you change vehicles or made a mistake. A trailer needing its own vignette under the O1/O2 rule above is bought and registered separately, against the trailer's own plate.
Fines and enforcement
Fixed and mobile cameras on the tolled network read plates and match them against NDS's database of valid vignettes, and NDS also runs joint roadside checks with the traffic police. Using a tolled section without a valid vignette is an administrative offence under the Vignette Act (Act No. 488/2013 Coll.); reported fines can reach up to 500 euros, whether issued on the spot by police or later in proceedings brought by NDS, with a reduced amount typically available for prompt payment.
If you realise you missed buying one, the safest option is to buy a vignette immediately online or via the app before continuing on the tolled network.
Tolls not covered by the vignette
The vignette only covers vehicles up to 3.5 tonnes. Heavier lorries and buses pay a separate, distance-based electronic toll on Slovak motorways, expressways and selected first- and second-class roads, charged per kilometre and collected by SkyToll on NDS's behalf using satellite positioning.
Slovakia adds no further toll for any tunnel or bridge. When the 7.5 km Visnove tunnel on the D1 near Zilina opened in December 2025 after 27 years of construction, the state confirmed it would carry no extra charge beyond the standard vignette.
Good to know for foreign drivers
A vignette is needed even for a short transit near a border crossing, so buy one before joining the tolled network rather than after. Because the system checks your plate against a database, enter the registration number exactly as shown on your registration certificate; a mismatch means the vignette will not be recognised at a camera check even though you paid for it.