Croatia Motorway Tolls in a Rental Car: Zagreb to Split

How do Croatian motorway tolls work in 2026?

Motorways with several entries and exits, including the A1 to Split, use a closed system. At the entry plaza you take a toll ticket, or the ENC tag is read; at the exit you hand in the ticket and pay according to the distance and the vehicle group, as HAC explains. Payment options at the booth are ENC, cash in euros, and Diners, Mastercard, Maestro, Visa, INA or MOLGROUP cards where the booth displays them.

Two points matter for renters:

• Vehicle group. A normal car is group I: a two-axle vehicle no higher than 1.90 m. A taller van or motorhome up to 3.5 tonnes, or any car towing a trailer, is group II.
• ENC lanes. Lanes marked for ENC only are for cars with a working tag. HAC says the tag is read about 50 m before the barrier and cars pass at up to 40 km/h; a car without a valid tag is diverted.

How much is the toll from Zagreb to Split?

These are HAC's list prices from the Zagreb entry on the A1, including VAT, as shown on the HAC price list in September 2026.

Towing a trailer, or driving a camper van taller than 1.90 m, moves you to group II, and on the Split run that adds 15 euros each way.

Does an ENC tag pay off in a rental car?

An ENC tag costs 15 euros at HAC sales offices, according to HAC's FAQ. Every top-up earns a 21.74% discount: the minimum 20 euro payment puts 25.56 euros of toll credit on the account, as the ENC page shows. The tag works on HAC motorways 30 minutes after purchase and on other operators' motorways after 2 hours.

The discounted toll is the list price less 21.74%. The tag starts to save money only after about three Zagreb to Split legs, and only if you can reach a sales office during opening hours. Whether an unused balance is refunded is not stated on the pages checked, so treat any credit left at the end as spent.

The barrier-free system from March 2027

The Croatian government confirmed on 20 November 2025 that a new toll system will start on 1 March 2027, covering the network run by HAC, Bina-Istra and Autocesta Zagreb-Macelj. Cars will pass without stopping. HAC's project page describes two technologies: ENC tags, mandatory for heavy vehicles and optional for cars, and number-plate recognition for light vehicles without a tag, which it describes as the practical solution for occasional and foreign users.

The Toll Collection Act (NN 156/2025), whose operating rules take effect on 1 March 2027 as HAC's Crolibertas site also states, sets out how a car joins the system: by registering its number plate and a valid payment method through a single national website, mobile apps or online banking, dedicated fast registration lanes, toll operator sales offices, or contracted third-party sales points. A light vehicle that enters without registering must do so at the latest at the first fast registration lane (Article 16).

Using the motorway without registering costs the toll plus a statutory penalty of 120 euros, and the vehicle owner is jointly liable with the driver (Article 22). For a rental car that makes the company liable too, so expect rental terms to cover how the plate is registered. For a trip before March 2027, none of this applies: use the booths.

What are the speed limits and fines on the Croatian coast?

Off the motorway, the coast road runs through one town after another, so the speed limit changes often. The Road Traffic Safety Act (Articles 53 and 54) sets 50 km/h in settlements (signs can allow up to 80 km/h), 90 km/h on other roads outside settlements, 110 km/h on expressways and 130 km/h on motorways. The fines below are the current euro amounts published by the Ministry of the Interior, which replaced the original kuna amounts.

The ministry also explains the safety margin deducted from a measured speed: 10 km/h up to 100 km/h, and 10% of the measured speed above that. Another rule that catches visitors: dipped or daytime running lights are compulsory in daylight from 1 November to 31 March.

When the police stop you, they can collect the fine on the spot, and paying there costs 50% of the listed amount. If you do not pay there, you receive a misdemeanour order: within 8 days you can pay two-thirds of the fine, which settles it in full, or file a written objection to the misdemeanour court. The act as published in 2008 (Article 294) also lets the officer hold the passport or other travel document of someone without residence in Croatia for up to 8 days to secure payment. If a camera records the car and the owner does not name the driver within 15 days, the owner faces a fine of 660 to 1,990 euros, which is why rental companies pass your details on.

Worked example: the coast road south of Split

You drive through a village signed at 50 km/h and are recorded at 75 km/h after the safety margin is deducted: 25 km/h over, a 130 euro fine. Back on the open road you are recorded at 115 km/h in a 90 zone: also 25 km/h over, but it costs 60 euros. The same excess costs more than twice as much inside the village. Paid on the spot, the two fines come to 65 and 30 euros. If either offence is recorded without a stop and Hertz Croatia pays it for you, its terms add a 50 euro incident administration fee.

Rental rules that change the plan

Hertz Croatia's general terms, checked in September 2026:

• Age: minimum 25, with a licence held for at least a year. Drivers aged 21 to 24 can rent groups A, B and K with a Young Driver Surcharge of 12 euros a day, up to 180 euros. Drivers aged 71 or over pay the same senior surcharge.
• Excess: CDW limits your liability to 950 euros for groups A, B and K; SCDW brings that to 300 euros. Damage to the underside, wheels and tyres is excluded from CDW, and tyre and windscreen cover is sold separately.
• Ferries: buying the Island/Ferryboat Travel Fee, 5 euros a day up to 75 euros, is mandatory if the car goes on a ferry. If you skip it and the car is damaged on board, all other protections are void.
• Borders: leaving Croatia needs Hertz's prior written approval, requested 5 days ahead, for a 40 euro fee. The one exception is the transit through Bosnia and Herzegovina on the main road between Split and Dubrovnik.
• Fines: if you do not pay a fine yourself, Hertz pays it and charges you the fine plus 50 euros per case.

For flights, ferries and buses as alternatives to driving, see airports, ferries, buses and trains in Croatia.