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In short
Tolls by Mail is how New York bills a vehicle that crosses without a working E-ZPass. A camera reads the license plate, and the bill goes by mail to the registered owner on DMV records. It is the most expensive way to pay. A car pays $12.03 at the major MTA crossings instead of $7.46 with NY E-ZPass, and $23.30 at Port Authority crossings instead of $14.79 to $16.79. For a TLC car it's also a warning sign that something in your E-ZPass setup is broken.
If you lease or rent the car, the bill goes to the owner, not you. How the owner passes it on depends on your lease and TLC's toll rules.
How a plate becomes a bill
The Thruway describes the first and last steps: "Cameras capture an image of the license plate as the vehicle travels through a toll point (gantry)," and the bill goes to the registered owner's address on file with DMV (Thruway). The Port Authority adds that "Tolls by Mail customers pay the full toll and do not receive any E-ZPass discounts." It also says plates must be "correctly registered to an active NY/NJ E-ZPass account in good standing to prevent Tolls by Mail invoices" (Port Authority).
The rate gap, crossing by crossing
The gap per crossing for a car:
- Major MTA crossings (RFK, Verrazzano, Throgs Neck, Whitestone, Queens-Midtown, Hugh L. Carey): $12.03 − $7.46 = $4.57.
- Henry Hudson: $8.87 − $3.42 = $5.45.
- Cross Bay and Marine Parkway: $6.02 − $2.80 = $3.22.
- Port Authority (GWB, Lincoln, Holland, Goethals, Bayonne, Outerbridge, into New York only): $23.30 − $14.79 = $8.51 off-peak, or $23.30 − $16.79 = $6.51 peak.
These are MTA rates effective January 4, 2026 and Port Authority rates as listed on October 12, 2026 (TLC Help rates file, as of 2026-10-12). The toll calculator uses the same numbers. Ten mailed Lincoln Tunnel crossings off-peak cost $85.10 more than with E-ZPass, before any late fee.
On the Thruway
Thruway Tolls by Mail invoices also carry a $2.00 administrative surcharge per billing statement, on top of the tolls. The Thruway says E-ZPass NY customers "can save up to 75 percent" off Thruway toll rates compared with Tolls by Mail. It also says license plate transactions get the Tolls by Mail rate (Thruway). If you often drive passengers north to Westchester or beyond, the Thruway gap adds up just like the city bridges.
How many crossings are billed by mail
MTA publishes hourly crossing counts by payment method. TLC Help added up the 2025 figures for passenger cars. Of about 322.5 million car crossings at MTA facilities, 44.3 million (13.7%) were Tolls by Mail. The share was highest at the RFK Bridge's Bronx plaza and lowest at Marine Parkway.
These numbers cover all cars, not only TLC vehicles. They show that plate billing is common, not rare. More in E-ZPass vs Tolls by Mail share.
"But I have E-ZPass": how you still get a Toll Bill
Having an account isn't enough. MTA says that if your balance goes below $0, "your account will not be in compliance with the E-ZPass agreement. As a result, you may receive a Toll Bill." (MTA). A new TLC plate that was never added to the account will also be billed by mail. If you have a funded E-ZPass NY account, MTA says you can pay the bill from it with "Resolve Toll Bill (E-ZPass Customers)" on the Tolls by Mail website. The why did I get a toll bill page walks through each cause.
Who gets the bill on a leased or rented TLC car
The bill goes to the registered owner: the medallion owner, fleet or FHV owner whose name is on the registration. Three things follow:
- You may not see the bill. The owner gets it. If the owner's tag was missing or the account was empty, ask them to show you the bill before paying anything.
- The owner's rules limit what you pay. For a leased taxi, the only toll item an owner can charge above the lease cap is "the discount toll amount for use of the Owner's EZ-Pass" (Rule 58-21(c)(5)(iii)). That is the E-ZPass amount, not a mail rate. FHV leases are covered by the FHV owner rules. See renting a TLC vehicle: how tolls get billed.
- You can't dispute it as "not my vehicle." The Thruway's dispute reason covers a plate or vehicle that is not registered to you and that you did not rent or lease. A leased car doesn't fit.
If you own your TLC car, the bill comes to you. Pay or dispute it fast, before the late fees in the toll bill timeline start.
Never pass the mail rate to a passenger
TLC rules say "Passengers must pay for the toll, but are only required to pay the actual amount (often a discounted toll) charged to the EZ-Pass." They also say "A Driver who charges a passenger more than the actual amount of the EZ-Pass toll is guilty of an overcharge" under Rule 80-17 (58-26(e)(3), (f)(3); 59A-23 for FHVs). The extra cost of a mailed bill is not the passenger's to pay. More: can I charge a passenger the Tolls by Mail rate?
Step by step: stop getting Toll Bills
- Find the plate on the bill. Is it your current TLC plate, or an old one?
- Log in at e-zpassny.com or the Tolls NY app and check that the plate is listed.
- Check the balance and the payment method. Switch to automatic replenishment or Pay Per Trip if it keeps running out.
- Mount the tag on the windshield.
- Pay the bill on time, or dispute it with the coupon. Ways to pay: by mail, by phone, or in person, with check, card, bank account or cash (MTA).
Related
Frequently asked questions
How does Tolls by Mail work?
Cameras photograph the license plate at the toll gantry. If no E-ZPass is read and the plate is not on an E-ZPass account in good standing, a Toll Bill is mailed to the registered owner at the address DMV has on file.
How much more is Tolls by Mail?
At the major MTA crossings a car pays $12.03 by mail instead of $7.46 with NY E-ZPass (rates effective January 4, 2026). At Port Authority crossings it is $23.30 by mail instead of $14.79 off-peak or $16.79 peak.
Who gets the toll bill for a leased TLC car?
The registered owner of the vehicle, because the bill is sent to the owner's address on DMV records. The owner then deals with the driver under the lease and TLC's toll rules.
Can I pay a Tolls by Mail bill in cash?
Yes. MTA says Tolls by Mail bills can be paid by mail, by phone or in person, with a check, card, bank account or cash. Call 800-333-8655 for details.
Can I charge the passenger the Tolls by Mail amount?
TLC rules say passengers pay only the actual amount charged to the E-ZPass, often a discounted toll, and charging more than the E-ZPass toll is an overcharge under Rule 80-17.
Sources
Last reviewed against the official sources on .
- NYS Thruway: About cashless tolling thruway.ny.gov
- MTA: How to pay tolls (updated Apr 23, 2025) mta.info
- MTA: Tolls by vehicle type (rates effective Jan 4, 2026) mta.info
- MTA: How to avoid toll violation fees mta.info
- Port Authority: Bridge and tunnel tolls panynj.gov
- NY Open Data: MTA Bridges and Tunnels hourly traffic (ebfx-2m7v) data.ny.gov
- TLC Rule Book Chapter 58 (58-26(e)-(f)) nyc.gov
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TLC Help is not a law firm and is not affiliated with the NYC Taxi & Limousine Commission or OATH. Explanations on this site are general information, not legal advice. Legal representation is provided by independent attorneys and OATH-registered representatives in our network.