Where to Buy a Vignette: Online, at the Border or in Person
Where to buy a vignette depends on the country, but the rule behind it does not: the vignette has to be valid before your wheels touch the first tolled road. Every country sells its own vignette on an official portal, and most also sell through petrol stations, post offices or kiosks. If your route crosses several vignette countries, buying them all online before you leave is the easiest way to arrive covered, with nothing left to sort out at the border.
The Short Answer: Buy It Before the First Tolled Road
Nine European countries require a vignette for cars: Austria, Bulgaria, Czechia, Hungary, Moldova, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Switzerland. Seven of them are digital-only. Switzerland sells a windscreen sticker alongside the e-vignette, and Austria's 2026 sticker is its last: from 1 December 2026, Austrian vignettes are digital only. The vignette is now a record that links your number plate to a validity period, and that changes where you can buy it: anywhere that can write to the operator's database will do, including your own phone.
The official answers to "when" are blunt. Slovenia's operator DARS says the e-vignette "must be paid for before you enter the motorway or expressway". Switzerland's customs office tells drivers to "purchase your vignette before entering Switzerland". Moldova requires it the moment a foreign car enters the country.
Where to Buy a Vignette, Country by Country
Country
Official online channel
Other official channels
Austria
shop.asfinag.at, ASFINAG app
ÖAMTC, ARBÖ and ADAC outlets, petrol stations, Trafiken (tobacconists), ASFINAG toll stations, vending machines at rest areas and border crossings
Bulgaria
BGTOLL e-shop (web.bgtoll.bg), mobile app
self-service terminals in shops, cash desks at points of sale and regional road administration offices
Czechia
edalnice.gov.cz
Czech Post branches, EuroOil and RoBiN OIL petrol stations, self-service kiosks mainly in border areas
Moldova
evinieta.gov.md (also vinieta.gov.md)
MAIB bank branches and self-service terminals at every border crossing point, payment terminals at most crossings and PECO stations
Romania
CNAIR portal (erovinieta.ro now forwards to portal.etoll.ro), approved mobile apps
CNAIR offices and authorised distributors; SMS for Romanian-registered plates only
Slovakia
eznamka.sk, eznamka app
points of sale marked "eznamka" at selected petrol stations and at border crossings
Slovenia
evinjeta.dars.si
DARS points of sale (DarsGo Servis), authorised dealers
Switzerland
via.admin.ch (e-vignette.ch forwards there), the webshop of the Federal Office for Customs and Border Security
sticker at post offices, most petrol stations and garages, TCS outlets, vehicle licensing offices; exceptionally at selected customs offices
Austria: buy from ASFINAG, and mind the 18 days
Austria's vignette is sold by ASFINAG, the state motorway operator, through its webshop shop.asfinag.at and the free ASFINAG app, and in person at the outlets in the table. The timing rule is the one that catches visitors. A digital 2-month or annual vignette bought online is valid from the 18th day after purchase at the earliest: 14 days of statutory withdrawal right plus a three-day postal allowance. The digital 1-day and 10-day vignettes are exempt and can start straight away, and ASFINAG states that a digital vignette bought at a partner outlet, a toll station or a vending machine is valid immediately, without the 18-day wait. The vending machines take cards only.
The 2026 windscreen sticker is the last one ASFINAG sells; vignettes valid from 1 December 2026 onwards are plate-registration only. For everything else about Austria's rules, see our guide to speed limits and driving in Austria.
Switzerland: valid the moment you buy, and bound to one plate
The Swiss e-vignette is sold on the federal webshop at via.admin.ch (the address e-vignette.ch forwards there). The customs office is explicit that it is valid immediately after purchase and that Swiss law gives no right of withdrawal for online purchases, so there is no Austrian-style delay, and no change of mind either. It is linked to the number plate: it follows the plate if you change cars, but it cannot move to a different vehicle with a different plate. If you mistype a foreign plate, the official webshop lets you correct it once, within 24 hours of purchase. The sticker remains on sale at post offices, petrol stations, garages and TCS outlets, and at points of sale abroad, including motoring clubs. Swiss vignette →
Czechia: three official channels
Czechia's eDálnice portal (edalnice.gov.cz) is the official e-shop. In person, the official sales points are Czech Post branches and EuroOil and RoBiN OIL petrol stations, and self-service kiosks stand mainly in border areas before the tolled roads begin (card payment only). Two details are worth knowing: a mistake made at a sales point can be corrected there within 15 minutes, and the portal's guidance on buying in person says plainly: "We do not recommend buying from any other merchant than the official sales points!" Czech vignette →
Slovakia: one portal, one app, many petrol stations
Slovakia sells through eznamka.sk and the free eznamka app, which works in English, German, Hungarian, Polish and Russian as well as Slovak. Points of sale carry the "eznamka" logo and sit mostly at selected petrol stations and at border crossings, where you can pay in cash or by card. Slovakia vignette →
Slovenia: choose the start date, up to 30 days ahead
Slovenia's e-vinjeta is sold at evinjeta.dars.si, at DARS points of sale (DarsGo Servis) and through authorised dealers. Online, you choose immediate validity or any start date up to 30 days ahead, and the shop makes you type the plate twice to cut errors. If you bought from DARS with a future start date, you can withdraw for a full refund at any time before the vignette becomes valid. Slovenia vignette →
Romania: new portal, same rovinietă
Romania's rovinietă is issued by the national road company CNAIR. Its old portal address, erovinieta.ro, now forwards to CNAIR's portal.etoll.ro, which sells the rovinietă alongside the new distance-based charge for lorries. You can also buy from CNAIR offices and authorised distributors, by card or in cash. Payment by SMS is accepted only for Romanian-registered plates, so a foreign car needs one of the other channels. Romania rovinietă →
Bulgaria: online, in a shop or at a cash desk
Bulgaria's e-vignette is sold on the BGTOLL e-shop (web.bgtoll.bg) and its mobile app, at self-service terminals in shops (card, including fuel cards) and at cash desks at points of sale and regional road administration offices. The government's own service description adds the condition that matters most: the vignette is valid only for the vehicle whose registration number was correctly declared. Bulgaria vignette →
Moldova: the one country built around the border
Moldova's vinieta applies to foreign-registered cars only and must be paid as soon as the car enters the country. Online, it is sold on evinieta.gov.md, the portal of the state road administration ANDSA. At the border, MAIB bank branches and self-service terminals are present at every crossing point. The official FAQ adds two tips: type the plate without hyphens or spaces, and avoid paying online between 23:45 and 00:01 Moldovan time, when payments can be blocked and refunded automatically. Moldova vignette →
Buying at the border used to be the default. Today it is the exception, for four reasons.
1. Inside Schengen, there is usually nowhere to stop
Austria, Bulgaria, Czechia, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia are all in the Schengen area, so most crossings between them have no border post. Where temporary checks are in place, they are police checks, not shops. Switzerland is in Schengen too but keeps customs offices at its borders, and those sell the sticker only in exceptional cases.
2. Not every border sells a vignette
Where border sales exist (Austria's vending machines at some crossings, Czechia's kiosks in border areas, Slovakia's border points of sale, Slovenia's DARS points at a few entry crossings, Moldova's bank terminals), they are a convenience on the day, not something to plan a route around.
3. The first kilometres often count
In Switzerland, only three customs offices let you drive to the first exit without a vignette: Basel/St Louis, Rheinfelden and Kreuzlingen. Everywhere else, the motorway beyond the border already needs one.
4. A rushed plate entry is costly
A paid vignette on the wrong registration is no vignette at all. The correction windows are short and vary: 15 minutes at a Czech sales point, one correction within 24 hours for a foreign plate on the Swiss webshop, and Slovenia's shop makes you type the plate twice to cut errors. At home, with the registration document in hand, you have time to check.
Buying online before you leave
Buying at or near the border
Availability
every vignette country
only some crossings, some countries
Timing
choose the start date in advance
at the last possible moment
Plate entry
at home, with your documents
at a kiosk or counter, on the day
Several countries
one session for the whole route
one stop per country
Austria annual or 2-month
online needs 18 days' lead time
in person, valid immediately
The honest conclusion: for most drivers, buying online and in advance is the better option, with one Austrian exception. If you need an Austrian annual or 2-month vignette for a trip that starts within 18 days, buy it in person at an Austrian outlet, toll station or vending machine, or take the 10-day vignette instead.
Because the product is now a database entry, counterfeit stickers have given way to counterfeit websites. ASFINAG runs a standing warning across its site about fake ASFINAG text messages, fake emails and dubious fake shops that try to obtain customer data with claims of fines or prizes, and asks people to check the sender, open no links and enter no data.
Four habits protect you whichever channel you use:
Type the address yourself. The official domains are shop.asfinag.at, bgtoll.bg (shop at web.bgtoll.bg), edalnice.gov.cz, ematrica.nemzetiutdij.hu, evinieta.gov.md, portal.etoll.ro, eznamka.sk, evinjeta.dars.si and via.admin.ch. Paid search ads can sit above the official result, so read the URL before you pay.
Treat any "unpaid toll" message as phishing until you have checked your plate yourself in the official register.
Know who you are paying. A private seller should say clearly that it is independent, not "the official site".
Check the plate after any purchase. Czechia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Hungary, Bulgaria (check.bgtoll.bg), Romania and Austria all offer public validity checks. Switzerland's works only for e-vignettes marked "publicly viewable" at purchase, so keep the confirmation email.
Official Portal or an Independent Service?
Every operator sells its own vignette directly, and the operator's portal is always the reference for rules and validity. Independent services also exist. Vignetim is one of them: a private company, not a government operator, that registers your vignette against your plate in the official system. Rules on third-party sellers differ by country. Switzerland's customs office, for example, says it has no official sales partners for the e-vignette, that third-party surcharges are permissible, that buyers should make sure a seller identifies itself as independent and itemises its costs, and it recommends its own webshop.
So why use an independent service at all? Not for a single vignette in a country whose language you read, where the official portal works well. The value shows up on a multi-country trip:
In English, with the local rules built in. Durations, start dates and vehicle categories are presented the same way for every country.
Plate-linked, with checks. If a possible problem with your plate details is detected, you are alerted in the app and by email.
Support when it matters. Live chat in the app, around the clock, and confirmation documents stored in the app as well as sent by email.
Planning help. The route planner shows which vignettes your route needs, and the app can remind you before a vignette expires.
For Austria, the right place is ASFINAG: shop.asfinag.at, the ASFINAG app, or an outlet in person.
How to Buy Your Vignettes With Vignetim
1
List your countries. Check the route, or let the route planner do it.
2
Enter your plate exactly as printed, with the correct country of registration (our guide to number plate country codes helps). For Romania and Moldova, have the vehicle identification number handy at checkout.
3
Pick durations and start dates for each country.
4
Pay once and keep the confirmation, which you also find in the app.
5
Verify your plate in the official checker if you want certainty before the first gantry.
On each country's official portal or app, and in person at petrol stations, post offices, motoring-club outlets or kiosks, depending on the country. Independent services such as Vignetim register vignettes for several countries in one checkout.
Can I buy a vignette at the border?
Sometimes. Austria has vending machines at some border crossings, Czechia has kiosks mainly in border areas, Slovakia has points of sale at border crossings, and Moldova has bank terminals at every crossing point. Switzerland sells its sticker at customs offices only in exceptional cases, and inside Schengen most crossings have no stop at all.
Is it better to buy a vignette online or at the border?
Online, for almost everyone: you choose the start date, check the plate calmly and cover several countries at once. The exception is an Austrian annual or 2-month vignette needed within 18 days: buy it in person.
Where do I buy the Austrian vignette?
From ASFINAG: online at shop.asfinag.at or in the ASFINAG app, or in person at ÖAMTC, ARBÖ and ADAC outlets, petrol stations, Trafiken, ASFINAG toll stations and vending machines at rest areas and border crossings.
Where do I buy the Swiss vignette?
The e-vignette on the federal Via portal (e-vignette.ch), valid immediately after purchase; the sticker at post offices, most petrol stations and garages, TCS outlets and vehicle licensing offices. Independent sellers may also offer the e-vignette.
Where do I buy the Slovenian vignette?
At evinjeta.dars.si, at DARS points of sale (DarsGo Servis) or from authorised dealers. You can make it valid immediately or schedule it up to 30 days ahead.
Where do I buy the Czech vignette?
At edalnice.gov.cz, Czech Post branches, EuroOil and RoBiN OIL petrol stations, and kiosks in border areas.
Is Vignetim an official vignette seller?
No. Vignetim is an independent, private service, not a government operator. It registers your e-vignette against your plate in the country's system, and you can verify the result in the official checker.
What if I typed my plate wrong?
Act at once. Czech sales points correct errors within 15 minutes, and the Swiss webshop allows one correction within 24 hours for foreign plates. Elsewhere, contact the seller or the operator straight away: until it is fixed, the car counts as unpaid.
Seven countries, one checkout, every vignette registered against your plate before you set off. Join the 1,000,000+ drivers who sort the route before they leave home.
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