Rented a car at Dublin Airport and need to pay an M50 toll charge? Then you’ve come to the right place. You’ll find out more about the M50 motorway and a step-by-step guide on how to pay the M50 toll online.
If you are renting a car at Dublin Airport to help you explore the Emerald Isle, you will probably be made aware of the toll roads in Ireland at the car hire desk, particularly the M50 in Dublin. If you are heading to the west or south of Ireland, it is likely you will pass through the M50. It is almost unavoidable.
In this article, we share with you everything you need to know about this Dublin motorway, its toll charges and we’ll give you a step-by-step guide to paying the toll on the M50.
Top Tip: With a My Irish Cousin rental you have the option, on pickup, to activate a toll payment device which debits the card on file with all toll charges, including the M50, at the end of the rental period. The Toll Tag also allows use of express lanes at all toll stations across the Republic of Ireland.
All you need to know about the M50 and its toll charges
What is the M50 toll?
The M50 toll is a toll payment that is incurred by motorists when they pass through the barrier-free tolling system on Dublin’s M50 motorway.
Where is the M50 toll road?
The M50 toll road is in Dublin.
This motorway is a C-shaped orbital motorway that connects all the outer suburbs of Dublin and allows access to the M1 motorway towards Northern Ireland, as well as access to the M2, M3, M4, M11 and N4 motorways and main roads, respectively. These motorways allow motorists to reach other parts of Ireland including the northwest, west and all southern parts of Ireland.
Where is the M50 toll located?
The M50 toll location is between Junction 6 (M3 North West/Blanchardstown/Castleknock/Connolly Hospital) and Junction 7 (N4 West/Palmerstown/Sligo/Westport/Galway).
There used to be toll booths on the north side of the bridge over what is known as the West-link bridge, but they were removed in favour of a barrier-free system in 2008.
What are the M50 toll charges?
| Vehicle type | No account fee |
| A motor car or public service vehicle with seating for up to 8 passengers |
€3.20
|
| A goods vehicle with an unladen vehicle weight not exceeding 2,000kg | €4.10 |
| A bus or coach with seating for more than 8 passengers | €4.10 |
*from eFlow.ie
If you are renting a normal passenger car from a rental company, each time you pass through the M50 toll between junctions 6 and 7, you will need to pay an M50 toll of €3.20.
Check with your car rental company if they have an M50 toll tag in their cars. Many do not, but if they do, you will not need to make any M50 toll payment online as the tag accounts for it. You will, however, need to reimburse the car rental company for any tolls incurred unless otherwise stated.
How does the M50 toll work?
The M50 toll works via a gantry system of cameras, beacons and lasers that detect vehicles passing under the system. The cameras capture several pictures of each vehicle that passes underneath as well as capturing the vehicle registration number. Lasers and beacons are used to detect any toll tag within vehicles.
The vehicle registrations are cross checked with the database of toll tag users so their toll charge is automatically applied to their account. The remaining vehicle registrations are then stored awaiting M50 payment via one of the methods outlined below.
How do I pay the M50 toll?
There are a few methods available when it comes to how to pay the M50 toll. These are outlined below.
- Pay m50 toll online via eflow.ie. Our step-by-step guide below will guide you through the process using a mobile phone/cell phone to make an eFlow online payment. It is the same process via computer or laptop.
- Pay m50 toll by phone. The M50 toll contact number for making a payment by phone is: 0818501050.
- Pay M50 toll at a Payzone retail outlet across Ireland. Payzone outlets near Dublin Airport include:
- Spar shop in the arrivals hall of Terminal 2 in Dublin Airport.
- Wrights Food Fayre in the Atrium Car Park at Dublin Airport.
- Circle K petrol station on Collinstown Road, Dublin Airport.
You can find other Payzone outlets using the search function on the Payzone website.
Remember, if you rent a car from My Irish Cousin, you can avoid having to pay your tolls manually by opting to activate a toll payment device. This device will automatically pay your M50 toll and allow you to pass through the express lanes of all toll roads across the Republic of Ireland. Just remember to arrange this at the time of picking up your car from My Irish Cousin. Note that all toll payments will be debited from your card that My Irish Cousin has on file for you.
When must I make an M50 toll payment?
If your rental car does not have a toll tag then you will need to make the payment manually using one of the methods outlined above.
The M50 toll payment must be made by 8pm the following day (ie by 8pm the day after you pass under the gantry system between Junctions 6 and 7 on the M50 motorway in Dublin). If you do not pay by this time, penalty charges will be incurred.
Who is eFlow?
eFlow is the name given to the barrier-free tolling system on the M50 motorway in Dublin. They are also the providers of the electronic toll tags that can be used for all toll roads across the Republic of Ireland. EFlow is a registered business name of Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), who are responsible for the collection of tolls on the M50.
How to pay the M50 toll online – A step-by-step guide
If you’ve been wondering how to pay an M50 toll online, this step-by-step guide will bring you through the process from beginning to end using a mobile phone or cell phone.
We have used a phone as the example as most people who rent a car in Ireland will be using their cell phone to make the payment online.
Make sure to keep a copy of your receipt by email or by taking a screenshot of the payment confirmation on your phone to show at the rental car desk upon returning the vehicle to the airport if they require it.
Step 1:
Click this link to be brought to the eFlow payment page. Accept the cookies to close the box that appears.
Step 2:
Choose the “Pay a Toll” option box.
Step 3:
Enter your vehicle’s registration number into the box provided and tick the reCAPTCHA box.
Then click the “Find my Vehicle” button.
Step 4:
Check the details of the car identified by the eFlow system are correct and then insert the number of journeys
into the relevant box, as well as your email address into the required box. The payment amount will be shown and you can click “Pay €3.20” button.
Step 5:
Choose either pay with Credit Card or Debit Card.
Step 6:
On the next page insert your Credit/Debit Card details to make the payment and click Pay by Card once your details have been inserted.
Unless your bank or card provider need to verify the payment, the final page will be a confirmation of payment page. You will receive a confirmation email but it is also worth taking a screenshot of this page with the payment ID number in case you need to verify it with the rental car company.
To pay a toll on a UK-registered or foreign-registered vehicle, see below in the section for “How to pay M50 toll from Northern Ireland or beyond”.
In conclusion
If you are travelling within the Emerald Isle from Dublin, whether you are headed to Cork, Galway or the Killarney National Park, you will likely make at least 2 trips through the M50 toll.
Paying the M50 toll manually, without a toll tag, is easy and our step-by-step guide brings you through the entire process from beginning to end. So, you no longer need to worry about how to pay the M50 toll online and can just worry about enjoying your road trip around Ireland.
Frequently Asked Questions about the M50 toll
In this section, we answer frequently asked questions about the M50 toll. If you cannot find the answer to your question below, feel free to reach out to us via email or through our Facebook page where we will be happy to answer your question.
If you are travelling along the M50, north or south, between Junctions 6 and 7, and pass under a gantry system with purple signage overhead, then you have passed through the M50 toll and are liable to pay a toll. This gantry system is also located close to the large bridge that spans across the River Liffey below.
The following vehicles are exempt from paying the M50 toll:
- Motorcycles
- Vehicles modified for disabled use
- Emergency service vehicles used by the Garda Síochána, ambulance or fire brigade services
- Defence Force vehicles
- Vehicles performing maintenance on the M50
- Fingal or South County Dublin Council vehicles
If you are in a rental car you are not exempt from paying the M50 toll.
As already mentioned in this article, the deadline for paying M50 toll charges is 8pm the following night. That is, 8pm on the day after you have passed through the toll gantry system. This applies to each journey.
If you forget to pay your toll, there is an M50 toll payment penalty applied on top of the toll charge itself. How much the M50 toll charge penalty is depends on the length of time lapsed.
- After 8pm the following day but before 14 days have elapsed, the M50 toll payment penalty is the original toll + €3.50.
- After the first 14 days, if the toll remains unpaid, an additional penalty of €46.50 will be applied.
- If the toll and previous late penalty payments remain outstanding after 72 days, a further penalty of €116 will be applied.
In each case, a late penalty payment notice will be sent to the registered owner’s address. Further non-payment may result in legal action being taken.
In the case of a rental car, the rental car company will apply the late penalty charge to the registered credit card of the user who failed to make the payment.
Find more information about M50 toll penalty payments here.
There are routes through other parts of Dublin that circumvent the M50 toll road between Junctions 6 and 7. Inserting your departure and destination locations into Google maps and choosing the option to avoid toll roads will result in a suggested route to avoid such roads. Just be aware that these routes can add additional time on to your journey.
If you are in a rental car, it is possible to pay the M50 toll in advance before you travel. Find more information about this by clicking here.
You will require the vehicle registration number, so this may only be possible once you have collected your rental car. This option may be useful for those returning a rental car to the airport before departures, particularly if you have a long-haul flight and may miss the 8pm deadline.
How to pay m50 toll from Northern Ireland or beyond?
Paying an M50 toll from Northern Ireland for a UK registered car, or any other foreign vehicle car can still be done online via eFlow as follows:
Step 1:
Click this link to enter the payment page on the eFlow website.
Step 2:
Enter your vehicle registration number into the box required. In the case of non-Republic of Ireland registered vehicles, you will see a page as shown in the below picture.
Step 3:
Choose the country of the car’s registration and the type of vehicle, CAR in the case of normal passenger cars. Then click the reCapcha box and the “Find my Vehicle” button.
Step 4:
You will not be presented with vehicle details to confirm, only the vehicle registration number. Insert the number of journeys and your email address and proceed as above, following steps 5 and 6.
