Mini trucks in Maryland, titled at 25 years and at work on the farm
Read from Maryland's own statutes and motor vehicle office.
Maryland titles a vehicle from overseas whose federal declaration shows it is 25 years or older, after a Maryland safety inspection and within 60 days of entry, so a 25 year kei truck imported for road use has a road path through the MVA. A newer truck imported as off road equipment and governed to 25 miles per hour is a farm and private land truck, since Maryland's off-highway vehicle class needs a top speed over 30 miles per hour.
Your lane
Which truck are you buying?
Maryland treats the two kinds of kei truck differently. Pick yours and this answers for it.
A truck 25 years or older imported for road use is titled through the Maryland MVA on HS-7 box 1, which the MVA reads as verifying the vehicle meets U.S. specifications.
Open to road useTitle. Titled at the MVA itself within 60 days of entry into the United States.
Registration. After a Maryland Safety Inspection Certificate, valid 90 days.
- HS-7 box 1 or 2A must be checked (MVA title manual)
- A Maryland Safety Inspection Certificate, valid 90 days, must be passed
- No speed or road type limit written for kei trucks
Read from a secondary source or an older page. Confirm it with the office before you rely on it.
Can I register a 25 year old kei truck for the road in Maryland?
Yes, through the MVA's overseas vehicle process. The MVA's manual accepts the HS-7 with box 1 checked, the 25 year declaration, as verifying the vehicle meets U.S. specifications. The truck must pass a Maryland safety inspection and be titled at the MVA within 60 days of entering the country. Maryland law sets no special road limit for it.
A newer truck imported as off road equipment, governed to 25 miles per hour with an EPA certified nonroad engine, is too slow to be a Maryland off-highway recreational vehicle and is a farm and private land truck.
Private land onlyWhere it can run
Farm property and private land with the owner's permission.
Title. Not as an off-highway recreational vehicle. The MVA titles ATVs and side by side UTVs with an ORV decal, and a governed kei truck falls outside that definition.
Registration. None found. Maryland Transportation 11-140.1(a)(2) covers a side by side utility vehicle only if it is commonly known as a side by side and has a steering wheel, a roll-over protective structure, an occupant retention system, nonstraddle seating, a maximum speed capability exceeding 30 miles per hour, a width under 80 inches and an engine under 1,000 cc. A truck governed to 25 miles per hour fails the speed test and has no roll-over structure. Section 11-140.1(b)(1) also leaves out a farm vehicle used exclusively on farm property by a farmer.
- Transportation 11-140.1(a)(2)(iii)5 sets the 30 mile per hour minimum speed capability that keeps a 25 mile per hour governed truck out of the ORV class
- Transportation 11-140.1(c) lets the MVA add requirements to the ORV definition by regulation
- Transportation 13-911(c): a farm vehicle is owned by a farmer and used only in the farmer's farming business and about the farm home. The ORV law leaves out a farm vehicle used exclusively on farm property by a farmer
A newer truck comes in only as nonroad equipment, permanently governed to a top speed and with a nonroad engine certified by EPA before import. It pays the same 25 percent truck duty. What that engine needs.
What about a newer truck governed to 25 miles per hour?
It works farms and private land. Maryland's off-highway vehicle class for side by sides needs a top speed over 30 miles per hour and a roll-over structure, so a truck governed to 25 is outside it and there is no ORV decal for it.
Who decides here
The office and the rule.
This is the office that titles and registers a kei truck in Maryland, and the text it works from.
The deciding office
Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration, customer service center 410 768 7000
MVA Interactive Title and Registration Manual, Titling Import Vehicles, Gray Market or Overseas Vehicles: "U.S. Department of Transportation Declaration ... (US DOT form #HS-7) - either box 1 or 2A must be checked, verifying the vehicle meets U.S. specifications." COMAR 11.15.14.05B(12): the Administration shall refuse to issue a certificate of title if "The vehicle is an import and the following documents are not furnished", the Customs forms and, "If the vehicle does not comply with U.S. Department of Transportation or U.S. Environmental Protection Agency requirements", conversion receipts or a bond release letter.The office pagemva.maryland.gov, read 28 October 2026
Engines and EPA
Why the engine decides which truck comes in.
The same three facts hold in Maryland and every other state.
The 25 year truck
It comes in on age
A 25 year old kei truck in original configuration clears both agencies on age. No Registered Importer and no Independent Commercial Importer is needed.
EPA's provision asks only that the truck is in its original configuration with the same model of engine it left the factory with.
40 CFR 85.1511(f)(2)eCFR, read 28 October 2026The newer truck
EPA asks for a certified engine
A newer kei truck comes in as nonroad equipment, permanently modified so its top speed is 25 mph or less, with its engine covered by an EPA certificate of conformity before it reaches US Customs. The governor stays for the life of the truck, and removing it is tampering, a federal offense.
Mini-trucks, importing used motor vehicles as nonroad vehiclesEPA, read 28 October 2026Engine size
Why 30 kilowatts decides a newer truck's engine
EPA sorts nonroad gasoline engines by maximum power, not size. Every kei engine is under 1,000 cc, so an engine of 30 kW or less may certify to the small engine standards, and 30 kW is the line that decides. Today's stock kei engines are rated above it, and a speed governor does not lower an engine's maximum power.
Every kei engine family EPA has certified for mini trucks is a lower power certified configuration, between 14.46 and 29.9 kW, under part 90 or part 1054. A certified mini truck engine is that configuration, not the stock engine.
40 CFR 1054.1, the small engine ruleseCFR, read 28 October 2026Small nonroad spark ignition engine certificatesEPA, read 28 October 2026Maryland, the five answers
Road, title, land, inspection and what is next.
Some of Maryland's answers rest on a general rule or a page that would not open, so they are marked to confirm. We confirm them with the office before a truck goes there.
The roadCan I drive it on the road?
Maryland law does not name kei trucks. The MVA titles a vehicle from overseas on an HS-7 with box 1 checked, the 25 year declaration. Its own manual says that box verifies the vehicle meets U.S. specifications. The truck still has to pass a Maryland safety inspection and be titled at the MVA within 60 days of entry.
- MVA title manual, Titling Import Vehicles: either box 1 or 2A on the HS-7 must be checked, verifying the vehicle meets U.S. specifications. Box 1 is the federal declaration for a vehicle at least 25 years old
- COMAR 11.15.14.05B(12): the MVA refuses title to an import without the U.S. Customs forms and, if the vehicle does not comply with DOT or EPA requirements, without conversion receipts or a bond release letter
- The MVA's overseas page says a vehicle from abroad must meet FMVSS and EPA requirements plus Maryland safety and emissions requirements where they apply. The manual's reading of box 1 is how the MVA squares the two
- Gray market vehicles from out of the country cannot be processed by dealers or title services electronically and go to the MVA itself
- The vehicle must be titled within 60 days of entry into the United States, and a Maryland Safety Inspection Certificate is valid for 90 days
- No speed or road type limit specific to kei trucks exists in Maryland law
COMAR 11.15.14.05B(12); MVA Interactive Title and Registration Manual, Titling Import Vehicles; MVA overseas vehicle titling guidance
Read from a secondary source or an older page. Confirm it with the office before you rely on it.
TitleHow do I title and register it?
A truck imported at 25 years or older is titled through the MVA's overseas vehicle process, within 60 days of entry, with its customs release, federal declarations and a Maryland safety inspection.
The steps
- Plan the timeline so the truck is titled within 60 days of its entry into the United States
- Have a Maryland safety inspection done and keep the certificate, which is valid 90 days
- Take the papers to the MVA itself. Dealers and title services cannot process an out of country gray market vehicle electronically
- Bring the foreign registration or title, the HS-7 with box 1 checked, the EPA 3520-1 matching the HS-7, the customs cargo release printout, proof of Maryland insurance, the bill of sale, the title application and the Gray Market Checklist
The documents
- Foreign registration, title or certificate of origin, the Japanese export certificate with an English translation
- US DOT HS-7 declaration with box 1 checked
- EPA form 3520-1, matching the HS-7
- US Customs and Border Protection cargo release printout
- Maryland Safety Inspection Certificate
- Proof of Maryland insurance
- Bill of sale and Application for Certificate of Title
- MVA Gray Market Checklist
Maryland Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Administration, customer service center 410 768 7000
LandCan I use it on a farm or private land?
Off the road a mini truck is a working hand on Maryland farms, horse properties, nurseries and private land.
Class. None that fits. Maryland Transportation 11-140.1 limits off-highway recreational vehicles to straddle seat ATVs, side by sides with a roll-over protective structure and a top speed over 30 miles per hour, dirt bikes and snowmobiles. It leaves out a farm vehicle used exclusively on farm property by a farmer.
Registration. No ORV decal for a mini truck. The MVA titles ATVs and side by side UTVs with an ORV decal, and a kei truck has no roll-over structure and is not commonly known as a side by side.
Read from a secondary source or an older page. Confirm it with the office before you rely on it.
On the farm
Maryland's farm area vehicle tags cover a titled vehicle owned by a farmer and operated only on the farm or on a highway within 25 miles of it. The vehicle still needs a Maryland title first, so this helps only a truck the MVA will title.
InspectionWhat inspection or insurance applies?
Safety. Titling a vehicle from overseas requires a Maryland Safety Inspection Certificate, valid 90 days from issue.
Emissions. The MVA says Maryland emissions requirements apply where applicable. How the emissions program treats a kei truck was not found.
Read from a secondary source or an older page. Confirm it with the office before you rely on it.
Insurance. No insurance rule specific to kei trucks was found. Ask your insurer about cover for farm and private land use.
Read from a secondary source or an older page. Confirm it with the office before you rely on it.
NextWhat is coming?
No 2025 or 2026 Maryland bill on kei trucks or mini trucks was found.
Checked 28 October 2026
Read from a secondary source or an older page. Confirm it with the office before you rely on it.
Questions
Asked about Maryland.
Can I register a 25 year old kei truck for the road in Maryland?
Yes, through the MVA's overseas vehicle process. The MVA's manual accepts the HS-7 with box 1 checked, the 25 year declaration, as verifying the vehicle meets U.S. specifications. The truck must pass a Maryland safety inspection and be titled at the MVA within 60 days of entering the country. Maryland law sets no special road limit for it.
What about a newer truck governed to 25 miles per hour?
It works farms and private land. Maryland's off-highway vehicle class for side by sides needs a top speed over 30 miles per hour and a roll-over structure, so a truck governed to 25 is outside it and there is no ORV decal for it.
Is there a deadline?
Yes. The MVA says a vehicle from overseas must be titled within 60 days of entering the United States, and the safety inspection certificate is good for 90 days.
Can a dealer or title service do the paperwork?
Not electronically. The MVA's manual keeps out of country gray market vehicles for the MVA itself.
What about farm tags?
Maryland's farm area vehicle tags let a farmer's titled vehicle use highways within 25 miles of the farm. The truck needs a Maryland title first.
Upgrades
Upgrades in Maryland.
Height and lift. After alteration, frame side rails and bumpers may not exceed 28 inches on a Class E truck of 10,000 pounds or less or 20 inches on a Class A passenger vehicle (Md. Transportation 22-105(b)). The class given to an imported kei truck was not confirmed.
Tires and fenders. Rear-most wheels of a truck need metal protectors or flexible flaps unless fender or body construction does the job (Md. Transportation 22-413). Tires must be in safe condition under Administrator rules that set tread depth (22-405). No tire size cap or trimming rule found.
Lights. At most one spot lamp, two fog lamps at 12 to 30 inches and two auxiliary driving lamps at 16 to 42 (Md. Transportation 22-217). At most four lamps over 300 candlepower lit together (22-222(a)(4)). A private plow truck is not named for amber (22-218(c)).
Modification and inspection. A reconstructed vehicle is one materially altered from its original construction by removing, adding, altering or substituting essential parts (Md. Transportation 13-104.2(a)(3)). Its title application needs ownership documents and a VIN inspection certification or other proof of identity (13-104.2(b)).
From the upgrades chapter of Mini Truck Roadbook, the 2026 to 2027 edition, with the statute after each rule.
Getting it there
Where Maryland's truck comes ashore.
From the nearest port where a sailing from Japan is on record. Road miles are an estimate, the straight line times 1.2, not a routed drive.
Sources
Every source read, 28 October 2026
- mva.maryland.gov/title-registration/title-vehicle/overseas-vehicles
- mva.maryland.gov/title-registration/title-vehicle/mopeds-motor-scooter..
- mva.maryland.gov/your-mva-guide/businesses/commercial-vehicle-titles-r..
- mgaleg.maryland.gov/2025RS/Statute_Web/gtr/11-140.1.pdf
- mva.maryland.gov/media/216
- regs.maryland.gov/us/md/exec/comar/11.15.14.05
- mgaleg.maryland.gov/2026RS/Statute_Web/gtr/13-911.pdf
The public record of Maryland as read on 28 October 2026, not legal advice. Every kei truck pays the 25 percent truck duty, the chicken tax, whatever its age.
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