Can I own one here
Owning one in Niagara County.
On your own land
On private land closed to public traffic a kei truck needs no registration, because VTL 401(1)(a) requires registration only on public highways and the rules of the road in Title VII reach only highways, private roads open to public motor vehicle traffic and parking lots, VTL 1100(a).
On the farm
New York gives farm vehicles three exits from the registration rules, and none names a kei truck. Whether a farm kei truck fits one is not settled and is a question for the DMV before anyone drives one on a road.
To confirm.
No DMV page applying VTL 125 or 401(13) to a kei truck by name was found. Federal import terms for a truck brought in as off road equipment still apply.
A 25 year truck on the road
Closed to road use. The New York DMV will not title or register a Kei-class vehicle for the road unless it has been brought into full compliance with federal safety and emissions standards.
A newer governed truck
Private land only. None. The DMV does not title Kei-class vehicles without federal compliance proof.
Roads and towns
Roads and towns in Niagara County.
To confirm. Niagara County makes it unlawful to run an off-road vehicle on any public highway and towns there have followed, so no road is open to ATVs or a kei truck.
In town Closed
- Closed Niagara. The town's ATV regulation of 2021. No road is opened. Local Law No. 3 of 2021, filed with the Department of State 2 June 2021, read 28 October 2026
- Closed Wheatfield. Off-road vehicles may not be operated on public highways in the town. Local Law No. 4 of 2023, filed with the Department of State 30 October 2023, read 28 October 2026
County roads Closed
It is unlawful to operate an off-road vehicle on any public highway in Niagara County. Local Law No. 3 of 2023, filed with the Department of State 19 May 2023, read 28 October 2026
State highways Closed
Closed to OHVs.
Getting one here
From Japan to Niagara County.
The nearest ports with a sailing from Japan on record
- The Port of Savannah, Georgia Ports Authority, about 900 road miles.
- The JAXPORT, Jacksonville Port Authority, about 1,100 road miles.
- The Port of Everett, about 2,500 road miles.
How to import a mini truck, step by step.
Trucks travel in containers, one to a 20 foot box with room for parts or three to a 40 foot box.
Road miles are an estimate, the straight line times 1.2.
The ground
Niagara County, counted.
Niagara County grows 5,051 acres of orchards and vineyards. Niagara County has 628 farms and 128 cattle operations, by the 2022 Census of Agriculture. Niagara County averages 69 inches of snow a year.
Importing a kei truck
The essentials, in short.
A truck under 25 can come in only as governed off road equipment, and only if its engine family held an EPA nonroad certificate for that model year. No kei engine family was certified for mini trucks before model year 2010, so a truck built after 31 October 2001 and before model year 2010 has no federal door until its 25th birthday.
Two lanes
A road truck must be 25 years old by its own build date. A newer truck comes in only as governed off road equipment with a certified engine.
The 25 percent duty
Every kei truck pays the 25 percent truck duty at the port, whatever its age.
The paperwork
The customs entry and the two federal declarations, DOT Form HS-7 and EPA Form 3520-1, travel with the truck to your title office.
The title
Keep every stamped paper with the truck. Your state title office asks to see them.
Contact
A question about the law in Niagara County?
Ask about a truck, a state or the papers, and we answer with what applies to you.
Reach us
Use the form on this page. We read every message.