Are Kei Trucks Legal in Colorado?

Colorado is the clearest example of why a date matters more than a headline. The state really has legalised kei vehicles — House Bill 25-1281, "Concerning Kei Vehicles", was passed by the General Assembly and signed into law as Chapter 176 of the 2025 session laws. A great deal of coverage from 2025 reported that as "Colorado legalises kei trucks", full stop. It is not full stop. Section 13 of the enacted act reads: "This act takes effect July 1, 2027", and subsection (2) adds that "This act applies to applications submitted or offenses committed on or after January 1, 2028." Colorado's own DMV translates that into plain language on its specialized vehicles page: not legal to title or register for on-highway use until 1 January 2028.

So as of today, 4 October 2026, a kei truck still cannot be put on a Colorado road legally. The interim position rests on the general rule for imports. Colorado DMV Bulletin BL 17-01, "Imported Motor Vehicles Titling Requirements", tells dealers that for a non-conforming vehicle — one that does not meet federal motor vehicle safety standards — the DMV "will no longer issue titles without a NHTSA ‘bond release letter’ or proof that 30 days have passed following submission of a conformity packet to NHTSA." A 25-year-old kei truck imported under the federal age exemption has no conformity packet and no bond release letter, because the federal exemption means it never needed one.

What arrives in 2028 is worth knowing now, because it shapes what is worth buying. The act adds a statutory definition of "kei vehicle" at C.R.S. 42-1-102(45.3) with eight tests, all of which must be met: an engine of 1,000cc or less (or an electric motor of 56kW or less), 67 inches or less in width, 140 inches or less in length, four or more tyres on the ground, a top speed of at least 50 mph, an enclosed passenger cab, imported into the United States, and either 25 years old or older when imported or 25 years old or older and previously titled in the US. A vehicle that misses any of those — most obviously the enclosed cab or the 50 mph top speed — falls instead into the new "kei off-road vehicle" category and is treated as a powersports vehicle, not a road vehicle.

The act also settles two things that trip kei owners up elsewhere. Emissions: new C.R.S. 42-4-310(2)(a)(II) provides that a kei vehicle is not tested on a dynamometer but on a two-speed idle test, and must pass the emissions standards for the model year it was manufactured. Inspections: new C.R.S. 42-5-202(5) bars the Department of Revenue, the Colorado State Patrol and their agents from requiring an inspection of a vehicle because it is a kei vehicle or has the design parameters of one. Road use is capped by new C.R.S. 42-4-109.7 at roadways posted 55 mph or less, with at-grade crossings allowed and limited-access highways prohibited; a violation is a class B traffic infraction. We could not establish whether the Department will publish registration procedures before the 2028 date — its own page says only that more information will come "closer to January 1, 2028".

What you can do in Colorado

Private property, farm and off-road use is unaffected and always has been. If your use case is a property, a ranch, a worksite or a trail network, you can buy and use a kei truck in Colorado today without any of the above mattering.

If you want to be road legal in Colorado, the realistic plan is to buy now and register from 1 January 2028, or to wait. Buying now is not unreasonable — but buy against the statutory definition rather than against the word "kei" in an advert. Check the engine displacement, the width, the length, that the cab is fully enclosed, that the model is genuinely capable of 50 mph, and that the vehicle was 25 years or older at the point it was imported. A vehicle that fails one of those tests will not become road legal in Colorado in 2028; it will be a powersports vehicle.

Do not let a seller tell you Colorado is already open. It is not, and the gap between the signing date everyone reported in May 2025 and the applicability date in the act itself is nearly three years. Equally, do not let anyone tell you the law might be quietly reversed before it lands — we found no evidence of that, only that the date is what it is. Re-check the Colorado DMV specialized vehicles page before you register.

How this fits the national picture

Importing a vehicle twenty-five years or older is a federal matter and is settled. Registering one for the road is decided state by state, which is why the answer changes when you cross a line on a map. Our state-by-state guide covers all fifty, including why states disagree and the AAMVA guidance most restrictions trace back to.

We are based in Goshen, New York, and New York is one of the states that will not register these for road use. We say so on our own state's page because it is true, not because it helps us. We will not tell you a kei truck is street legal in the USA.

Common questions

Are kei trucks legal in Colorado?

Not yet for road use. The Colorado Division of Motor Vehicles states that kei vehicles are not legal to title or register for on-highway use in Colorado until 1 January 2028, after which they will only be allowed on roads with a speed limit of 55 mph or less.

Colorado passed a kei vehicle law in 2025 — why can I not register one?

Because the law is not yet in force. Section 13 of House Bill 25-1281 provides that the act takes effect on 1 July 2027 and applies to applications submitted or offences committed on or after 1 January 2028. The bill was signed in 2025, but signing and taking effect are different dates.

What counts as a kei vehicle under Colorado law?

Colorado Revised Statutes 42-1-102(45.3), added by House Bill 25-1281, defines a kei vehicle as one powered by an internal combustion engine of 1,000 cubic centimetres or less or an electric motor of 56,000 watts or less, 67 inches or less in width, 140 inches or less in length, travelling on four or more tyres, with a top speed of at least 50 miles per hour, an enclosed passenger cab, imported into the United States, and either 25 years old or older when imported or 25 years old or older and previously titled in the United States.

Will a kei truck need an emissions test in Colorado?

Yes, but not on a dynamometer. Colorado Revised Statutes 42-4-310(2)(a)(II), added by House Bill 25-1281, provides that a kei vehicle is tested using a two-speed idle test and must pass the emissions standards for the model year in which it was manufactured.

Where will kei trucks be allowed to drive in Colorado?

Colorado Revised Statutes 42-4-109.7, added by House Bill 25-1281, prohibits driving a kei vehicle on a roadway with a speed limit greater than 55 miles per hour, except to cross such a roadway at an at-grade intersection, and prohibits driving one on a limited-access highway. A violation is a class B traffic infraction.

This page describes what we could establish from the source above on the date shown. It is not legal advice, and kei registration rules have moved in both directions every year since 2021 — confirm with the Colorado registering authority before you buy. Payment for an imported vehicle is by bank transfer and is not reversible.