Are Kei Trucks Legal in Michigan?

Michigan is one of the few states that answers the kei question in writing, by name, on its own registration FAQ. The Secretary of State treats a kei truck or microvan as an ordinary imported passenger vehicle once it passes the 25-year mark, which is the same age at which federal law stops requiring the vehicle to have been built to US Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards. At that point the vehicle can be titled and registered for road use, and the only extra burden over a domestic car is paperwork: the import documents that prove the vehicle came into the country lawfully, if it has never held a US title before.

The flip side is stated just as plainly. A kei truck or microvan that is under 25 years old cannot be titled or registered for the road in Michigan at all. The department will title it, but only as an off-road vehicle. Because kei vehicles are imported under the same 25-year federal exemption, in practice almost every kei truck legitimately on the US market is already old enough to qualify — but a buyer looking at a newer model, or at a vehicle imported under some other exemption, is squarely inside the off-road-only category.

Michigan did not always read the law this way. Owners of kei trucks and of larger imports such as the Mitsubishi Delica reported in 2024 that the department had been issuing off-road titles for vehicles that had previously been plated for the road, and the department subsequently moved to the position now published on its FAQ. We have confirmed the current published position directly from the Secretary of State and quote it above; we have not been able to source a dated departmental bulletin recording the change, so we do not state a date for it here.

One thing the FAQ does not settle: it speaks to titling and registration, not to equipment, inspection or where you may drive. Michigan has no statewide mechanical safety inspection for most vehicles, but local ordinances, highway speed-limit rules and insurability are separate questions from whether the Secretary of State will issue a plate, and we could not establish any kei-specific rule on those points.

What you can do in Michigan

If the vehicle is 25 model years old or more, you apply exactly as you would for any other used import: title application at a Secretary of State office, import paperwork (the CBP entry documents and the Japanese export certificate with a translation) if the truck has never been titled in the US, Michigan sales or use tax, and then plates. Keep the import file — it is the part of the application a kei truck will be asked for and a domestic car will not.

If the vehicle is under 25 years old, Michigan will give you an off-road vehicle title and nothing more. That is a genuine and useful status for farm, site, trail and private-property work, and it is what the state intends for those vehicles. It is not a route to a plate, and no amount of added lighting or signalling converts it into one under the position the department currently publishes.

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 street legal in Michigan?

Yes, if the vehicle is at least 25 years old. The Michigan Secretary of State states that kei-class vehicles, including mini-trucks and microvans 25 years old and older, can be titled and registered for on-road use. Kei vehicles under 25 years old can only be titled as off-road vehicles in Michigan.

What is the 25-year rule for kei trucks in Michigan?

Michigan ties on-road eligibility for kei-class vehicles to the same 25-year threshold used by federal import law. A kei truck or microvan 25 years old or older is exempt from federal motor vehicle safety standards and may be titled and registered for the road in Michigan; one younger than 25 years may only be titled as an off-road vehicle.

What paperwork does Michigan require to title an imported kei truck?

The Michigan Secretary of State requires import documentation if the kei vehicle has not previously been titled in the United States, in addition to the normal title application. Vehicles that already hold a US title from another state are handled as an ordinary out-of-state transfer.

Can I register a kei truck newer than 25 years old in Michigan?

No. The Michigan Secretary of State states that mini-trucks and microvans less than 25 years old are not eligible for titling or registering on-road and can only be titled as off-road vehicles.

Does Michigan limit which roads a registered kei truck can use?

The Michigan Secretary of State's published guidance addresses titling and registration only and sets no kei-specific road or speed restriction. We could not establish any statewide Michigan rule limiting where a road-registered kei truck may be driven, so local ordinances and ordinary traffic law apply.

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 Michigan registering authority before you buy. Payment for an imported vehicle is by bank transfer and is not reversible.