Can I own one here
Owning one in Lewis 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 Lewis County.
Some routes. Lewis County opens short named stretches of county road between trails and several towns and villages open their own, for registered ATVs only, and the county's off-road trails take an unregistrable off highway vehicle up to 70 inches and 2,500 pounds with a permit and insurance, never on a road.
This rests on New York law. No Lewis County ordinance or resolution was read.
In town Some
- Some Leyden. Short pieces of town road between trails on private land, among them 0.48 miles of Fitch Road, 0.58 miles of Ziegler Road and 0.25 miles of Neff Road. A 2002 law opening many more Leyden roads was declared void in 2008. Local Law No. 2 of 2017, filed with the Department of State 29 June 2017, read 28 October 2026
- To confirm Lyonsdale. The 2009 law opening parts of town roads was declared void by a court in 2009, as the Tug Hill Commission's case review reports. No later Lyonsdale law was found. Local Law No. 1 of 2009, filed with the Department of State 9 March 2009, read 28 October 2026
- Some Martinsburg. Alger, Corrigan Hill and Fykes Roads, Graves Road from Keener Hill Road to Toole Road, Toole, Maple Ridge, French and Tabolt Roads and more to reach town forest and DEC truck trails, River Street since 2014 and 0.3 miles of Waters Road since 2025. Local Law No. 6 of 2006 as amended by Local Law No. 1 of 2014 and Local Law No. 1 of 2025, filed with the Department of State 28 February 2007, 26 August 2014 and 24 September 2025, read 28 October 2026
- Some Montague. Flat Rock Road from the Martinsburg line to Pitcher Road, Parker Road from County Route 28 to Flat Rock Road, Dim Road and other named roads to DEC truck trails. The 2007 law repealed a 2004 law that had opened every town road. Local Law No. 3 of 2007, filed with the Department of State 6 June 2007, read 28 October 2026
- Some Osceola. Jackson and Potter Roads, part of Nicku Road and 0.3 miles of North Osceola Road to the trailhead since 2000. Since 2017 also Driscoll Road, Gregory Road and other named pieces near Bean, Milk and Taylor Roads. Local Law No. 2 of 2000 and Local Law No. 1 of 2017, filed with the Department of State 13 July 2000 and 24 August 2017, read 28 October 2026
- Open Turin. Every town road is open to ATVs unless posted otherwise, and the board may close or restrict a road by resolution. Local Law No. 3 of 2006, filed with the Department of State 22 May 2006, read 28 October 2026
- Some Watson. Moshier Falls, Buck Point, Stony Lake, Bailey, Cleveland Lake, Beech Mill Pond and Stillwater Roads, part of Number Four Road near Stillwater Road and Erie Canal Road from the Greig line. Local Law No. 2 of 2000, filed with the Department of State 8 August 2000, which repealed Local Law No. 1 of 1998, read 28 October 2026
- Some West Turin. Dolan, Michigan Mills, Dolphin, North and Plumber Roads to the DEC truck trails, Moore Road, Smith Road and Crofoot Hill Road from 2009 and parts of Neff Road and Crofoot Hill Road from 2017. A 2000 law had opened every town highway and whether it still stands was not settled. Local Laws No. 1 of 2009 and No. 1 and 2 of 2017, filed with the Department of State 13 October 2009 and 1 August 2017, read 28 October 2026
- To confirm Constableville. The 2017 law opening James Street and High Street to trails was nullified by a court in 2018, as the Tug Hill Commission's case review reports. No later village law was found. Local Law No. 1 of 2017, filed with the Department of State 5 July 2017, read 28 October 2026
- Some Copenhagen. Cataract, Center, Grove, Mill and Stoddard Streets, Maiden Lane and Maple Avenue. Local Law No. 2, filed with the Department of State 7 January 2002, read 28 October 2026
- Some Lyons Falls. A portion of Belmont Street, by the title of the filed law. The operative page did not come through in the filed copy. Local Law No. 2 of 2017, filed with the Department of State 27 December 2017, read 28 October 2026
- Open Harrisville. All village streets. Local Law No. 2 of 2001, filed with the Department of State 9 August 2001, read 28 October 2026
- To confirm Port Leyden. The ATV and Snowmobile Law of the village. Its operative pages did not come through in the filed copy, so whether it opens any street was not read. Local Law No. 2 of 2023, filed with the Department of State 12 April 2023, read 28 October 2026
County roads Some
Short named stretches of county road, each opened by its own local law to join one trail to the next. In force from the acts read are Hermitage Road CR 7 in Diana 1.5 miles, Sears Pond and Liberty Road CR 28 in Montague 5.5 miles, Number 4 Road CR 26 in New Bremen 2.5 miles, 7 x 9 Road CR 21 in Pinckney 2 miles, Whitesville Road CR 21 in Pinckney 3 miles and Brantingham Road CR 42 in Greig 1.5 miles (2006), Pine Grove Road CR 39, Burdicks Crossing Road CR 36, Lee Road CR 43 and Houseville Road CR 34 (2009 and 2011), Mackay Road CR 45 and Highmarket Road CR 48 (2013), West Road CR 51 1.3 miles (2016), Burdicks Crossing Road CR 36 and Lyons Falls Road CR 76 (2020 and 2022), Brantingham Road CR 42 0.6 miles (2024), Cemetery Road CR 30 0.1 miles, Glendale Road CR 32 5 miles, Glenfield Road CR 80 0.3 miles and Main and Blue Streets CR 53 1.1 miles (2025), Byrons Corners Road CR 49 2.1 miles and Fish Creek Road CR 47 3.4 miles (2026). The county's wider 1999 to 2001 lists were repealed in 2006 because many of those roads did not meet VTL 2405. Local Laws No. 3 and 4 of 2006, No. 5 of 2009, No. 2 of 2011, No. 1 to 4 of 2013, No. 4 of 2016, No. 4 of 2020, No. 4 of 2022, No. 5 of 2024, No. 1 to 4 of 2025 and No. 1 and 2 of 2026, the newest filed with the Department of State 9 March 2026, read 28 October 2026
State highways Closed
Closed to OHVs.
Getting one here
From Japan to Lewis County.
The nearest ports with a sailing from Japan on record
- The Port of Savannah, Georgia Ports Authority, about 1,100 road miles.
- The JAXPORT, Jacksonville Port Authority, about 1,200 road miles.
- The Port of Everett, about 2,700 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
Lewis County, counted.
Lewis County averages 186 inches of snow a year. Farms in Lewis County hold 38,322 acres of woodland. Lewis County has 476 farms and 249 cattle operations, by the 2022 Census of Agriculture.
Areas
The areas Lewis County is part of.
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 Lewis County?
Ask about a truck, a state or the papers, and we answer with what applies to you.
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