Register a Japanese truck in Montana.

Where the truck lands

Japan to Tacoma is often about 2 to 3 weeks on a direct Pacific Northwest sailing. The booked ship sets the date.

Tacoma, then I-90. Missoula is the first large city on that road. Billings is farther east. Los Angeles is the longer haul.

After it is in Montana

Montana does not run an emissions-test program. Montana has no broad state sales tax. Registration fees are still due. Title is with the Motor Vehicle Division after the truck is in the state. There is no separate import ban on a federally released 25-year vehicle.

The office that handles the plate is Montana Motor Vehicle Division. Read their current page before you pay the vehicle balance. County rules change, and the page they publish is the one that titles the truck.

How old the truck has to be in Montana

NHTSA’s rule is the same in Montana as in every other state. A vehicle at least 25 years old, counted from the date of manufacture, can be imported without regard to the full federal safety standards. That entry is HS-7 Box 1. The badge year on the fender is not the clock.

Montana Motor Vehicle Division is the office that titles the truck in Montana. Their linked page is where the plate is issued after customs release. This page does not add a second age on top of the federal 25-year manufacture date.

The federal file, then the state

The federal gate is the same in every state. NHTSA’s 25-year rule runs from the date of manufacture on the plate, not the badge year. The entry is HS-7 Box 1. EPA is a separate file. CBP’s vehicle page says a vehicle is exempt from EPA standards when 21 years have passed since the original production year and it is still in original condition. Form 3520-1 is filed at entry. A truck can clear one clock and fail the other. Your broker files the entry at the discharge port. CBP’s importing-a-car page prints auto duty at 2.5% and truck duty at 25%. Those printed rates are not in our price. US$500 by card starts the Japan-side order. Ocean freight is quoted after the sailing is booked. State title, use tax, and any inspection come after CBP releases the truck. A federal release is not a state plate.

NHTSA: importing a vehicle · EPA: importing vehicles and engines · CBP: importing a car · United States overview