The US 25-Year Import Rule, explained

It is the reason a Skyline GT-R can be registered in America and a three-year-old one cannot. The rule itself is short; the part people get wrong is how the twenty-five years are counted.

What the law says

Under 49 U.S.C. § 30112 and 19 C.F.R. § 12.80, a motor vehicle manufactured 25 or more calendar years before the date it enters the United States is exempt from the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards. Vehicles 21 years and older are separately exempt from EPA emissions conformity, so anything that clears the 25-year bar clears both.

Exempt means the car does not have to be modified to meet standards it was never built to. It does not mean paperwork-free: it still clears US Customs, still pays duty, and still has to be titled and registered in your state.

Twenty-five years from the month, not the model year

This is the detail that catches people out. The clock runs from the month of manufacture. A car built in March 2001 becomes importable in March 2026, not on 1 January of that year, and its model year is irrelevant — plenty of cars are built late in one year and sold as the next year's model.

Why we list cars that are not legal yet

Our auction feeds deliberately reach about a year past the current limit. The useful question is not only what can be bought today but what is worth watching before everyone else can bid on it — the good examples of a model are picked over in the months after it becomes eligible, not years later. Each listing says where it stands, and each model page says which of its generations can come in now.

What the rule does not change

It exempts the car from safety and emissions standards. It does not exempt it from customs duty, which is 12.5% of the vehicle's value, nor from the clearance costs that come with any import — those are set out in full on the import cost page. Some states also have their own titling requirements for imported vehicles, which is worth checking before you buy rather than after the car lands.

Frequently asked

What is the US 25-year import rule?

A vehicle becomes exempt from Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards 25 years after its month of manufacture, under 49 U.S.C. § 30112 and 19 C.F.R. § 12.80. In 2026 that means cars built in 2001 and earlier can be imported.

Is it 25 years from the model year?

No. It runs from the month of manufacture, not the model year and not the calendar year. A car built in March 2001 becomes legal in March 2026, not on 1 January 2026.

Does the car need to meet EPA emissions rules?

A vehicle 21 years or older is exempt from EPA emissions conformity. Anything old enough for the 25-year FMVSS exemption is comfortably past that, so both exemptions apply.

Can I import a car that is 24 years old and store it?

It cannot enter the United States before it is 25 years old. The date that matters is the date of entry, so a car can be bought and shipped to arrive once it qualifies, but it cannot clear customs early.