Kei trucks. Are they legal in Canada?

In one sentence. Yes, a kei truck can be imported into Canada once it is 15 years old, counted from the month and year it was built, because Transport Canada does not regulate vehicles that old from countries other than the US and Mexico. Whether you may drive it on public roads is decided by your province, and a successful import does not guarantee that the province will register it.

Check your truck by its build month: whether it passes the 15-year rule, and what the duty, the air conditioner tax and the GST come to.

Fifteen years, counted from the month it was built

For a vehicle built for another market, the federal question is its age. Transport Canada, on vehicles from countries other than the US and Mexico, lists the condition this way:

"The vehicle is 15 years old or older, based on the month and year of its manufacture,"

CBSA's memorandum on importing vehicles, D19-12-1, says vehicles made 15 years or more before the date of importation "are not regulated under the MVSA" (the Motor Vehicle Safety Act). There is also a customs rule. Tariff item 9897.00.00 of the Customs Tariff prohibits used vehicles, and CBSA memorandum D9-1-11 lists the exemptions, among them "Vehicles that are not less than 15 years old." The same memorandum says how the age is counted:

"For the purposes of Tariff 9897.00.00, the age of a motor vehicle is determined by the month and year during which work was completed on the vehicle at the place of main assembly."

Its example: a vehicle made in May 2000 was 15 years old on 1 May 2015. So a kei truck finished in November 2011 can come in from 1 November 2026. The model year does not count, in CBSA's words: "The "model year" of the vehicle is not a sufficient factor in determining the age of imported used or second-hand vehicles." The date is usually on the maker's compliance label. Without a label, the importer has to give the officer other evidence of the age.

Get the date right before the truck ships. Transport Canada: "An inadmissible vehicle will be denied entry into Canada and detained." And: "All storage and disposal fees are the responsibility of the importer."

At the border, CBSA records the truck on Form 1

A truck that is 15 years old does not go through the Registrar of Imported Vehicles, the federal program for newer vehicles that must be brought up to Canadian standards. CBSA records it on the Vehicle Import Form instead:

"The entry is to be recorded on a Form 1 as a vehicle not required to enter the RIV Program"

Keep that Form 1. British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario all ask for it when you register. For a vehicle older than 15 years, Transport Canada lists what CBSA officers do at entry: establish that its age takes it out of regulation, inspect it for possible soil contaminants, examine the ownership documents, and collect taxes and duties if they apply. On ownership, D19-12-1 says CBSA "will verify whether the vehicle, importer, and vendor details match supporting documentation", such as a licensing document or a bill of sale.

The truck also has to carry identification markings that let CBSA check its age against your papers. Without them, D19-12-1 says, the vehicle "does not qualify for importation into Canada as age-exempt." One more paper comes from Japan. British Columbia asks for the original Japanese Export Certificate and a certified English translation when you register a vehicle imported from Japan, so ask the seller for the original before the truck leaves.

The duty is 6.1%, or 1.1% with a CPTPP certificate

A kei truck is a goods vehicle with a small petrol engine. In the Customs Tariff that is heading 87.04, "Motor vehicles for the transport of goods", under "Other, with only spark-ignition internal combustion piston engine", and tariff item 8704.31.00, "g.v.w. not exceeding 5 tonnes" (g.v.w. means gross vehicle weight). Its rates in the 2026 tariff, edition T2026-2:

Japan is one of Canada's partners in the CPTPP, so a truck made there may get 1.1%. That rate is not automatic. CBSA memorandum D11-4-2 says the CPTPP certification of origin "must be completed and signed by either the importer, the exporter, or the producer of the good", and that the importer must have it in hand when claiming the rate. Without it, CBSA's instruction is that "another appropriate tariff, usually the MFN Tariff, is to be claimed."

A kei van may be classified differently. Heading 87.04 covers vehicles for the transport of goods; heading 87.03 covers vehicles "principally designed for the transport of persons". A passenger kei van with a petrol engine of 1,000 cc or less falls under 8703.21, tariff item 8703.21.90: 6.1% under the default rate and free under the CPTPP. A cargo van built for goods stays in 87.04, so check which one yours is before you count on the free rate.

GST and a $100 air conditioner tax are paid at the border

D19-12-1 says a vehicle allowed in "will be assessed for duty, excise tax and the goods and services tax." The excise tax is the air conditioner tax:

"Imported vehicles that have an air conditioning unit are subjected to a CAD $100 excise tax."

It comes from section 7 of Schedule I to the Excise Tax Act, which names air conditioners in "automobiles, station wagons, vans or trucks". The other vehicle excise, the levy on fuel-inefficient vehicles (section 6), covers passenger vehicles "but not including pickup trucks", and only those rated at 13 litres per 100 km or more.

The GST is 5% (Excise Tax Act, section 212), and it is charged on more than the price. Section 215 makes the value for GST the value for duty plus the duty and the taxes payable on the truck, which includes the air conditioner tax. Here is the arithmetic for a truck with factory air conditioning and a value for duty of $8,000, a number picked only to show the method:

Shipping, port charges and any clearance fee are not in this table. Neither is provincial tax, which comes later.

Provincial sales tax is paid when you register it

D19-12-1 (paragraph 46) puts the provincial tax at licensing: "For other provinces, sales tax may be applied when they license their vehicle." Ontario says "You may need to pay the 8% provincial portion of the HST" on a vehicle bought outside Canada. British Columbia: "Provincial Sales Tax (PST) must be paid at the time of registration unless you qualify for exemption." Ask your registry for the rate before you budget.

Each province decides whether it goes on the road

Transport Canada says it outright: "Having successfully importing a vehicle does not guarantee that you will be able to register and license it." Its next sentence names the issue for a truck with the steering wheel on the right: "For example, some provinces will not license right hand drive vehicles or certain salvage branded vehicles once repaired." Saskatchewan's inspection manual explains why the rules differ: Transport Canada exempts vehicles 15 years and older for importation, "however the Provinces and Territories have the authority to establish their respective registration requirements for these vehicles".

None of the provincial pages we read names kei trucks. Each says what it needs to register an imported vehicle, and two set rules a kei truck runs into:

For Manitoba, the Atlantic provinces and the territories we found no published rule on these vehicles, so ask the registry office before you buy, with the truck's build date and the fact that it is right-hand drive.

You, or a licensed customs broker, clear it at the port

Norquin does not buy or ship vehicles; the seller or exporter in Japan arranges that. Once the truck lands, it has to be accounted for to CBSA before release. The Customs Act, section 32(1), puts that on "the importer or owner of the goods", and also requires that "all duties thereon have been paid."

You can do it yourself, or have an agent do it. CBSA's Customs Notice 16-21 says a person may act as your agent if they are "licensed to transact business as a customs broker", and that "The carrier transporting the goods cannot act as an agent of the importer." For the general case, see how to import goods into Canada, and who can file a duty refund if the duty was overpaid.