--- kind: "section" citation: "49 U.S.C. § 30146" title: "49" title_heading: "Transportation" number: "30146" heading: "Release of motor vehicles and bonds" release: "119-102" date: "2026-07-12" url: "https://uscodex.org/usc/49/30146" units: - "Subtitle VI — Motor Vehicle and Driver Programs" - "Part A — General" - "Chapter 301 — Motor Vehicle Safety" - "Subchapter III — Importing Noncomplying Motor Vehicles and Equipment" --- # §30146. Release of motor vehicles and bonds - (a) **Compliance Certification and Bond.—** - (1) Except as provided in subsections [(c)](#c) and [(d)](#d) of this section, an importer registered under [section 30141(c) of this title](/usc/49/30141.md?p=c) may license or register an imported [motor vehicle](/usc/49/30102.md?p=a-7) for use on public streets, roads, or highways, or release custody of a [motor vehicle](/usc/49/30102.md?p=a-7) imported by the registered importer or imported by an individual under [section 30142 of this title](/usc/49/30142.md) and altered by the registered importer to meet applicable [motor vehicle safety standards](/usc/49/30102.md?p=a-10) prescribed under this chapter to a person for license or registration for use on public streets, roads, or highways, only after 30 days after the registered importer certifies to the Secretary of Transportation, in the way the Secretary prescribes, that the [motor vehicle](/usc/49/30102.md?p=a-7) complies with each standard prescribed in the year the vehicle was manufactured and that applies in that year to that vehicle. A vehicle may not be released if the Secretary gives written notice before the end of the 30-day period that the Secretary will inspect the vehicle under [subsection (c)](#c) of this section. - (2) The Secretaries of Transportation and the Treasury shall prescribe regulations— - (A) ensuring the release of a [motor vehicle](/usc/49/30102.md?p=a-7) and bond required under [section 30141(d) of this title](/usc/49/30141.md?p=d) at the end of the 30-day period, unless the Secretary of Transportation issues a notice of an inspection under [subsection (c)](#c) of this section; and - (B) providing that the Secretary of Transportation shall release the vehicle and bond promptly after an inspection under [subsection (c)](#c) of this section showing compliance with the standards applicable to the vehicle. - (3) Each registered importer shall include on each [motor vehicle](/usc/49/30102.md?p=a-7) released under this subsection a label prescribed by the Secretary of Transportation identifying the importer and stating that the vehicle has been altered by the importer to comply with the standards applicable to the vehicle. - (b) **Reliance on Manufacturer’s Certification.—** In making a certification under [subsection (a)(1)](#a-1) of this section, the registered importer may rely on the [manufacturer](/usc/49/30102.md?p=a-6)’s certification for the [model](/usc/49/32901.md?p=a-15) to which the [motor vehicle](/usc/49/30102.md?p=a-7) involved is substantially similar if the importer certifies that any alteration made by the importer did not affect the compliance of the safety features of the vehicle and the importer keeps records verifying the certification for the period the Secretary of Transportation prescribes. - (c) **Evidence of Compliance.—** - (1) The Secretary of Transportation may require that the certification under [subsection (a)(1)](#a-1) of this section be accompanied by evidence of compliance the Secretary considers appropriate or may inspect the certified [motor vehicle](/usc/49/30102.md?p=a-7), or both. If the Secretary gives notice of an inspection, an importer may release the vehicle only after— - (A) an inspection showing the [motor vehicle](/usc/49/30102.md?p=a-7) complies with applicable [motor vehicle safety standards](/usc/49/30102.md?p=a-10) prescribed under this chapter for which the inspection was made; and - (B) release of the vehicle by the Secretary. - (2) The Secretary of Transportation shall inspect periodically a representative number of [motor vehicles](/usc/49/30102.md?p=a-7) for which certifications have been filed under [subsection (a)(1)](#a-1) of this section. In carrying out a [motor vehicle](/usc/49/30102.md?p=a-7) testing program under this chapter, the Secretary shall include a representative number of [motor vehicles](/usc/49/30102.md?p=a-7) for which certifications have been filed under [subsection (a)(1)](#a-1). - (d) **Challenging the Certification.—** A [motor vehicle](/usc/49/30102.md?p=a-7) or bond may not be released under [subsection (a)](#a) of this section if the Secretary of Transportation, not later than 30 days after receiving a certification under [subsection (a)(1)](#a-1) of this section, gives written notice that the Secretary believes or has reason to believe that the certification is false or contains a mispresentation.[^1] The vehicle and bond may be released only after the Secretary is satisfied with the certification and any modification of the certification. - (e) **Bond Release.—** A release of a bond required under [section 30141(d) of this title](/usc/49/30141.md?p=d) is deemed an acceptance of a certification or completion of an inspection under this section but is not a decision by the Secretary of Transportation under [section 30118(a)](/usc/49/30118.md?p=a) or (b) of this title of compliance with applicable [motor vehicle safety standards](/usc/49/30102.md?p=a-10) prescribed under this chapter. ## Footnotes [^1]: So in original. Probably should be “misrepresentation.” ## Source credit (Pub. L. 103–272, § 1(e), July 5, 1994, 108 Stat. 964.) ## Notes | Historical and Revision Notes | | | | --- | --- | --- | | Revised
Section | Source (U.S. Code) | Source (Statutes at Large) | | 30146(a) | 15:1397(c)(3)(E)(i) (1st, 3d, last sentences), (vii). | Sept. 9, 1966, Pub. L. 89–563, 80 Stat. 718, § 108(c)(3)(E); added Oct. 31, 1988, Pub. L. 100–562, § 2(b), 102 Stat. 2820. | | 30146(b) | 15:1397(c)(3)(E)(ii). | | | 30146(c) | 15:1397(c)(3)(E)(i) (2d sentence), (iii), (iv). | | | 30146(d) | 15:1397(c)(3)(E)(vi). | | | 30146(e) | 15:1397(c)(3)(E)(v). | | In subsection (a)(1), the words “Except as provided in subsections (c) and (d) of this section” are added because of the restatement. In subsection (a)(2)(B), the words “showing compliance with the standards” are substituted for “showing no such failure to comply” for clarity.