StacksVerified U.S. regulatory reference

18 U.S.C. § 553

Verified against govinfo.gov as of June 20, 2026View official text on govinfo.gov ↗
  1. (a)Whoever knowingly imports, exports, or attempts to import or export—shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 10 years, or both.
    1. (1)any motor vehicle, off-highway mobile equipment, vessel, aircraft, or part of any motor vehicle, off-highway mobile equipment, vessel, or aircraft, knowing the same to have been stolen; or
    2. (2)any motor vehicle or off-highway mobile equipment or part of any motor vehicle or off-highway mobile equipment, knowing that the identification number of such motor vehicle, equipment, or part has been removed, obliterated, tampered with, or altered;
  2. (b)Subsection (a)(2) shall not apply if the removal, obliteration, tampering, or alteration—
    1. (1)is caused by collision or fire; or
    2. (2)
      1. (A)in the case of a motor vehicle, is not a violation of section 511 of this title (relating to altering or removing motor vehicle identification numbers); or
      2. (B)in the case of off-highway mobile equipment, would not be a violation of section 511 of this title if such equipment were a motor vehicle.
  3. (c)As used in this section, the term—
    1. (1)“motor vehicle” has the meaning given that term in section 32101 of title 49;
    2. (2)“off-highway mobile equipment” means any self-propelled agricultural equipment, self-propelled construction equipment, and self-propelled special use equipment, used or designed for running on land but not on rail or highway;
    3. (3)“vessel” has the meaning given that term in section 401 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1401);
    4. (4)“aircraft” has the meaning given that term in section 40102(a) of title 49; and
    5. (5)“identification number”—
      1. (A)in the case of a motor vehicle, has the meaning given that term in section 511 of this title; and
      2. (B)in the case of any other vehicle or equipment covered by this section, means a number or symbol assigned to the vehicle or equipment, or part thereof, by the manufacturer primarily for the purpose of identifying such vehicle, equipment, or part.