Maine Golf Cart Laws (2025)

No – except in a very narrow scenario. Maine does not allow golf carts on public roads in the mainland. The only time a golf cart could be street-legal is on certain islands that have no state-maintained roads, and even then it requires the local town’s approval and a special registration. On Maine’s mainland roads, you cannot legally drive a golf cart (they can’t be registered for road use).

If you are operating it in the only legal context Maine allows (on an authorized island road), yes – you must have a valid driver’s license. The law specifically requires a licensed driver for golf carts or low-speed vehicles used on those island public roads. On private property (like a golf course or private campground), a license isn’t legally required by the state, but the property owner can set their own rules.

Maine’s statute about island golf carts doesn’t explicitly mention insurance in the text we have. However, Maine law generally requires motor vehicles that are registered to have liability insurance. If a golf cart is registered (even under the island provision), it’s prudent to insure it. On the mainland, since you can’t register a golf cart for road use at all, the question of insurance only comes up if you choose to get coverage for off-road use or for use on private property. In short: for the rare street-legal (island) golf cart, you likely need insurance (and some towns might explicitly require proof of insurance for the island registration).

No, Maine law doesn’t require seat belts on golf carts. The island-use regulations for golf carts do not list seat belts among the required equipment. Because golf carts aren’t allowed on regular roads, Maine hasn’t imposed the kind of safety requirements on them that you’d see for cars. (Low-speed vehicles, which are a different category, come with seat belts by federal design, but Maine’s allowance is mostly aimed at unmodified golf carts on islands.) So, you won’t find a legal mandate for seat belts in a golf cart in Maine.

By definition, Maine considers a “golf cart” to be a vehicle not capable of exceeding 20 mph. Any cart that goes faster than that would not fit Maine’s definition and likely cannot be used under the golf cart rules. On the authorized islands, carts and low-speed vehicles can only operate on roads with speed limits of 35 mph or less, and realistically golf carts are going to be driving around 15–20 mph. If a vehicle can go above 25 mph, it would be considered a Low-Speed Vehicle (and in Maine, those would also only be allowed in the island scenario – Maine doesn’t generally allow LSVs on the mainland either without this special context).

At least 16 with a driver’s license, for public road usage. Maine’s island exemption requires the operator to have a valid driving license, which means they are of driving age. There’s no specific Maine law about age for private property – on a golf course or private land, a younger teen or child might drive a golf cart with permission and supervision, but that’s outside of any law. For any situation on public roads, you must be a licensed driver.

You normally cannot register a golf cart through Maine’s BMV for use on public roads (they won’t issue you a license plate for it). The only registration available is the special situation for island vehicles. If you live on an island that qualifies (no state-maintained roads) and the town allows golf carts, you can register the cart with the town office. Maine law sets the fee at $4 per year for such island registrations. You’d pay the excise tax and that $4 fee to the municipality, and they issue you a registration (likely a sticker or certificate). This registration is only valid on that island. For the mainland, since registration isn’t possible, there’s no way to make a golf cart street-legal (aside from converting it into a fully compliant Low-Speed Vehicle with a 17-digit VIN, which is a different process not commonly done in Maine).

In practice, Maine’s requirements apply only to island use. The golf cart would need to be registered with the local island municipality, and the driver needs a valid license. The cart can only be driven on roads with speed limits 35 mph or below, and it can cross higher-speed roads only at intersections. There’s no specific list of equipment in the Maine statute beyond that (unlike some states, Maine doesn’t list lights or signals for golf carts, but having basic safety features is obviously smart). Essentially, the “street legal” golf cart in Maine is one that’s being used on a remote island with town approval – there’s no provision to make one street legal on the mainland. So the requirements boil down to: island town approval, municipal registration, low-speed road use only, and licensed driver. Maine also defines a golf cart as not exceeding 20 mph, which effectively is a requirement by definition.