Except for New Hampshire, all states and the District of Columbia require adult front-seat occupants of motor vehicles to use seat belts. Adult rear-seat passengers are also covered by the laws in 31 states and the District of Columbia. Children are covered by separate laws.

State seat belt laws are divided into two categories: primary and secondary. Primary seat belt laws allow law enforcement officers to stop a motor vehicle and to issue a ticket or citation to a driver or passenger for not wearing a seat belt without any other traffic offense having occurred. Secondary seat belt laws only allow law enforcement officers to issue a ticket or citation for not wearing a seat belt when there has been another traffic offense by an occupant of the vehicle for which the occupant may be issued a ticket or citation.

In Minnesota, seat belt use is mandated by law under Minnesota Statutes section 169.686, which requires all drivers and passengers in all seating positions to wear seat belts or be properly restrained in a child restraint system. This law applies to passenger vehicles, commercial motor vehicles, and type III vehicles. Minnesota's seat belt law is a primary enforcement law, which means that law enforcement officers can stop and ticket a driver or passenger solely for not wearing a seat belt, without needing to observe another traffic violation. The law also specifies that all children under the age of eight or shorter than 4 feet 9 inches must be properly secured in a child safety seat or booster seat that meets federal safety standards. Violation of the seat belt law in Minnesota is punishable by a fine, and the driver is responsible for ensuring that all passengers are properly restrained.