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 New Jersey, the seat belt law is a primary enforcement law for all drivers and front-seat passengers, as well as for passengers under 18 years of age seated anywhere in the vehicle. This means that a law enforcement officer can stop and issue a citation to the driver if they or any front-seat passenger, or any minor in the vehicle, is not properly wearing a seat belt, without needing to observe another violation. Additionally, New Jersey law requires all children under the age of eight to be secured in a child safety seat or booster seat, unless they are taller than 4 feet 9 inches. For adult rear-seat passengers, New Jersey's seat belt law is a secondary enforcement law, which means that a citation for not wearing a seat belt can only be issued if the vehicle has been stopped for another reason. The goal of these laws is to ensure the safety of all vehicle occupants and to reduce the number of injuries and fatalities in traffic accidents.