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Seat belts and child car seats in Alberta

In Alberta, every driver and passenger must be properly secured, with a seat belt or an approved child safety seat. Here is who is responsible, and which seat a child needs.p. 91

Checked against the Driver’s Guide (Spring 2026) on .

The short version

  • Everyone in the vehicle must be properly secured, with a seat belt or an approved child safety seat.p. 91
  • Passengers 16 and older can be fined for not being secured. The driver is responsible for every passenger under 16, and can be fined if they aren’t secured.p. 91
  • A child under six who weighs 18 kg (40 lb) or less must ride in a child safety seat.p. 91
  • Use only a seat labelled as meeting Canada Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 213.p. 91

Who must buckle up, and who is fined

  • Every driver and passenger must be properly secured: with a seat belt, or with an approved child safety seat attached by a seat belt or an anchor system.p. 91
  • Passengers 16 and older who aren’t properly secured can be fined themselves.p. 91
  • Passengers under 16 are the driver’s responsibility. If they aren’t properly secured, the driver can be fined.p. 91

When a child needs a car seat

A child under six years old who weighs no more than 18 kg (40 lb) must be properly secured in a child safety seat, installed following the instructions for both the vehicle and the seat.p. 91

  • Check for the label saying the seat meets Canada Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 213. Don’t use a seat without it.p. 91
  • Don’t use a seat designed for use in another country.p. 91
  • Choose a seat that is right for your child’s age or weight.p. 91

Rear-facing, forward-facing or booster

Which seat, by the Driver’s Guidep. 91p. 92
SeatFor
Rear-facing (infant or convertible)Every child from birth, until they reach the weight the manufacturer recommends for a forward-facing seat
Forward-facingChildren 10 to 18 kg (22 to 40 lb)
BoosterChildren over 18 kg (40 lb), before they use the vehicle’s seat belt alone
  • Rear-facing: every child starts here, in a rear-facing infant seat or a rear-facing convertible seat.p. 91
  • Forward-facing: the seat’s tether strap and the vehicle’s tether anchor must be used. You may need a dealer to install a tether anchor.p. 92
  • Booster: use it following the manufacturer’s instructions.p. 92

Installing a car seat

  • Newer vehicles and child seats come with the universal anchor system (UAS, also called LATCH).p. 91
  • In an older vehicle, secure the child seat with the vehicle’s seat belt.p. 91
  • Follow the instruction manuals for both your vehicle and the child seat.p. 91

Where this comes from

Every point above links to the page it’s based on. These are the Driver’s Guide sections it uses, in page order.

Written by Class 7 Practice from the Driver’s Guide: cars and light trucks (Spring 2026), Government of Alberta.

Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Alberta. This is a study aid, not the law: the official guide and alberta.ca are authoritative. Found something wrong? Tell us.