Arizona Car Seat Laws (2026): Booster Age & Penalty Rules

Arizona requires a child restraint system for every child under 5, and, for the operator of a vehicle designed to carry 10 or fewer passengers built for model year 1972 or later, keeps a 5-to-7-year-old in one too if they stand 4 feet 9 inches or shorter, under A.R.S. § 28-907. A violation is a flat $50 civil penalty that a court will waive once you show you've since bought a compliant seat. This page reflects the statute's text as of September 2026.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers car seat and child-restraint law in the state of Arizona only. It does not address tribal land, federal property, or any other state. For other states, see the car seat laws hub.

Arizona's child restraint requirement for children under 5

A.R.S. § 28-907(A) makes it unlawful to drive with a child under five years old who isn't "properly secured in a child restraint system." The statute doesn't separately spell out a rear-facing-versus-forward-facing rule. Instead, subsection (C) requires the restraint system itself to meet federal safety standards under 49 CFR 571.213, and it's the seat's own manufacturer instructions, not a distinct Arizona statute, that set the point at which a child can switch from rear-facing to forward-facing within that system. Keeping a child rear-facing as long as the seat allows is what federal safety regulators recommend (see the guidance section below), but that recommendation sits alongside the law rather than inside it.

Booster stage: age 5 through the 4-feet-9-inch cutoff

Once a child turns five, section 28-907(B) still requires a child restraint system, usually a booster seat by this age, for any child who is under eight years old and "not more than four feet nine inches tall." That duty, however, binds only "the operator of a motor vehicle that is designed for carrying ten or fewer passengers, that is manufactured for the model year 1972 and thereafter and that is required to be equipped with an integrated lap and shoulder belt or a lap belt pursuant to the federal motor vehicle safety standards prescribed in 49 Code of Federal Regulations section 571.208." A vehicle designed to carry more than ten passengers, or one built before model year 1972, falls outside (B) entirely, unlike the under-5 duty in (A), which carries no such vehicle limitation. That height ceiling is inclusive: a child measuring exactly four feet nine inches remains covered, and the requirement only lifts once a child is taller than that mark. In practice, the booster stage ends at whichever comes first: the child's eighth birthday, or a height over four feet nine inches.

When Arizona's seat belt law takes over

Once a child ages out of the restraint requirement, by turning eight or by growing past four feet nine inches, section 28-907 no longer applies, and the state's general seat belt statute covers that child the same way it covers an adult passenger. Arizona's car seat law does not carve out a separate lap-belt-only stage; the transition is a clean cutoff at the age or height line above, not a graduated booster-to-belt allowance.

Exemptions from Arizona's car seat law

Section 28-907(H) lists six specific exemptions from the restraint requirement:

• A vehicle originally manufactured without passenger restraint devices.
• A recreational vehicle, as defined in A.R.S. § 41-4001.
• A commercial motor vehicle operated by a driver holding a current commercial driver license.
• A driver who must transport a child in an emergency to obtain necessary medical care.
• An authorized emergency vehicle transporting a child for medical care.
• A vehicle carrying more than one child under 8 where the passenger area doesn't have room for every required restraint system, as long as at least one child is restrained and the rest are restrained as reasonably as possible.

The statute doesn't list a taxi or rideshare exemption. Unless one of the six exemptions above applies, the restraint requirement covers a ride in a taxi or a Transportation Network Company vehicle the same as any other private car.

Penalty for a car seat violation

A violation of section 28-907 carries a $50 civil penalty under subsection (D), with no first-offense/subsequent-offense distinction in the statute's own text. It's a civil penalty rather than a criminal moving violation, and the statute's own text doesn't attach driver's license points to it. The penalty, on any violation, is waived outright if the driver "makes a sufficient showing that the motor vehicle has been subsequently equipped with a child restraint system" that meets the federal standard, so a citation doesn't have to become a lasting fine if you fix the problem before your court date.

Federal guidance vs. Arizona law

The federal standard that governs child car seats as products, FMVSS 213 (49 CFR 571.213), regulates what a manufacturer may sell, not how a parent must use the seat; that's Arizona's statute's job, described above. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the American Academy of Pediatrics separately recommend keeping a child rear-facing as long as the seat's own height and weight limits allow, then moving through a forward-facing harness, a booster, and finally a seat belt. That's safety guidance, not a binding legal requirement beyond what section 28-907 already sets. A newer federal side-impact standard for car seats themselves, FMVSS 213a/213b, becomes mandatory for manufacturers on December 5, 2026; it changes what a seat must be built to withstand, not what Arizona law requires a driver to do.

Related Arizona traffic law pages

• Arizona DUI laws
• Arizona window tint laws
• Car seat laws in every state

Disclaimer: This article provides general legal information about Arizona's car seat law as of September 2026. It is not legal advice. Statutes, exemptions, and penalties change; verify the current text of the law before relying on it, and talk to a lawyer licensed in Arizona about a specific situation.

Statutes cited reflect their in-force version as of 2026-09-16. Last updated: 2026-09-16.

Frequently Asked Questions

At what age can a child sit in the front seat in Arizona?

Arizona's car seat statute, A.R.S. section 28-907, doesn't set a front-seat age or airbag rule. Placement decisions there come down to the vehicle owner's manual and general safety guidance, which recommends the back seat for children through at least age 12, rather than a distinct Arizona legal requirement.

Until what age or height does a child need a booster seat in Arizona?

A child restraint system, typically a booster by this age, is required from age 5 until the child turns 8 or grows taller than 4 feet 9 inches, whichever happens first, under A.R.S. section 28-907(B). That subsection applies to the operator of a vehicle designed for 10 or fewer passengers, model year 1972 or later, required to have a lap-and-shoulder or lap belt under 49 CFR 571.208; the under-5 duty in (A) has no such vehicle limitation.

Does an Uber or Lyft in Arizona need a car seat for a child?

Arizona's car seat law doesn't exempt rideshare vehicles. Unless the ride falls under one of the statute's specific exemptions, such as a medical emergency, the restraint requirement applies the same way it would in a private car.

What is the fine for not using a car seat in Arizona?

A violation is a flat $50 civil penalty under A.R.S. section 28-907(D), with no escalation for a second or later violation. The statute waives the penalty if you show the court you've since obtained a compliant child restraint system.