I’m moving to Australia… What do I need to know about child seats?

We know that when you move countries with children there is a lot to consider and sometimes just getting through the flight to get there can be daunting enough, without working out the local child seat laws.

When it comes to relocating Down Under, all sorts of questions arise around family car travel; Can you just bring your existing child seats with you? How long do you have to keep your baby rear-facing? Are child seats the same in Australia? What age do kids have to be in child seats in Australia? How do child seats attach to cars in Australia? Do cars have ISOFIX, load legs, latch or top tethers in Australia?

Whichever country you are travelling from, there are some important laws in Australia that you need to adhere to when it comes to carrying children in cars. Each state has its own hefty fines and demerit points if children are not correctly restrained in vehicles.

Which is why we have put this handy guide together for you to help make your transition to Australia with your family safer and easier so you can enjoy safe family travel when you first arrive!

I have tested a heap of different child seats in hundreds of cars with my family over the last ten years as a mum of two, family car journalist and founder of BabyDrive.com.au. 

Here’s my guide for what you need to know about carrying your children in cars in Australia:

No! No overseas child seats are allowed to be used in Australia from ANY country, because they have not been tested by Australian safety standards. So you can not bring your child seats with you.

Australia has some of the highest child seat safety standards in the world, which is fantastic for our little ones and reassuring for us adults! So you will need to buy new child seats when you arrive in Australia.

All Australian approved child seats have an Australian Standards Sticker on the back you need to check for, showing Australian Standard AS/NZS 1754.

See our helpful guide for how to choose the right child seat here.

Yes, you can use a secondhand child seat but you need to know its history and be aware of the following:

Child seats must be less than 10 years old. You’ll find either a dial or a sticker on the back of all child seats with the month and year date of manufacturer. So be sure to check that it’s in date.

Also check for the Australian Standards Sticker on the back too, showing Australian Standard AS/NZS 1754. If there is no Australian Standards Sticker or the child seat is older than ten years old, don’t use it.

You need to know the child seat has not been involved in a crash; it could be weakened or damaged without you being able to see it. If in doubt, don’t use it.

Do not use a child seat where any of the straps are frayed or split.

If you are buying secondhand or being given child seats from a friend or relative, be sure to ask them for the manufacturer’s instructions so you know how to properly install and use the child seat. If they have lost them you could try contacting the manufacturer for a digital copy of the instructions.

Every country is different when it comes to the age children have to be in child seats.

By law, all children up to seven years of age must be restrained in an approved child car seat in the back seats of the car in Australia.

The age guides can be confusing because, like us adults, children vary in size quite dramatically so most child seats have shoulder height markers on the covers which can be very helpful to indicate if a child has reached the necessary height to move to their next seat or seating position.

Children from birth to six months old must be in a rear-facing child seat, or until their shoulders reach the height markers on their child seat. Lots of babies are not big enough to face forward at six months and are safer remaining in a rearward-facing position.

Children six months to four years old can be in a rear-facing or forward-facing child seat with an inbuilt harness.

Children four years to seven years old must be in a child seat with inbuilt harness or a booster seat with a seatbelt.

Children seven years and older can either be restrained in an extended harnessed seat or booster seat, or if they are tall enough, they can use a properly fitted and adjusted seatbelt.

See our helpful guide for how to choose the right child seat here.

You may be used to child seats that are installed using a child seat load leg, or just the ISOFIX or the latch or just the seatbelt.

The laws around child seat installation differ in every country.

In Australia, all child seats must be installed using a top tether anchorage. (See advice What is a Top Tether?)

The top tether is a flexible webbing strap that is attached at the top/back of a child seat. At the other end of the top tether, a metal hook clips onto a top tether anchor point installed in your vehicle.

Secondly- all child seats must be installed using either the car’s seat belt or ISOFIX points, but never both ISOFIX/seatbelt at the same time (See advice What is Isofix).

This second one will depend on your vehicle and whether the seating position has ISOFIX and whether your child seat has ISOFIX or not.

ISOFIX anchorages are two metal bars that are built into the vehicle during its original manufacture for attaching the child seat to the car. These lower attachment points act as an alternative to the seat belt.

It is to these anchorages that you attach the ISOFIX connectors of a compatible child seat.

No, you don’t have to have your child seats professionally installed in Australia but they can be more confusing or difficult to install depending on the vehicle and the child seat and the percentage of child seats that are found to be incorrectly installed in Australia is very high.

So it is advised that you do use a local child seat installation service and ask them to teach you how to use, check and adjust your child seats.

Each child seat will have instructions with it and your car will have installation instructions in the manual too. See our helpful video of how to install a child seat in an SUV here and our video of how to install a child seat in a dual cab ute here.

Join the conversation at our Facebook page
Or email us at editor@carsales.com.au