Booster seat requirements in Minnesota
A car seat or booster until age 9.
Minnesota sets no height or weight that ends the requirement early. Age is the only test.
- Rear facing until
- 24 months
- Back seat until
- age 13
- Seat belt alone from
- age 9
- First offense
- $50
Every figure on this page was read at Minn. Stat. § 169.685, subds. 4a, 5 on 4 October 2026. Read the statute
What the Minnesota booster seat law says
The stages below are separate rules in the statute, not one rule in steps. The back seat requirement and the restraint requirement are different obligations, and a child can be caught by both at once.
| Rule | Figure | What Minnesota requires |
|---|---|---|
| Rear facing | under 24 months | Until 24 months (2 years). |
| Car seat or booster | under 9 years | Until age 9. |
| Back seat | under 13 years | Required for a child under age 13. |
| Adult seat belt alone | from 9 years | Lawful from age 9. |
| Penalty | $50 | $50 for a first offense. Condition A petty misdemeanor, fine of not more than $50. The fine may be waived or reduced on proof that a compliant restraint was bought or obtained within 14 days of the violation. |
Where this and size guidance disagree, follow the stricter one. A belt that crosses the neck rather than the middle of the chest is worse protection than a booster even where the statute allows it.
The statute
Minnesota sets this in Minn. Stat. § 169.685, subds. 4a, 5. Read it at the source.
This is information, not legal advice. A city or county in Minnesota can set a stricter rule than the state one, and an officer enforces the text of the statute rather than a summary of it. Where this page and the statute differ, the statute is right and this page is a bug.
Where this comes from
- Statute
- Minn. Stat. § 169.685, subds. 4a, 5
- Source
- www.revisor.mn.gov
- Jurisdiction
- Minnesota (MN), state law only
- Last reviewed
- 4 October 2026 0 days ago
- Read at the statute
- 4 October 2026
- Signed off by a person
- Not yet
- Amendment history
- 2024 Minn. Laws ch. 104, art. 1, §§ 42-43, effective 1 August 2024