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If I live in Canada and have an infant car seat approved in Canada, can I legally use that car seat when traveling in the US? I will be traveling by plane and getting a rental car at my US destination.

I see that car seat laws differ by state. How will this affect me?

Edits: The car seat has the CMVSS/NSVAC sticker on it (transport Canada cross border shopping) and does not appear to have a US sticker on it. The car seat's manual states that it meets US FMVSS 213. The car seat in question is the Evenflo Symphony 65 DLX though the question was intended to be more general than this specific seat.

choster
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mbaryu
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1 Answers1

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I know this might not be an answer exactly, but I can't leave a comment:

We have taken US car seats to Canada (by car), Mexico and Europe (Denmark) for our kids. We have not have any questioning about them at the border, not even in Canada when the kids were in them. I have not have any one stop and check the seats there. In Denmark we used a private car though, not a rental.

I have been pulled over by the police once with kids in the car seats here in the US, and they didn't as much as look at the car seats, if they were legal or properly installed - they just ticked the minor traffic infraction committed.

I know this is anecdotal, but I think as long as the kid is in a car seat appropriate for the child's age, you will not run into trouble. Be sure to note whether the state you travel to have rules regarding forward vs. rear facing for certain ages, and when the kid can move from a 5-point to a booster.

Ida
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