when can babies face forward in car seat canada

[JaxonDella]

In Canada, the official recommendation is to keep your child in a rear-facing car seat for as long as possible, until they reach the maximum weight or height limit allowed by the seat's manufacturer. This is the safest practice. While provincial laws set a minimum standard (often a minimum of 20 lbs or 22 lbs and 1 year old), safety experts strongly advise exceeding this legal minimum. The transition to a forward-facing seat should only happen once your child has genuinely outgrown the rear-facing limits of their convertible or infant seat.

The primary reason for this extended rear-facing recommendation is safety. In a frontal collision—the most common and severe type—a rear-facing seat cradles the child's head, neck, and spine, distributing the crash forces across the entire shell of the seat. A forward-facing seat restrains the body, but the head and neck are thrown forward, placing immense stress on the child's underdeveloped vertebrae.

Here’s a quick reference for provincial minimums versus expert advice:

Province/Territory	Minimum Legal Requirement for Forward-Facing	Recommended Best Practice by Safety Experts
Ontario, Alberta, BC, etc.	20 lbs (9 kg) AND 1 year old	Max out the rear-facing limits of your seat (often 40-50 lbs / 18-23 kg)
Quebec	22 lbs (10 kg) AND 1 year old	Max out the rear-facing limits of your seat (often 40-50 lbs / 18-23 kg)
General Rule	Follow your specific province's law	Ignore the minimums; follow the seat's manual for maximums.

Always prioritize the specifications in your car seat's owner's manual over the general legal minimums. The manual will provide the exact weight and height at which you must switch from rear to forward-facing. Look for the sticker on the side of the seat itself. When your child's shoulders exceed the height markers or their head is within an inch of the top of the shell, it's time to move to the next stage, whether that's a forward-facing seat with a 5-point harness or a larger rear-facing model.

[EleanorDella]

As a parent who just went through this, my advice is to forget the minimums. The law says one thing, but safety says another. We kept our son rear-facing until he was almost three because he hadn't hit the weight limit on his seat. It’s a bit of a hassle when they get taller, but knowing his neck and back were so much better protected was worth it. Check your seat's manual—that's your real guide, not just the birthday.

[Cassidy]

Think of it like this: a child's bones are still developing. In a crash, a rear-facing seat supports the whole body. Forward-facing, their head whips forward, and their spine takes the force. The law gives you permission to turn them around at a year and 20 pounds, but that's the bare minimum for legality, not the benchmark for safety. The longer you can keep them rear-facing, the more you're reducing the risk of serious internal injury.