{"id":10400,"date":"2023-06-20T07:26:15","date_gmt":"2023-06-20T07:26:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.theukrules.co.uk\/?page_id=10400"},"modified":"2023-09-11T11:35:22","modified_gmt":"2023-09-11T11:35:22","slug":"flying-with-baby-on-lap","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.theukrules.co.uk\/news\/children-and-education\/flying-with-baby-on-lap\/","title":{"rendered":"Flying with Baby on Lap | A Guide for Lap Child Flights"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>FLYING WITH LAP CHILD<\/strong>: Long flights with tiny toddlers can be a little stressful. This information should make it easier.<\/p>\n<h4>Age Definitions: Infant, Child, and Adult<\/h4>\n<p><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Infant 14 days to 24 months: Can only fly with an adult.<\/li>\n<li>Child 2 to 15 years: Must fly with an adult (some exceptions apply for 14 and 15 year-olds).<\/li>\n<li>Adult 16 and older: Can fly alone, with children, and with people who have special needs.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Note<\/strong>: Most airlines use these age definitions to differentiate between infants and children. But, some will use different age groupings.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<hr>\n<p><\/p>\n<h2>Flying with Children and Infants<\/h2>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>Many flight companies will board families with children under 5 early. They often allow you to take two items for free. These include things like a pushchair or a travel cot.<\/p>\n<p>They also allow you to choose your seats in advance &#8211; but some charge for this service. Even so, most parents will see the importance of ensuring the family sits together on the plane.<\/p>\n<p>The most popular budget airlines carry some kind of snack packs on board for kids. They include assortments of puzzles or <a href=\"\/rules\/children\/games\/\">children&#8217;s games<\/a> to keep little ones entertained.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Note<\/strong>: The checks we carried out show <a href=\"\/rules\/health\/public-health\/breastfeeding-in-public\/\">support for breastfeeding mothers<\/a> on planes. Airlines we questioned said moms can feed their baby on board without restrictions.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<hr>\n<p><\/p>\n<h2>Guidelines for Flying with a Lap Child<\/h2>\n<p><\/p>\n<p>What is a lap child? Rules do vary but most airlines agree on the definition of a lap child. It is an infant from 7 days old until they reach their second birthday.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" style=\"float: right\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/flying-with-baby-on-lap.jpg\">In most cases, when <a href=\"\/rules\/legal\/flying\/babies-on-airplanes\/\">flying with babies<\/a>, lap children do not need a paid seat. You can carry them in your lap free of charge. But, you can still choose to buy a seat for your baby if you want to.<\/p>\n<p>There are strict <a href=\"\/rules\/legal\/flying\/\">flight regulations<\/a> in the United Kingdom. An infant is no longer considered a lap child once they have their second birthday. That means you must pay for a seat for them to travel by airplane.<\/p>\n<p>What happens if a child has their 2nd birthday between an outbound and a return flight? In this case, a seat needs purchasing for their return flight.<\/p>\n<p>Airlines allow one (1) lap child for each customer aged 15 years or older.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Note<\/strong>: Flight companies can request documented proof of age for a traveler of 2 years old or younger. Thus, prepare to show documentation using a <a href=\"\/rules\/legal\/flying\/babies-passport\/\">baby passport<\/a> or a birth certificate.<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<hr>\n<p><\/p>\n<h2>7 Tips on Flying with a Baby on Your Lap<\/h2>\n<p><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>We like to think that most airlines allow you to use any open seat for a lap child. But, free seats are rarely available during the peak holiday travel periods.<\/li>\n<li>Non-mobile babies and very young infants will be comfortable in the lap of a parent. But, you may find it hard to keep older toddlers from 12 months old sitting still in your lap for a few hours on a plane.<\/li>\n<li>As a rule, airlines refuse to accept infants on board if they are only 7 days old (or less). Boarding is also denied for an infant requiring an incubator or a life-support system.<\/li>\n<li>Lap children or children seated in car seats cannot occupy the emergency exit rows. The same applies to the row in front of or behind an emergency exit row.<\/li>\n<li>Some aircraft operators do not allow lap children to occupy a seat in the first or the second row. They also do not permit them to occupy a seat equipped with an inflatable seatbelt.<\/li>\n<li>Children under two usually fly for free on domestic flights. But, most airlines charge a fee for toddlers on international routes (from 10% upwards).<\/li>\n<li>Pregnant flyers can travel up to the end of their 35th week. But, most flight companies stipulate the 32nd week for multiple pregnancies. As a rule, there is no need to take a medical certificate. But, note that they will restrict some seating on board the aircraft for pregnant women.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><\/p>\n<hr>\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"content-inner-block\">\n<h4>ALSO IN THIS SECTION<\/h4>\n<p><a href=\"\/news\/children-and-education\/\">Articles about Babies<\/a>: Get the latest headlines about child regulations and baby laws.<br \/>\n    <a href=\"\/news\/children-and-education\/child-booster-seat-regulations\/\">Baby Booster Seats<\/a>: Changes to the car booster seat laws came into force from March 2017.<br \/>\n    <a href=\"\/rules\/legal\/flying\/babies-on-airplanes\/\">Babies on Airplanes<\/a>: Airline regulations on flying with a baby so soon after giving birth.<br \/>\n    <a href=\"\/rules\/health\/public-health\/breastfeeding-in-public\/\">Breastfeeding in Public<\/a>: What is UK Law towards nursing a baby and breastfeeding at work?<br \/>\n    <a href=\"\/rules\/legal\/flying\/babies-passport\/\">Passports for Babies<\/a>: How to get a passport for your baby so the family can travel abroad.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/p>\n<hr>\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"updated-data\"><strong><br \/>\n  Guidelines for Flying with Baby on Lap in the United Kingdom<\/strong><br \/>\n  <time datetime=\"2017-01-01\">Article First Published 2017<\/time><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>FLYING WITH LAP CHILD: Long flights with tiny toddlers can be a little stressful. This information should make it easier. Age Definitions: Infant, Child, and Adult Infant 14 days to 24 months: Can only fly with an adult. Child 2 to 15 years: Must fly with an adult (some exceptions apply for 14 and 15&hellip; <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theukrules.co.uk\/news\/children-and-education\/flying-with-baby-on-lap\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Flying with Baby on Lap | A Guide for Lap Child Flights<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":1874,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Flying with Baby on Lap | A Guide for Lap Child Flights - UK Rules<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theukrules.co.uk\/news\/children-and-education\/flying-with-baby-on-lap\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Flying with Baby on Lap | A Guide for Lap Child Flights - UK Rules\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"FLYING WITH LAP CHILD: Long flights with tiny toddlers can be a little stressful. This information should make it easier. Age Definitions: Infant, Child, and Adult Infant 14 days to 24 months: Can only fly with an adult. 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