German law states that children 12 years old or younger, or shorter than 150 centimeters (4 feet, 11 inches), are required to use suitable child-restraint devices that have been approved by either the ECE-R 44/03, ECE-R 44/04, or Department of Transportation when these children are transported in a personally owned vehicle. Children must be seated in a rear seat if the POV has one.
Children under 13 years old who weigh more than 22 kilograms (48 pounds) will use booster seats or other suitable approved devices designed for use with a vehicle’s three-point (lap and shoulder) seatbelts. Booster seats will not be used with two-point seatbelts (lap belts).
POVs equipped only with two-point seatbelts in the rear seats must transport a child weighing over 22 kilograms (48 pounds) in a suitable approved device secured in the front seat with a three-point seatbelt. Additional children weighing over 22 kilograms (48 pounds) will be secured using the two-point seatbelts in the rear seat.