What is an infant fare?

What counts as an infant on a flight?

There is no single worldwide age cutoff that makes a child an infant for ticket purposes. Each airline writes the eligible age band into its own fare rules, so the same child can sit inside the infant category on one carrier and above it on another, and the price and conditions change accordingly. That is why the practical question is never "is my child an infant?" in the abstract, but "what does the airline flying this route call an infant?"

Because the age band is a condition of the fare rather than a formality, the child's date of birth becomes part of the booking record. On the loyalty side, American Airlines requires the information on an AAdvantage account, including name, date of birth and address, to match the information in the reservation, and it lists date-of-birth matching among the checks used when accounts are audited. [5] For a family booking, that means the details entered for a young traveller should match the identification the child will travel on.

Lap infant or seated infant: how does the fare change?

The first decision a family makes is whether the child occupies a seat. A lap infant is carried by an adult and has no seat of their own, so the airline sells an infant fare rather than a full seat fare. A seated infant has a seat, and the booking is priced as a fare that includes one, which is normally the fare the airline applies to older children. The gap between the two is usually the largest single difference in the cost of a family booking.

Whether a lap option exists at all is set by the operating carrier's rules for that route and cabin, not by the loyalty programme attached to the booking. Where the carrier does not offer a lap option, the child travels on a fare that includes a seat. It is worth checking the fare conditions before assuming a lap booking is available on a given flight.

Which fare rules apply to an infant ticket?

An infant fare is still a fare. It carries the conditions of the fare family it is bought in, together with the ticket terms of the airline that operates the flight, which is what determines how the booking can be changed, cancelled or rebooked. American Airlines' AAdvantage terms state that all travel in connection with the programme, including flight awards, is subject to the tariffs, contract of carriage, ticket terms and re-accommodation policies of the carrier on which travel is scheduled. [5]

Loyalty rules sit alongside those ticket rules rather than replacing them. American Airlines credits AAdvantage mileage and Loyalty Points only to the account of the member who flies, rents the car, stays at the hotel or otherwise earns through an AAdvantage partner. [5] For award bookings, American says AAdvantage flight award tickets may be issued in any name the member designates at the time the reservation is ticketed. [5] An adult booking an award seat for a child therefore names the traveller at ticketing, and the airline's own fare rules still govern what the child's ticket includes.

Families travelling with an expectant parent or with older children often need the neighbouring entries in the glossary as well: pregnancy and air travel covers the parent's side of the booking, while the unaccompanied minor guide covers the point at which a child travels alone rather than as an infant or child passenger.

Exceptions and limits

• Age band. Once a child passes the carrier's infant age, the infant fare stops applying and the booking moves to whatever fare the airline sells for older children, usually one that includes a seat.
• Fare-specific conditions. Change, cancellation and seating conditions belong to the individual fare, so two infant bookings on the same airline can carry different rules if they are bought in different fare families.
• Route and cabin. A lap option depends on the operating carrier's rules for the specific flight, and it is the carrier's rules, not a comparison site's summary, that settle whether it applies.
• Named traveller. On an AAdvantage flight award, the name is fixed when the ticket is issued; American states that the recipient cannot be identified at a later point in time. [5]
• Account matching. AAdvantage rewards and benefits, including mileage earning, depend on the name, date of birth and address on the account matching the reservation. [5]

Frequently asked questions

Does an infant always fly free?

No. Whether an infant fare is charged at all, and how it is calculated, comes from the airline's fare rules for that route. A lap infant is generally priced below a fare that includes a seat, but the amounts and conditions are set carrier by carrier.

Do I have to book a seat for an infant?

Only if the fare you book for the child includes one. A lap infant travels on an adult's lap without a separate seat, while a seated infant occupies a seat and is booked at a fare that covers it.

Who decides whether my child counts as an infant?

The airline operating the flight, using the age definition inside its own fare rules. Because those definitions differ between carriers, the same child can fall into the infant band on one airline and the child band on another.

Can an AAdvantage award ticket be issued in a child's name?

Yes. American Airlines says AAdvantage flight award tickets may be issued in any name the member designates when the reservation is ticketed. [5]

Related pages

Terms: lap infant, pregnancy and air travel, and the full glossary of frequent flyer terms. Guide: unaccompanied minor airline guide, for children who travel without an adult.

Sources

Sources accessed on 18 October 2026. Infant fare rules for other carriers and programmes, including United MileagePlus, Delta SkyMiles, The British Airways Club, Flying Blue and KrisFlyer, are not covered here; the pages linked under Related cover the adjacent terms.

1. AAdvantage terms and conditions (American Airlines), checked 18 October 2026