Virginia Concealed Handgun Permits are issued by the Virginia Department of Public Safety. You can visit their Concealed Handgun Licensing website here.

Yes. For Virginia residents, the Virginia Department of Public Safety will conduct a criminal history record check through their computerized criminal history system as well as possible additional searches of local official records. For non-resident applicants, the Virginia Department of Public Safety will conduct a search through the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS).

Yes. Having a Virginia Concealed Carry license does exempt you from a National Instant Criminal System (NICS) check when purchasing a firearm according to the ATF Permanent Brady Permit Chart. There is a checkbox on the 4473 form that the FFL can check that states no NICS is required.

Initial Virginia Concealed Handgun Permits expire on the first birthday of the applicant, occurring after the fourth anniversary of the date it was issued.

A renewal license expires on the birthday of the applicant fives years after the date of expiration of the previous license.

A duplicate or modified license expires on the date the license that was duplicated would have expired.

The processing time for new Virginia Concealed Handgun Permits is within 60-180 days from the date they receive your application.

The cost for an initial or renewal Virginia Concealed Handgun Permit is $40. View the complete Virginia Concealed Handgun Permit Fee Schedule for other discounted rates.

A person is eligible for a Virginia Concealed Handgun Permit license if the person:

1. is a legal resident of this state for the six-month period preceding the date of the application under this subchapter or is otherwise eligible for a license under Section 411.173(a);
2. is at least 21 years of age; or at least 18 if you are a member or veteran of the US Armed Forces, Reserves or National Guard or was discharged under honorable conditions.
3. has not been convicted of a felony;
4. is not charged with the commission of a Class A or Class B misdemeanor or equivalent offense, or of an offense under Section 42.01, Penal Code, or equivalent offense, or of a felony under an information or indictment;
5. is not a fugitive from justice for a felony or a Class A or Class B misdemeanor or equivalent offense;
6. is not a chemically dependent person;
7. is not incapable of exercising sound judgment with respect to the proper use and storage of a handgun;
8. has not, in the five years preceding the date of application, been convicted of a Class A or Class B misdemeanor or equivalent offense or of an offense under Section 42.01, Penal Code, or equivalent offense;
9. is fully qualified under applicable federal and state law to purchase a handgun;
10. has not been finally determined to be delinquent in making a child support payment administered or collected by the attorney general;
11. has not been finally determined to be delinquent in the payment of a tax or other money collected by the comptroller, the tax collector of a political subdivision of the state, or any agency or subdivision of the state;
12. is not currently restricted under a court protective order or subject to a restraining order affecting the spousal relationship, other than a restraining order solely affecting property interests;
13. has not, in the 10 years preceding the date of application, been adjudicated as having engaged in delinquent conduct violating a penal law of the grade of felony; and
14. has not made any material misrepresentation, or failed to disclose any material fact, in an application submitted pursuant to Section 411.174.

To renew your Virginia Concealed Handgun Permit you must first complete a handgun proficiency course within 6 months preceding the date of application renewal for the first or second renewal and the date of application for renewal or the date of application for the preceding renewal, for a third or subsequent renewal, to ensure that the license holder is not required to complete the course more than once in any 10-year period.

You must then submit an application for renewal through their online renewal form or fill out the downloadable forms and mail them in. Some instructors may provide you with your forms. All forms should be mailed to:

Virginia Department of Public Safety
Concealed Handgun – MSC 0245
PO Box 4087
Austin, TX 78773-0001

The cost of renewal licenses is $40.

If your place of residence changes, you must notify the Department of Public Safety within 30 days of the address change. You must provide them with the former and new addresses. You can then apply for a duplicate Virginia Concealed Carry license for a cost of $25. You can request the address change through their online form or fill out the downloadable forms and mail them in. All forms should be mailed to:

Virginia Department of Public Safety
Concealed Handgun – MSC 0245
PO Box 4087
Austin, TX 78773-0001

If your license gets lost or stolen, you must notify the Department of Public Safety within 30 days of the address change. You must provide them with the former and new addresses. You can then apply for a duplicate license for a cost of $25. You can request the address change through their online form or fill out the downloadable forms and mail them in. All forms should be mailed to:

Virginia Department of Public Safety
Concealed Handgun – MSC 0245
PO Box 4087
Austin, TX 78773-0001

As far as we can tell, you are not required to notify the Department of Public Safety of an arrest or conviction. But they will suspend your license if the license holder:

1. is charged with the commission of a Class A or Class B misdemeanor or equivalent offense, or of an offense under Section 42.01, Penal Code, or equivalent offense, or of a felony under an information or indictment;
2. fails to notify the department of a change of address, name, or status as required by Section 411.181;
3. commits an act of family violence and is the subject of an active protective order rendered under Title 4, Family Code; or
4. is arrested for an offense involving family violence or an offense under Section 42.072, Penal Code, and is the subject of an order for emergency protection issued under Article 17.292, Code of Criminal Procedure.

If your license is suspended, you will get a notice in the mail about the suspension. You must then surrender the license within ten days of receiving the notice unless it has already been surrendered or seized as evidence or request a hearing from the department.

From what we can tell, you are allowed to keep your Virginia Concealed Handgun Permit if you move out of state as long as you submit a change of address to them within 30 days of the move. See details about how to change your address above.

Virginia does not allow you to transfer another state’s concealed carry permit or license to Virginia. You must apply for a new Virginia Concealed Handgun Permit.

Virginia accepts 43 other state permits or licenses. Virginia has a specific list of states they have reciprocity with and will honor non-resident permits/licenses from those states. To see the most up-to-date reciprocity information visit our concealed carry reciprocity maps.

Also, only Rhode Island permits issued by the Attorney General are honored by Virginia. Permits issued by Rhode Island Local Officials are not honored.

Yes. If a license holder is carrying a handgun on or about the license holder’s person when a magistrate or a peace officer demands that the license holder display identification, the license holder shall display both the license holder’s driver’s license or identification certificate issued by the department and the license holder’s handgun license.

It seems that yes, Resident Aliens can apply for a Virginia Concealed Carry license. In the form Notice – Non-Immigrant – Visa they list the required documents that need to be submitted along with the application if the applicant is born out of the country.

Anyone traveling in Virginia can carry a loaded handgun in their vehicle but it must be concealed, and the person cannot be engaged in criminal activity. Loaded long guns may be carried anywhere in the vehicle.

§46.035, Virginia Penal Code prohibits the carrying of handguns and other weapons in certain places. These include but are not limited to:

• On the premises of a business that derives 51% or more of its income from the sale or service of alcoholic beverages for on-premises consumption
• On the premises where a high school, collegiate, or professional sporting or interscholastic event is taking place
• On the premises of a correctional facility
• On the premises of a hospital or nursing home (unless the licensee has written authorization)
• In an amusement park
• On the premises of a church, synagogue, or other places of worship
• At any meeting of a governmental entity

§46.02, Virginia Penal Code, and §46.03, Virginia Penal Code also expressly prohibit handguns or weapons under other circumstances and from locations other than those listed above. For example, it is against Virginia law to carry a concealed handgun if the person has the handgun in plain view, or if the person is engaged in criminal activity (other than a Class C traffic offense), or if prohibited from possessing a firearm or is a member of a criminal street gang. Some other areas where weapons are prohibited include the premises of polling places on the day of an election or during early voting, the premises of any government court, the premises of a racetrack, in a secured area of an airport, or within 1,000 feet of premises designated as a place of execution on the day a sentence of death is set to be imposed.

Virginia is a state with castle law. You can find the Virginia Code at Penal Code Sec. 9.32 which can be broken down as follows:

(a) A person is justified in using deadly force against another:

(1) if the actor would be justified in using force against the other under Section 9.31; and (2) when and to the degree, the actor reasonably believes the deadly force is immediately necessary: (A) to protect the actor against the other’s use or attempted use of unlawful deadly force; or (B) to prevent the other’s imminent commission of aggravated kidnapping, murder, sexual assault, aggravated sexual assault, robbery, or aggravated robbery. (b) The actor’s belief under Subsection (a)(2) that the deadly force was immediately necessary as described by that subdivision is presumed to be reasonable if the actor: (1) knew or had reason to believe that the person against whom the deadly force was used: (A) unlawfully and with force entered, or was attempting to enter unlawfully and with force, the actor’s occupied habitation, vehicle, or place of business or employment; (B) unlawfully and with force removed or was attempting to remove unlawfully and with force, the actor from the actor’s habitation, vehicle, or place of business or employment; or (C) was committing or attempting to commit an offense described by Subsection (a)(2)(B); (2) did not provoke the person against whom the force was used; and (3) was not otherwise engaged in criminal activity, other than a Class C misdemeanor that is a violation of a law or ordinance regulating traffic at the time the force was used. (c) A person who has a right to be present at the location where the deadly force is used, who has not provoked the person against whom the deadly force is used, and who is not engaged in criminal activity at the time the deadly force is used is not required to retreat before using deadly force as described by this section. (d) For purposes of Subsection (a)(2), in determining whether an actor described by Subsection (c) reasonably believed that the use of deadly force was necessary, a finder of fact may not consider whether the actor failed to retreat.

You must not consume alcoholic liquor, beer, or wine while carrying a concealed weapon. Virginia Penal Code §46.035 states it is unlawful for an intoxicated individual to carry a concealed handgun. The Penal Code defines “intoxicated” as not having the normal use of mental or physical faculties by reason of the introduction of alcohol, a controlled substance, a drug, a dangerous drug, a combination of two or more of those substances, or any other substance in the body.

If you have a concealed handgun license, you may not carry in a place of business that derives 51% or more of its income from the sale or service of alcoholic beverages for on-premises consumption. USA Carry always recommends never to carry a firearm while drinking alcohol.

Yes, No Gun signs have the force of law. Private property owners may exclude license holders from carrying concealed handguns on their property by providing notice as provided in Section 30.06, Virginia Penal Code. If you wish to prohibit license holders from carrying concealed handguns on your property, §30.06, Virginia Penal Code requires you to post specific signage. The sign must be in both English and Spanish, must include the specific language described by law, must appear in contrasting colors with block letters at least one inch in height, and be displayed in a conspicuous manner clearly visible to the public.

DPS does not furnish or sell these signs. You may print or purchase the signs from your local printing company. See Virginia Penal Code §30.06, for the exact required language.

Yes, you can be exempt from the training requirements for a Virginia Concealed Handgun Permit if you are currently servicing in or are honorably discharged from the:

• Army
• Navy
• Air Force
• Coast Guard
• Marine Corps of the United States
• Auxiliary Service or a reserve unit of one of the branches listed above.
• Virginia military forces

State Parks: Yes
State Forests: Yes
National Forests: Yes
WMA’s: Yes
Road Side Rest Areas: Yes

• Virginia Concealed Handgun Permit Website
• Virginia Concealed Handgun Permit Online Application
• Virginia Concealed Handgun Permit Downloadable Forms
• Virginia Concealed Carry Laws
• Virginia Firearms Forums

Do you have a question that we haven’t answered? Contact us here, and we’ll do our best to find you an answer.

• 10/20/2021 – Upgraded to interactive maps.
• 10/14/2021 – New Page Format and all information checked.

To view a state’s concealed carry permit information click on the state. The state’s color represents whether a state is Shall Issue, May Issue, Constitutional Carry, or Right Denied (We explain each state’s status below).

Shall Issue to Residents Only:
Alabama, Colorado, Georgia, Guam, Louisiana, Michigan, Nebraska, New Mexico

Shall Issue to Residents and Non-Residents:
District of Columbia, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin

May Issue to Residents Only:
California, Delaware, Virgin Islands

May Issue to Residents and Non-Residents:
Connecticut, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York

Constitutional Carry and Shall Issue to Residents Only:
Alaska, Montana, Wyoming

Constitutional Carry and Shall Issue to Residents and Non-Residents:
Arizona, Arkansas, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia, Utah, West Virginia

Constitutional Carry and Does Not Issue Permits:
Vermont

Right Denied:
American Samoa, N. Mariana Islands

We try to keep the information on this page as up-to-date as possible, but it is your responsibility to verify all information due to changing laws. The information on this page is for informational purposes only and not to provide legal advice. You should contact your attorney to obtain advice concerning any particular issue or problem. Use of and access to this Website, emails, or any links within the site do not create an attorney-client relationship between i156 LLC and the user or browser. The opinions expressed at or through this site are the opinions of the individual author and may not reflect the views of i156 LLC.