Last Updated: Tuesday, July 22, 2025

Connecticut Gun Laws

STATE CONSTITUTIONAL PROVISION - Article 1, Section 15.

“Every citizen has a right to bear arms in defense of himself and the state.”

Gun Laws Overview

	RIFLES & SHOTGUNS	HANDGUNS
Licensing of Owners	Yes	Yes
Permit to Carry	No	Yes
Permit to Purchase	Yes	Yes
Registration of Firearms	Yes*	No
* See separate "Assault Weapons Ban" section The list and map below are included as a tool to assist you in validating your information. We have made every effort to report the information correctly, however reciprocity and recognition agreements are subject to frequent change. The information is not intended as legal advice or a restatement of law and does not include: restrictions that may be placed on non-resident permits, individuals under the age of 21, qualifying permit classes, and/or any other factor which may limit reciprocity and/or recognition. For any particular situation, a licensed local attorney must be consulted for an accurate interpretation. YOU MUST ABIDE WITH ALL LAWS: STATE, FEDERAL AND LOCAL.

	STATE STATUS
Right To Carry Laws	Shall/Discretionary Issue
Castle Doctrine	Enacted
Right to Carry Confidentiality	Provisions Enacted
Right to Carry in Restaurants	Legal
Right To Carry Reciprocity and Recognition	None
Right to Keep & Bear Arms State Constitutional Provisions	With Provisions

Concealed Carry Reciprocity

Laws on Purchase, Possession and Carrying of Firearms

"Assault Weapons" Ban

So-called “assault weapons” are generally prohibited from possession in Connecticut. Individuals that owned these defined firearms (see definition link below) before it was prohibited may continue to possess the firearm if they obtained a certificate of possession.

For a list of banned firearms, visit: assaultweaponspdf.pdf

Any newly defined assault weapon that was lawfully purchased on or before April 4, 2013, but was not transferred by that date, may be transferred pursuant to such lawful purchase and a sales authorization number may be obtained for such transfer. Sellers are required to verify that a lawful purchase occurred on or before April 4, 2013 prior to transferring such firearm.

Assault Weapon certification application can be found here: dps-414-c-assault-weapon-certificate-application.pdf

Additionally, Connecticut bans a part or combination of parts designed or intended to convert a firearm into an assault weapon and any combination of parts from which such an assault weapon may be assembled.

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Hardware Bans and Other Restrictions

Connecticut has bans or restrictions on:

"Large capacity magazines" are banned unless a person lawfully possessed a large capacity magazine prior to January 1, 2014, and has possession of an approved large capacity magazine declaration.

"Ghost Guns" are banned unless a person complies with all regulations for the sale of a pistol or revolver and carries a serial number, the transfer is between FFLs, or the transfer is a pre-arranged surrender to law enforcement.

Bump Stocks and Forced Reset Triggers, and Binary Triggers are banned.

Firearm suppressors are banned for use in hunting only.

“Large capacity magazine” means any firearm magazine, belt, drum, feed strip or similar device that has the capacity of, or can be readily restored or converted to accept, more than ten rounds of ammunition, but does not include: (A) A feeding device that has been permanently altered so that it cannot accommodate more than ten rounds of ammunition, (B) a .22 caliber tube ammunition feeding device, (C) a tubular magazine that is contained in a lever-action firearm, or (D) a magazine that is permanently inoperable.

A person who lawfully possessed a large capacity magazine prior to January 1, 2014, and had not yet declared possession by July 1, 2023, had to apply by January 1, 2024, to declare possession of such magazine. Declaration application can be found here: STATE OF CONNECTICUT

Ghost Guns: As of January 1, 2024, the law prohibits possession of unserialized firearms. Individuals who lawfully possess unserialized firearms prior to January 1, 2024, may continue to possess them if they declare such possession or request a serial number by January 1, 2024 through the Connecticut Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection.

Bump stocks were banned as of October 1, 2018, and individuals in possession of bump stocks before the law going into effect were required to render the devices inoperable, remove them from the state, or surrender the device to the state.

Pursuant to Public Act 18-29, effective October 1, 2018, no person other than a licensed firearms manufacturer under 18 USC 923(i) fulfilling a military contract, may sell, offer to sell, otherwise transfer or offer to transfer, purchase, possess, use or manufacture any "rate of fire enhancement." For purposes of this section, a rate of fire enhancement is any device, component, part, combination of parts, attachment or accessory that: (1) Uses energy from the recoil of a firearm to generate a reciprocating action that causes repeated function of the trigger, including, but not limited to, a bump stock; (2) repeatedly pulls the trigger of a firearm through the use of a crank, lever or other part, including, but not limited to, a trigger crank; or (3) causes a semiautomatic firearm to fire more than one round per operation of the trigger, where the trigger pull and reset constitute a single operation of the trigger, including, but not limited to, a binary trigger system.

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Ammunition

Ammunition purchases in Connecticut are regulated and require the purchaser to have a handgun carry permit, a long-gun/handgun eligibility certificate, a gun sales permit, or an ammunition certificate.

Any person who is 18 or older may request an ammunition certificate from the Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection.

Licensing or Permitting

Handguns and long-guns are licensed in Connecticut and person may not purchase or receive a handgun or long-gun unless they hold a permit to carry a handgun, a permit to sell firearms, or a handgun or long-gun eligibility certificate.

Registration

Firearm registration is required for "Assault Weapons" (see "Assault Weapons" section) and machine guns.

Connecticut maintains a registry of all persons required to register under Connecticut law as offenders convicted of an offense committed with a firearm.

Registration of "Assault Weapons" in Connecticut required a person who lawfully possessed an "assault weapon" before it was prohibited by law to apply for a certificate of possession for the assault weapon by October 1, 1994.

Certificates contain a unique, detailed description of the firearm, including all identification marks, the name, address, date of birth and thumbprint of the owner, and any other information DESPP may deem appropriate. See Assault Weapons section for more information.

Registration of machine guns in Connecticut require any machine gun adapted to use projectiles of any caliber must be registered in the office of the Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection within 24 hours after its acquisition and, thereafter, annually, on July 1st.

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Possession Standards

A person must be at least age 21 to obtain an eligibility certificate for a handgun and at least age 18 to obtain an eligibility certificate for a long gun.

Connecticut law provides that, subject to certain limited exceptions, no person shall possess a firearm or ammunition if any of the following apply:

They have been convicted of a felony (with limited exceptions) or, on or after October 1, 2013, certain violent or intimidating misdemeanors;

Have been convicted as a delinquent for the commission of a serious juvenile offense;

Have been convicted of a misdemeanor family violence crime committed on or after October 1, 2023;

Have been discharged from custody within the preceding 20 years after having been found not guilty of a crime due to mental disease or defect under state law;

Have been confined in a mental hospital for persons with psychiatric disabilities within the preceding year by order of a probate court;

Are subject to a restraining or protective order of any state court, or a foreign order of protection, in a case involving the use, attempted use or threatened use of physical force against another person;

Are subject to a firearms seizure order, issued after notice and an opportunity to be heard;

Were confined on or after October 1, 2013, in a hospital for people with psychiatric disabilities under a probate court order within the past: a) 60 months; or b) 12 months, if the person has a valid permit or certificate in effect before October 1, 2013;

Were voluntarily admitted, or were committed under an emergency certificate by a doctor on or after October 1, 2023, to a hospital for people with psychiatric disabilities within the past six months for care and treatment of a psychiatric disability and not solely for being an alcohol or drug-dependent person;

Are prohibited from shipping, transporting, possessing or receiving a firearm for mental health reasons pursuant to federal law;

Effective October 1, 2023, are a fugitive from justice or have been been convicted in any court of a “misdemeanor crime of domestic violence” as defined under federal law;

For handguns only, are illegally in the United States

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Right to Carry

Connecticut is a shall issue state for concealed carry of firearms permits. A valid permit is required for all concealed carry.

Open carry of firearms is prohibited in public places but permitted on private property, at shooting ranges, and while hunting.

The Special Licensing and Firearms Unit is responsible for the issuance of state pistol permits. Applicants for a state pistol permit must first apply for, and be granted a local pistol permit. A local pistol permit may be obtained from the police chief in the town in which you reside. For more information on permit applications, visit: Connecticut State Pistol Permit

Applicants must be at least 21 years old and be a legal resident of the United States.

The pistol permit cost is $70.00 and the permit is good for a period of five years.

Non-residents may apply for a Connecticut permit to carry a firearm.

Persons convicted of a felony or any one of 11 misdemeanor offenses detailed in the statute (see below) are ineligible to receive a permit. Persons convicted as a delinquent for the commission of a serious juvenile offense (as defined in section 46b-120); persons discharged from custody within the preceding twenty years after having been found not guilty of a crime by reason of mental disease or defect (pursuant to section 53a-13); persons confined in a hospital for persons with psychiatric disabilities, has been voluntarily admitted on or after October 1, 2013, to a hospital for persons with psychiatric disabilities (as defined in section 17a-495), within the preceding 12 months by order of a probate court; persons subject to a restraining or protective order issued by a court in a case involving the use, attempted use or threatened use of physical force against another person; persons subject to a firearms seizure order issued pursuant to C.G.S. 29-38c after notice and hearing; and any person who is an alien illegally or unlawfully in the United States, are prohibited from obtaining a pistol permit.

Criteria for obtaining a concealed carry permit:

A chief of police, warden or selectman shall issue a permit to carry a handgun to a person who:

Has a bona fide residence or place of business within the jurisdiction in which they are applying; Intends to make only lawful use of the handgun for which the permit will be issued;
Is a “suitable person” to receive a permit;
Has successfully completed a course approved by the Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection in the safety and use of handguns;
Has not been convicted of a felony or of a violation of:
Criminal possession of a narcotic substance;
Criminally negligent homicide;
Assault in the third degree or assault in the third degree of an elderly, blind, pregnant, or disabled person, or a person with an intellectual disability;
Threatening in the second degree; Reckless endangerment in the first degree;
Unlawful restraint in the second degree; Riot in the first or second degree or inciting to riot;
Stalking in the second degree; or
As of October 1, 2023, a family violence crime.
Has not been convicted as a delinquent for the commission of a serious juvenile offense;
Has not been discharged from custody within the preceding 20 years after having been found not guilty of a crime by reason of mental disease or defect;
Has not been confined in a hospital for persons with psychiatric disabilities within the preceding 12 months by order of a probate court;
Is not subject to a restraining or protective order issued by a court in a case involving the use, attempted use or threatened use of physical force against another person;
Is not subject to a firearms seizure order issued for posing risk of imminent personal injury to self or others after notice and a hearing;6 Is not prohibited from shipping, transporting, possessing or receiving a firearm pursuant to the mental health prohibitions under federal law;
Is not an alien illegally or unlawfully in the United States; Is at least 21 years of age; and Effective October 1, 2023, is not a fugitive from justice, and has not been convicted in any court of a “misdemeanor crime of domestic violence” as defined under federal law.

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Prohibited Places

Certain public places prohibit carry of a firearm even with a permit to carry.

A person, even with a permit to carry a handgun, may not carry on any premises where the possession or carrying of a handgun is prohibited by the person who owns or controls the premises.

Connecticut prohibits any person from possessing a weapon from which a shot may be discharged, either loaded or unloaded, within any building where:
Either house of the General Assembly is located;
Any committee, member, officer or employee of the General Assembly has an official office; or
Any committee of the General Assembly is holding a public hearing.

Connecticut has no statutes prohibiting firearms in the following places, although administrative regulations may apply:
Hospitals;
Places of worship;
Bars or restaurants where alcohol is served;
Sports arenas;
Gambling facilities; or
Polling places.

Connecticut prohibits any person from possessing a firearm, knowing that he or she is not licensed or privileged to do so: 1) in or on the real property comprising a public or private elementary or secondary school; or 2) at a school-sponsored activity.

This prohibition does not apply to gun possession: For use in a program approved by school officials in or on school property or at the school-sponsored activity; In accordance with an agreement entered into between school officials and the possessor or the possessor’s employer; or While traversing school property for the purpose of gaining access to public or private lands open to hunting or for other lawful purposes, provided the firearm is not loaded and the entry on school property is permitted by the local or regional board of education.

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Private Transfers

All firearm transfers in Connecticut require the seller to obtain an authorization number from the Special Licensing and Firearms Unit. The buyer must possess a valid permit to carry a firearm, permit to sell a firearm, or eligibility certificate. All transfers require a background check and must be done through a licensed Federal Firearms Licensed dealer.

Effective October 1, 2023, the state prohibits any person, firm, or corporation from transferring a firearm unless the transferee has a permit to carry a handgun, a permit to sell firearms at retail, or a handgun eligibility certificate.

No person may purchase or receive any long gun (i.e., a rifle or shotgun) unless they hold one of these permits or licenses, or a long gun eligibility certificate.

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State Firearm Preemption

Connecticut does not have a state firearms preemption statute. Absent a direct conflict with state law, broad local firearms and ammunitions regulation is possible.

Stand Your Ground Laws

Connecticut does not have a stand your ground law. State law explicitly imposes a duty to retreat before resorting to deadly force outside the home. Connecticut does not have a stand-your-ground law, but instead requires an individual to retreat when able to do so.

Under Connecticut state law, the use of deadly force that might otherwise have been justifiable is not warranted if someone “knows that he can avoid the necessity of using such force with complete safety...by retreating...”

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Red Flag Laws

Connecticut has red flag laws, referred to as a Risk Protection Order.

A state’s attorney, assistant state’s attorney, or a police officer who “has probable cause to believe that a person at least 18 years of age poses a risk of imminent personal injury to themself or to another person” may file a complaint with a court for a risk protection order.

Connecticut law also allows for a family or household member or a medical professional with a good faith belief that a person age 18 or older poses a risk of imminent personal injury to themself or another person to apply to a court for a risk order protection investigation.

Note: Florida and Michigan recognize carry permits for resident-only issued permits
Note: Some included states on the reciprocity recognition map are permitless carry states where no permit is required to carry a concealed firearm

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