Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about New York firearms law, licensing, and compliance.
Apply to the licensing officer for your city or county under PL 400.00, or to the NYPD License Division if applying in New York City. Applicants generally must be at least 21, with an exception for specified honorably discharged service members, and must meet the statutory eligibility and background investigation requirements. Applicants for a carry-concealed license generally must complete at least 16 hours of in-person live curriculum and 2 hours of live-fire training and score at least 80 percent on the written test. Fees and renewal or recertification procedures depend on the jurisdiction and license type.
Apply for a carry-concealed license under PL 400.00 through the appropriate licensing officer. The application includes character references and a personal interview, and applicants generally must complete at least 16 hours of in-person live curriculum, 2 hours of live-fire training and a written test with a minimum score of 80 percent. Carry licenses generally must be renewed or recertified every three years, with the procedure depending on the issuing jurisdiction. A license remains subject to sensitive-location restrictions and applicable court orders.
New York City uses the NYPD License Division for handgun licenses and generally requires a separate permit to possess a rifle or shotgun. Outside the city, ordinary rifles and shotguns generally do not require a possession license, but a license is generally required statewide to purchase or take ownership of a semiautomatic rifle. NYC handgun licenses require renewal within three years, while Nassau, Suffolk and Westchester have their own local renewal or recertification rules. Elsewhere, many pistol licenses do not expire but generally require NYSP recertification every three years for carry licenses or five years for other affected types. Fees vary by licensing jurisdiction.
PL 265.00(22) generally classifies a semiautomatic rifle that can accept a detachable magazine as an assault weapon if it has at least one listed feature, such as a folding or telescoping stock, a qualifying pistol grip or a flash suppressor. The statute has separate tests for semiautomatic pistols and shotguns and also covers revolving-cylinder shotguns. It includes exclusions, including qualifying validly registered weapons. Possession prohibited by PL 265.02(7) is a Class D felony, but failure to register a qualifying previously owned weapon has separate provisions in PL 400.00(16-a).
New York generally prohibits possession of a large capacity ammunition feeding device under PL 265.02(8). PL 265.00(23) defines it as a magazine or similar device that holds, or can readily be restored or converted to accept, more than ten rounds. The definition excludes attached tubular devices that operate only with .22 caliber rimfire ammunition and qualifying registered curio or relic devices. The separate seven-round loading limit was held unconstitutional. Possession prohibited by PL 265.02(8) is a Class D violent felony, with sentencing governed by the applicable sentencing provisions.
Under PL 265.45, an owner or custodian who lives with someone under 18 or a person covered by the specified firearm prohibitions generally must secure a rifle, shotgun or firearm in an appropriate safe storage depository, or render it incapable of being fired with an appropriate locking device, before leaving it outside immediate possession or control. The prohibited-person provisions apply when the owner knows or has reason to know of the prohibition. Subject to the official-duty exceptions, leaving a rifle, shotgun or firearm outside immediate possession or control in a vehicle requires unloading it and securing it in an appropriate locked depository out of sight, and a glove compartment does not qualify. A violation is a Class A misdemeanor. Local rules can impose additional storage requirements.
PL 265.01-e restricts possession in listed sensitive locations, including courts, schools, libraries, qualifying public parks, public transit, Times Square and establishments serving alcohol for consumption on the premises. The statute includes exceptions, and court orders affect enforcement of some categories. Places of worship remain listed, with an exception for persons responsible for security there. Enforcement of the airport provision was permanently enjoined on September 30, 2026. A violation of PL 265.01-e is a Class E felony.
New York generally makes knowing possession of a ghost gun or covered unserialized or unfinished frame or receiver a Class A misdemeanor for a person who is not licensed as a gunsmith or firearms dealer, subject to the statutory exceptions. Covered gunsmiths and dealers must serialize the items and register them with the Division of Criminal Justice Services. Unlawful sales of covered frames or receivers are Class E felonies under PL 265.63, or Class D felonies under PL 265.64 when ten or more are transferred within one year. PL 265.60 and 265.61 separately make the criminal sale of a ghost gun an offense.
PL 35.15 permits physical force when and to the extent a person reasonably believes it necessary to defend against the use or imminent use of unlawful physical force, subject to the statute's exceptions. When deadly force is based on a reasonable belief that another person is using or about to use deadly physical force, the person must retreat if they know they can avoid the need for deadly force with complete personal safety to themselves and others. That retreat rule has an exception for a person in their dwelling who is not the initial aggressor. Separate provisions address specified violent crimes, with burglary subject to the conditions in PL 35.20.
Carrying a pistol or revolver in New York generally requires a license issued under PL 400.00, and a permit from another state is not such a license. Nonresidents may apply for a New York City carry license through the NYPD under its nonresident licensing rules. Federal protection under 18 U.S.C. 926A requires lawful possession and carry at both ends of the trip, an unloaded firearm, and compliance with the statute's firearm and ammunition accessibility requirements. In a vehicle without a separate compartment, the firearm or ammunition must be in a locked container other than the glove compartment or console.
A New York handgun license under PL 400.00 is issued to have and carry a pistol or revolver concealed, or for possession in a home or business, so it does not provide for open carry. Ordinary rifles and shotguns are not firearms as PL 265.00(3) defines the term, but PL 265.01-e restricts rifles and shotguns as well as firearms in sensitive locations, and New York City requires a rifle and shotgun permit.
Private sales, exchanges and disposals generally require a licensed dealer to request the background check through the New York State Police under GBL 898. The section exempts transfers between spouses, domestic partners, children and stepchildren. The dealer may charge up to $10 per transaction and must keep records available for inspection by authorized police or peace officers. A knowing violation of the article is a Class A misdemeanor.
New York generally requires a license to purchase or take ownership of a semiautomatic rifle (PL 265.65 and 400.00). Applicants generally must be at least 21, with an exception for specified honorably discharged service members. The license covers semiautomatic rifles, not ordinary rifles and shotguns, but New York City generally requires a rifle and shotgun permit. Applications go to the appropriate city or county licensing officer.
Marijuana use requires a separate firearms analysis under current federal law and New York licensing law. PL 400.00 requires license applicants to be neither an unlawful user of nor addicted to a controlled substance as defined in federal law. ATF's current definition in 27 CFR 478.11 turns on a pattern of compulsive use or use without a lawful prescription, and the April 2026 federal scheduling rules distinguish covered marijuana products from marijuana that remains in Schedule I. In June 2026, the Supreme Court held the prosecution of Hemani based solely on his regular marijuana use unconstitutional, without invalidating every application of 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(3). The result depends on the product, whether the use is unlawful, the applicable definitions and the specific facts.
New York firearms penalties depend on the offense, statutory exceptions, criminal history and applicable sentencing rules. Criminal possession of a firearm under PL 265.01-b is a Class E felony, while prohibited loaded-firearm possession under PL 265.03 is a Class C felony. Prohibited assault-weapon or large-capacity feeding-device possession under PL 265.02(7) or (8) is a Class D felony, and a sensitive-location offense under PL 265.01-e is a Class E felony. Possession of ten or more firearms under PL 265.04 is a Class B felony. Criminal firearm-sale offenses range from Class D to Class B felonies under PL 265.11 through PL 265.13.