Home › CCW Products › Concealed Carry Reciprocity

Concealed Carry Reciprocity

Posted in CCW Products, News

CCW Permits: What States Will Honor It?

Glock Gun and Concealed Weapons PermitMany states throughout our great nation provide CCW Permit reciprocity or the honoring of your Concealed Carry Weapon (CCW) permit. Concealed Carry Reciprocity is an agreement between two states where they honor each others’ CCW permit. Although this could be an easy “yes you carry concealed” or “no you can’t”, politics and local laws are involved, and as you know, that usually screws things up. If you can carry concealed and which states acknowledge your CCW permit depends on which state issued your CCW permit in the first place. As of July 2012, the United States Government Accountability Office lists 4 classifications of concealed carry states.

  • Unrestricted – These states do not require a CCW permit to carry concealed but there is a catch. Alaska issues a reciprocity permit for anyone traveling out-of-state. Vermont does not do this and it does not recognize another state’s CCW permit. The other states do not follow these unique requirements.
  • Shall issue – These states require you to obtain a CCW permit, but you must meet certain requirements (age, gun safety training, getting fingerprinted, background checks, etc.)
  • May Issue – These states may allow you to get a CCW permit, but is partially at the discretion of local authorities and only if certain requirements are met.
  • No Issue – Illinois and the Dist. of Columbia make it almost impossible for a citizen to get a CCW permit. Back in 2002, there were 7 no issue states, so progress is being made.

Concealed Carry Reciprocity by State

Just to make it fun, there are a few Permissive May-Issue and Restricted May-Issue states and even an Unrestricted and Shall Issue state (Alaska)

Let’s add one more head scratcher. Vermont does not issue CCW permits but their state law permits citizens to carry concealed and open carry without a permit. So is Vermont an Unrestricted state or a No-Issue state?

This is the stuff that drives permit owners nuts. One main complaint is states allowing concealed carry should provide reciprocity to all of the other states that issue permits, period. For example, I have a Colorado CCW, and have reciprocity in NM and KS but not in OH, WV or VA. If I had Utah CCW, I would have reciprocity in OH, WV and VA but not in NM and KS. – Say what?

Keep in mind; you will have to renew your CCW permit. In Colorado, I must renew every 5 years, submit the renewal application within 120-days prior to the expiration of my permit, they’re only open certain hours each week and it costs $40.00. Check with your local jurisdiction for their renewal process.

To help ease the pain of determining what states provide reciprocity to your permit, check out this great map.  Make sure you read the fine print below the map for your state’s “unique restrictions”.

US Concealed Carry has a free PDF download titled “7 Things You MUST Know Before Leaving Home With Your Gun…”. It’s worth downloading and taking a look.

Of course over time, rules and laws change, always be sure you check into the current laws of your state and any state you will be visiting.

We try to keep up on this information since we are a CCW product retailer that specializes in concealment holsters and other self defense products. If you need a concealed carry holster or other concealment products, browse around!