State law prohibits persons convicted of any felony, or serving a term of probation for any felony, in Oklahoma or elsewhere in the United States from possessing a firearm (including in any vehicle which the person is operating or at the residence where the convicted person resides). This excludes persons convicted of a non-violent felony who have since received a full and complete pardon from the proper authority for that crime and have not been convicted of any other felony offense.

Anyone adjudicated as a delinquent child or a youthful offender for the commission of an offense which would have constituted a felony offense if committed by an adult are also prohibited from firearm possession, but the prohibition expires ten years after such adjudication.

It is a crime for illegal aliens unlawfully present in the United States to possess a firearm.

 Minors: Oklahoma law prohibits a person under the age of 18 from possessing a firearm except firearms used for participation in hunting, hunter safety classes, education and training in the safe use and handling of firearms, target shooting, skeet, trap or other sporting events or competitions. It is a crime to sell or give a firearm to anyone under the age of 18, although a parent or legal guardian of a minor, or a person acting with the permission of the parent or legal guardian, may give a minor a firearm for participation in hunting, hunter safety classes, education and training in the safe use and handling of firearms, target shooting, skeet, trap or other sporting events or competitions. 21 Okla. Stat. § 1273.

Intoxication: It is a crime to carry a firearm “in any circumstances while under the influence of beer, intoxicating liquors or any hallucinogenic, or any unlawful or unprescribed drug, and it shall be unlawful for any person to carry or use shotguns, rifles or pistols when under the influence of any drug prescribed by a licensed physician if the aftereffects of such consumption affect mental, emotional or physical processes to a degree that would result in abnormal behavior.” 21 Okla. Stat. § 1289.9.

It is a crime to knowingly sell, lend or furnish a firearm to any person who is under an adjudication of mental incompetency, or who is mentally deficient or of unsound mind, or who is a convicted felon or an adjudicated delinquent, or who is under the influence of alcohol or drugs or is mentally or emotionally unbalanced or disturbed. 21 Okla. Stat. §§ 1289.10, 1289.12.

Open carry: 21 Okla. Stat. § 1289.6(A) lists the circumstances in which a person may carry loaded and unloaded shotguns, rifles and pistols without a handgun license, including “for lawful self-defense and self-protection or any other legitimate purpose not in violation of any legislative enactment regarding the use, carrying, ownership and control of firearms,” hunting, in competition or practicing, going to or from the person’s private residence or vehicle, and as provided for in § 1272(A), the permitless carry law.   

Permitless carry: 21 Okla. Stat. § 1272(A)(6) allows the carrying of a firearm, concealed or unconcealed, loaded or unloaded, by a person who is at least 21 years old (or by a person who is at least 18 years old and a member or veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces, Reserves or National Guard or discharged under honorable conditions) and who is otherwise not disqualified from the possession or purchase of a firearm under state or federal law and is not carrying the gun in furtherance of a crime. § 1290.4, on the crime of unlawful carry, states that “except as provided by Section 1272, it shall be lawful for a citizen or lawful permanent resident, who can lawfully purchase or possess a firearm under state law, to carry or transport a concealed or unconcealed firearm” in Oklahoma in compliance with state law.

Licenses to Carry: A license authorizes the licensee “to carry a loaded or unloaded handgun, concealed or unconcealed;” see § 1290.5

Issuing agency/official: Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, but the completed application form must be signed by the applicant “in person before the sheriff” of the county in which the applicant resides; § 1290.12(5)

Minimum age: 21, but 18 if the applicant is a member or veteran of the United States Armed Forces, the Reserves or National Guard, or the person was discharged under honorable conditions; § 1290.9(3)

State residency required: Yes: must be U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident with established residency in Oklahoma. “Residency” is defined as having a valid Oklahoma driver license or state photo ID card and physically maintaining a residence in Oklahoma, OR by a person, including the spouse of such person, having permanent military orders within Oklahoma and possessing a valid driver license from another state where such person and spouse of such person claim residency. § 1290.9(2). Proof of a valid Oklahoma driver license with a photograph of the applicant or an Oklahoma state photo ID for the applicant shall be required to be presented by the applicant to the sheriff for verification of the person’s identity, § 1290.12(7)

Objective disqualifications: Non-resident of Oklahoma; non-citizen or permanent resident of the U.S.; ineligible to possess a pistol due to any felony conviction or adjudication as a delinquent that is disqualifying for possession under state law (see Possession Standards) or ineligible to possess a pistol due to any other Oklahoma or federal law; a felony conviction or being subject to an outstanding felony warrant in any jurisdiction; adjudication as a mentally incompetent person in Oklahoma or an adjudication of incompetency entered in another state, unless firearm rights have been restored; a conviction for any one of the listed misdemeanor offenses, although a conviction relating to illegal drug use or possession stops being disqualifying ten years from the date of completion of a sentence; attempted suicide or other condition relating to or indicating mental instability or an unsound mind which occurred within the preceding ten-year period from the date of the application; current treatment for a mental illness, condition, or disorder (but it must be “a substantial disorder of thought, mood, perception, psychological orientation, or memory that significantly impairs judgment, behavior, capacity to recognize reality, or ability to meet the ordinary demands of life”); failure to pay an assessed fine or surrender a handgun license as required under state law; and making a false or misleading statement on the application for a handgun license. § 1290.10.

Other mandatory but potentially temporary preclusions are listed at § 1290.11: an arrest for a felony or any of the listed misdemeanor offenses in any jurisdiction, until the final determination of the matter; being subject to a deferred sentence or deferred prosecution for a felony crime or any listed misdemeanor offense, to run three years from the time of the final determination of the matter; an involuntary commitment for a mental illness, condition, or disorder, effective until the person has their firearm rights restored; prior treatment for a mental illness, condition, or disorder which required medication or supervision, as defined Section 1290.10(7), effective three years from the last date of treatment or upon presentation of a doctor’s certified statement that the person is either no longer disabled by any mental or psychiatric illness, condition, or disorder or that the person has been stabilized on medication for ten years or more; inpatient treatment for substance abuse, effective for three years from the last treatment or upon presentation of a doctor’s certified statement that the person has been free from substance use for at least twelve months; two or more convictions of public intoxication or two or more misdemeanor convictions relating to intoxication or driving under the influence, effective for three years from completion of sentence or upon presentation of a doctor’s certified statement that the person is not in need of substance abuse treatment; being subject to a Victim Protection Order or similar order, in effect until 60 days from the date the order expires or is otherwise no longer in effect;  having an adjudicated delinquent or convicted felon who is a prohibited person residing in the residence of the applicant, with the preclusive period being 30 days from the date the person no longer resides in the same residence; and having a previously issued handgun license revoked, being effective 5 years from the date of revocation.

Non-objective disqualifications: “Significant character defects of the applicant as evidenced by a criminal record indicating habitual criminal activity,” § 1290.10(8)

Training /Familiarity requirement: Yes; an up to eight-hour firearms safety and training course from a firearms instructor who is approved and registered in Oklahoma or “an interactive online firearms safety and training course … which has been approved as to curriculum by the Council on Law Enforcement Education and Training,” that meet the requirements in § 1290.14, plus an actual demonstration of competency. The certificate of competency and qualification issued to an applicant shall be valid for three years.

Fingerprints required: Yes

Maximum processing time: 60 days, unless additional verification is needed, in which case it is 90 days; § 1290.12(13)

Fees: Initial application, $100; renewal fee, $85.00, plus the fee for fingerprinting. The sheriff may charge up to $25.00 for the fingerprinting and up to $10 for the passport-sized photos that must accompany the application, § 1290.12(8)

Duration of permit: Five years, with option to renew for ten years; § 1290.5(C)

Mandatory notifications: A person must be in possession of his or her valid handgun license, valid military identification card, valid driver license, or state photo identification card at all times when in possession of a firearm and display the ID on demand by a law enforcement officer. It is unlawful to fail or refuse to identify the fact that the person is in actual possession of a concealed or unconcealed firearm carried under the state carry law during the course of any arrest, detainment, or routine traffic stop, but otherwise no person is “required to identify himself or herself as lawfully in possession of any other firearm if the law enforcement officer does not demand the information;”§ 1290.8

Special Provisions: Oklahoma makes a temporary license available pursuant to § 1290.12(11) to a person who has been granted a permanent victim protective order. The applicant must successfully pass the required weapons course, complete the application process for the handgun license, pass the preliminary investigation by the sheriff and court clerk, and provide the sheriff with proof of a certified permanent victim protective order and a valid Oklahoma state photo ID card/ driver license. This license is in effect for no longer than 6 months and ceases to be valid as soon as the protective order expires or is terminated. 

Full-time law enforcement officers certified by the Council on Law Enforcement Education and Training (CLEET) are authorized to carry a concealed weapon approved by the employing agency anywhere in the state of Oklahoma, both while on active duty and during periods when the officer is not on active duty; see 21 Okla. Stat. § 1289.23 for specific conditions and requirements.

Any United States Attorney or Assistant United States Attorney may carry a firearm on his or her person in Oklahoma if the person has successfully completed a handgun qualification course for court officials developed by the Council on Law Enforcement Education and Training; see 21 Okla. Stat. § 1289.29.

Oklahoma prohibits carrying a concealed handgun loaded with a restricted bullet (as defined by Section 1289.19) or ammunition larger than .45 caliber; 21 Okla. Stat. § 1290.6

Non-resident carry. Oklahoma honors all other states’ carry permits/licenses. The Oklahoma permitless carry law applies to non-residents of Oklahoma.

Places where carrying is prohibited: 21 Okla. Stat § 1277(A) generally lists the places where carrying is prohibited (with exceptions specified in the rest of that section):

•  any structure, building, or office space used by any governmental authority for the purpose of conducting business with the public, but excluding parking areas;
• a courthouse, courtroom, prison, jail, detention facility or facility used to process, hold, or house arrested persons/ prisoners;
• a public or private elementary or public or private secondary school, except a school parking lot if the gun is stored and hidden from view in a locked motor vehicle when the motor vehicle is left unattended on school property, or where the carrying is authorized by a policy adopted by the governing body of the school. Another section, § 1280.1, prohibits possession of a firearm at any public or private school, school bus or vehicle used by any school. Exceptions include a licensee with a handgun in a private vehicle in a school parking area, where the gun remains hidden from view in the locked motor vehicle when the motor vehicle is left unattended on school property, and other firearms as described in that section;
• a publicly owned or operated sports arena or venue during a professional sporting event or any place where gambling is authorized by law, unless allowed by the event authority/ property owner, and excluding parking areas;
• any place “set aside by a county, city, town, public trust with a county, city, or town as a beneficiary, or state governmental authority for an event that is secured with minimum security provisions” (metal detectors, controlled access points staffed by law enforcement, and secure perimeter fencing);
• any college, university, or technology center school property, with the exception of parking areas or property authorized for possession or use of firearms by college, university, or technology center school policy or any other property authorized by the written consent of the college or university;
• any establishment where the sale of alcoholic beverages constitutes the primary purpose of the business, but this doesn’t apply to the owner/proprietor or any employee who has permission from the owner or proprietor to carry; 21 Okla. Stat § 1272.1, and
• any other place specifically prohibited by law.

Private property owners, tenants, employers, liquor stores, places of worship and business entities retain the right to control the possession of weapons on any property owned or controlled by them, but this (a) cannot prevent a person from transporting and storing firearms in a locked vehicle on any property set aside for any vehicle parking; (b) if the location is open to the public in general there must be signage stating the weapon prohibitions in effect; and (c) apply to property designated by a city, town, county, or state governmental authority as a park, recreational area, wildlife refuge, wildlife management area, or fairgrounds unless it is a structure, building, office space or event used by a governmental authority for the purpose of conducting business with the public, the fairgrounds during the Oklahoma State Fair or the Tulsa State Fair, or a public property sports field being used for an elementary or secondary school, collegiate, or professional sporting event or an International Olympic Committee event. 21 Okla. Stat. § 1290.22.

Generally, it is a crime to carry a firearm while under the influence of beer, intoxicating liquors or any hallucinogenic, or any unlawful or unprescribed drug, or when under the influence of any drug prescribed by a licensed physician if the aftereffects of such consumption affect mental, emotional or physical processes to a degree that would result in abnormal behavior. 21 Okla. Stat. § 1289.9.

It explicitly prohibits a municipality or political subdivision of the state from adopting any order, ordinance, or regulation “concerning in any way the sale, purchase, purchase delay, transfer, ownership, use, keeping, possession, carrying, bearing, transportation, licensing, permit, registration, taxation other than sales and compensating use taxes, or other controls on firearms, knives, components, ammunition, and supplies.”

The law allows a municipality to regulate the discharge of firearms within its jurisdiction, issue a traffic citation for transporting a firearm contrary to state law, and issue a citation to an individual or the parent or guardian of a minor who discharges an air powered pistol or air powered rifle in an intentional or negligent manner. A public or private school may create a policy regulating the possession of knives on school property or school vehicles.

A person whose rights under the preemption law have been violated has the right to sue and bring a civil action against the persons, municipality, and political subdivision jointly and severally for injunctive relief or monetary damages, or both; 21 Okla. Stat. § 1289.24(D).