Virginia Gun Laws
Gun Laws Overview
RIFLES & SHOTGUNS | HANDGUNS | |
---|---|---|
Permit to Purchase | No | No |
Registration of Firearms | No | No |
Licensing of Owners | No | No |
Permit to Carry | No | Yes |
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. Virginia only honors permits or licenses of individuals who are 21 years of age or over. Wisconsin honors Virginia non-resident permits only. |
STATE STATUS | |
---|---|
Castle Doctrine | No Law |
No-Net Loss | No Legislation |
Right to Carry Confidentiality | Provisions Enacted |
Right to Carry in Restaurants | Legal |
Right To Carry Laws | Shall Issue |
Right To Carry Reciprocity and Recognition | Outright Recognition |
Right to Keep & Bear Arms State Constitutional Provisions | With Provisions |
Laws on Purchase, Possession and Carrying of Firearms
Purchase and Possession
No state permit is required to otherwise purchase or possess a rifle, shotgun or handgun. Virginia residents may purchase firearms from any licensed Federal Firearms Licensee, even if they are out of state. MORE |
Carrying
The open carrying of a handgun in Virginia is lawful. MORE |
Antiques and Replicas
Antique firearm means any firearm manufactured in or before 1898 and any replica of such a firearm if such a replica is not designed or redesigned for using rimfire or conventional center-fire ammunition or uses rimfire or conventional center-fire ammunition which is no longer manufactured in the U.S. and which is not readily available in the ordinary channels of commercial trade. This exception applies only to sales by federally licensed gun dealers. The restrictions on concealed carrying and possession by prohibited persons otherwise apply. |
Machine Guns
A machine gun is defined as a weapon that shoots or is designed to shoot, automatically without manual reloading more than one shot by a single function of the trigger. MORE |
"Sawed Off" Shotguns and Rifles
A “sawed-off” shotgun is defined as any weapon loaded or unloaded, originally designed as a shoulder weapon, utilizing a self-contained cartridge from which a number of ball shot pellets or projectiles may be fired simultaneously from a smooth or rifled bore by a single function of the firing device and which has a barrel length of less than 18 inches for smooth bore weapons and 16 inches for rifled weapons. Weapons of less than .225 caliber shall not be included. MORE |
Preemption
No locality shall adopt or enforce any ordinance, resolution or motion, as permitted by § 15.2-1425, and no agent of such locality shall take any administrative action, governing the purchase, possession, transfer, ownership, carrying, storage or transporting of firearms, ammunition, MORE |
Range Protection
No local ordinance regulating any noise shall subject a sports shooting range to noise control standards more stringent than those in effect at its effective date. The operation or use of a sports shooting range shall not be enjoined on the basis of noise. MORE |
Miscellaneous
It is unlawful to discharge a firearm in or across any road, or right-of-way, except at an approved firing range. MORE |
Footnote
1. “Assault firearm” means any semi-automatic center-fire rifle or pistol which is equipped with a magazine which will hold more than twenty rounds of ammunition or designed by the manufacturer to accommodate a silencer or equipped with a folding stock. |
Tuesday, July 12, 2022
Tonight, the Winchester City Council will consider O2022-23, to repeal a restriction on carrying firearms at public events.
Monday, June 6, 2022
Senator Joe Morrissey (D-16) announced that the first piece of legislation he will file for next year’s session will be ...
Thursday, June 2, 2022
Yesterday, the General Assembly passed Virginia’s two year budget. Back in December, outgoing Governor Ralph Northam had proposed $27.4 ...
Wednesday, April 6, 2022
Yesterday, Governor Glenn Youngkin signed Senate Bill 8, to allow Sunday hunting on public lands. It will go into effect ...
Monday, March 14, 2022
On Saturday, the Virginia General Assembly adjourned sine die from its 2022 legislative session. During this session, the ...
Monday, March 7, 2022
Today, the House voted 69-28 to pass Senate Bill 8, to allow Sunday hunting on public lands. It ...
Friday, March 4, 2022
On Monday, the House will hold a final vote for Senate Bill 8, to allow Sunday hunting on ...
Monday, February 28, 2022
Today, the Senate Judiciary Committee unsurprisingly rejected all of the pro-gun bills that the House sent over, by voting ...
Thursday, February 24, 2022
On Monday, the Senate Judiciary Committee will hear a number of pro-Second Amendment bills previously passed by the ...
Tuesday, February 15, 2022
Today, the House of Delegates voted 52-47 for House Bill 509, to repeal the “red flag” gun confiscation law passed ...