INFORMATION ON NORTH CAROLINAS CONCEALED HANDGUN CARRY LAW
The information concerning North Carolina Law is to be considered for reference only. NOT LEGAL ADVICE. We expressly disclaim any liability for the accuracy of this information. Use at your own risk. Concealed Handgun Carry, Inc. recommends that you consult a qualified NC attorney if you have questions or concerns.
On December 1, 1995 the North Carolina General Assembly enacted a concealed handgun law that allows qualifying citizens of North Carolina the opportunity to obtain a permit to carry a concealed handgun. This law requires that the permit be secured from the sheriff of the permittee's county of residence. Once issued, the permit is valid throughout the state for a period of five years, unless it has been revoked.
One of our goals at Concealed Handgun Carry, Inc. is to provide the required training to meet the North Carolina State requirements in order for you to apply for your Concealed Handgun Permit.
The NC State Bureau of Investigation's Division of Criminal Information maintains statistics by county on the number of applications for Concealed Handgun Permits, the number of Concealed Handgun Permits that have been issued, the number of Concealed Handgun Permits that have been denied and the number of Concealed Handgun Permits that have been revoked since December 1, 1995.
The North Carolina Concealed Handgun Permit program has been extremely successful. In every state that has instituted a state wide Concealed Handgun Permit, the crime rates have gone down.
GETTING YOUR CONCEALED HANDGUN PERMIT
North Carolina General Statute 14.415.13
· Must have Certificate from your approved Concealed Handgun Carry Course.
· Present your original Certificate to the Sheriff of your county of residence and complete permit application under oath.
· Pay a non-refundable fee of $80.00.
· Provide two sets of fingerprints which you can be charged up to $10.00 by the Sheriff.
· Provide a release that authorizes and requires disclosure to the Sheriff of any record concerning the mental health or capacity of the applicant.
· Qualified sworn law enforcement officers may be exempt from the firearms safety and training course.
· Fees for retired sworn law enforcement officers from the North Carolina Teachers and State Employees’ Retirement System or the North Carolina Local Governmental Employees’ Retirement System who meet certain qualifications only pay $45.00 for the application fee and $40.00 for their renewal fee.
· By law, the Sheriff has 90 days to approve or deny the permit.
· Must renew the permit every 5 years. File for renewal at least 30 days prior to the expiration and submit a renewal fee of $75.00.
· Must notify the Sheriff within 30 days after a permanent change of address.
· If the permit is lost or destroyed, a duplicate may be obtained from the Sheriff.
EMERGENCY ISSUE OF CONCEALED HANDGUN PERMIT
The general statutes of NC allow for the sheriff of a county to issue an emergency permit to carry a concealed handgun provided certain requirements are met. Those requirements are below.
§ 14‑415.13. Application for a permit; fingerprints.
(a) A person shall apply to the sheriff of the county in which the person resides to obtain a concealed handgun permit. The applicant shall submit to the sheriff all of the following:
(1) An application, completed under oath, on a form provided by the sheriff.
(2) A nonrefundable permit fee.
(3) A full set of fingerprints of the applicant administered by the sheriff.
Link to North Carolina Firearms Laws 
Over 40 pages of reading.
NC Firearms Laws Updated December 2007
WARNING! YOU MUST READ THE IMPORTANT CHANGE BELOW!
In the 40 plus pages of reading you will not find the most current laws. This is because Internet Website Administrators do not always keep their sites current. One of these changes in the law is extremely important to prospective gun owners.
The 2003-2004 Session of the NC General Assembly rewrote NC General Statute 14-402 (Sale of certain weapons without permit forbidden) It was rewritten to allow citizens who have been issued a North Carolina Concealed Handgun Permit to lawfully obtain a handgun WITHOUT having to purchase an additional permit from the Sheriff.
I have learned that some county Sheriff's are not aware of the change in that law. You can read the NEW law and view the changes made by the general assembly below. The new law was signed into law on August 10, 2004 by Gov. Mike Easley.
Here is a link to the complete history of the passing of this important new law.
GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2003
SESSION LAW 2004-183
HOUSE BILL 817
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1. G.S. 14‑402 reads as rewritten:
"§ 14‑402. Sale of certain weapons without permit forbidden.
(a) It shall be is unlawful for any person, firm, or corporation in this State to sell, give away, or transfer, or to purchase or receive, at any place within this State from any other place within or without the State any pistol or crossbow unless a unless: (i) a license or permit therefor has is first been obtained under this Article by the purchaser or receiver from the sheriff of the county in which that the purchaser or receiver resides.resides; or (ii) a valid North Carolina concealed handgun permit is held under Article 54B of this Chapter by the purchaser or receiver who must be a resident of the State at the time of the purchase.
It shall be is unlawful for any person or persons to receive from any postmaster, postal clerk, employee in the parcel post department, rural mail carrier, express agent or employee, railroad agent or employee within the State of North Carolina any pistol or crossbow without having in his or their possession and without exhibiting at the time of the delivery of the same and to the person delivering the same the permit from the sheriff as provided in G.S. 14‑403. Any person violating the provisions of this section shall be is guilty of a Class 2 misdemeanor.
(b) This section does not apply to an antique firearm or an historic edged weapon.
(c) The following definitions apply in this section:
(1) Antique firearm. – Defined in G.S. 14‑409.11.
(2) Bolt. – A projectile made to be discharged from a crossbow. The bolt differs from an arrow in that the bolt is heavier and shorter than an arrow.
(3) Crossbow. – A mechanical device consisting of, but not limited to, strings, cables, and prods transversely mounted on either a shoulder or hand‑held stock. This devise [device] is mechanically held at full or partial draw and released by a trigger or similar mechanism which is incorporated into a stock or handle. When operated, the crossbow discharges a projectile known as a bolt.
(4) Historic edged weapon. – Defined in G.S. 14‑409.12."
SECTION 2. This act is effective when it becomes law.
In the General Assembly read three times and ratified this the 15th day of July, 2004.
s/ Beverly E. Perdue
President of the Senate
s/ James B. Black
Speaker of the House of Representatives
s/ Michael F. Easley
Governor
Approved 11:40 a.m. this 10th day of August, 2004
RECIPROCITY
As of August 14, 2003, North Carolina law allows residents of other states who have a Concealed Handgun Permit issued by their state to carry concealed handguns in North Carolina if the person's state also grants the same privilege to North Carolinians. Because North Carolina's law on concealed handgun reciprocity is new, the list of states that have agreements with North Carolina is changing and will be updated regularly. As of November 22, 2005 the number of reciprocal states was twenty-seven.
North Carolinians who have a concealed carry permit from our state will be able to possess a concealed handgun while visiting states on the list but will be subject to the laws of that state and are responsible for educating themselves about those laws. Similarly, if you have a concealed carry permit from one of the states on this list, you will be able to possess a concealed handgun while you visit North Carolina. However, while you are in North Carolina you will be subject to all of our state's laws governing the carrying of a concealed handgun. Here is a list of the current states that honors the NC Concealed Handgun Permit.
This list is from the NC Dept. of Justice website and is current as of August 29,2009.
Alabama Kansas Oklahoma
Alaska Kentucky Pennsylvania
Arizona Louisiana South Carolina
Arkansas Michigan South Dakota
Colorado Mississippi Tennessee
Delaware Missouri Texas
Florida Montana Utah
Georgia New Hampshire Virginia
Idaho North Dakota Washington
Indiana Ohio West Virginia
***ATTENTION***
NORTH CAROLINA RETIRED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS
H. R. 218 LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS SAFETY ACT OF 2004
Became Law in July 2004
Congress passed H.R. 218 with an overwhelming majority and the bill was signed into law by President George W. Bush on July 22, 2004.
"SEC. 2. EXEMPTION OF QUALIFIED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS FROM STATE LAWS PROHIBITING THE CARRYING OF CONCEALED FIREARMS."
"SEC. 3. EXEMPTION OF QUALIFIED RETIRED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS FROM STATE LAWS PROHIBITING THE CARRYING OF CONCEALED FIREARMS."
HOWEVER, the problem for retired officers is that you must have an annual firearms certification recognized by the State of North Carolina. Few if any law enforcement agencies in North Carolina provides this training for retired LEO. If you plan on carrying your handgun concealed outside of your jurisdiction, TO BE LEGAL, YOU WILL NEED A NC CONCEALED HANDGUN PERMIT or CONCEALED HANDGUN PERMIT FROM THE STATE YOU ARE VISITING.
You can read the complete text of H. R. 218 by clicking on this link.
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