Obtaining the concealed carry permit
To obtain a permit the citizen must apply to the Sheriff’s Office in their county of residence. The applicant will sign a release of mental health records as part of the application process and effective October 1, 2015 no entity can charge a fee for the release of those records. The Sheriff shall issue a permit to the applicant who qualifies under these criteria according to North Carolina General Statute 14-415.12.
1. The applicant is a citizen of the United States or has been lawfully admitted for permanent residence as defined in 8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(20), and has been a resident of the State of North Carolina 30 days or longer immediately before the filing of the concealed carry application. Proof of citizenship should be brought to the Sheriff’s Office. Proof of residency may also be required in some counties.
2. The applicant is 21 years of age or older.
3. The applicant does not suffer from any physical or mental infirmity that prevents safe handling of a handgun.
4. The applicant has successfully completed a Concealed Carry training course that has been approved by the NC Criminal Justice Education and Training Standards Commission by an instructor who is certified by this same Commission as a Concealed Carry – Handgun Instructor. The applicant must submit the original certificate issued from the course to the Sheriff’s Office as part of the application process.
5. The applicant is eligible to own, possess or receive a firearm under the provisions of state or federal law.
6. The applicant is not under indictment or against whom a finding of felony probable cause exists.
7. The applicant has not been found guilty of a felony.
8. The applicant is not a fugitive from justice.
9. The applicant is not an unlawful user, or addicted to marijuana, alcohol, or any depressant, stimulant, or narcotic drug, or any other controlled substance as defined in 21 USC § 802.
10. The applicant is not currently or previously found to be by a court or administratively determined by a governmental agency whose decisions are subject to judicial review to be, lacking mental capacity or mentally ill. Consultative services or outpatient treatment alone shall not disqualify an applicant.
11. The applicant has not been less than honorably discharged from the armed forces. (“Honorable, General, and Entry Level Separation” are considered acceptable. Persons who receive “Other Than Honorable, Bad Conduct Discharge, or Dishonorable Discharge/Dismissal” would not be eligible for a NC CCH permit.)
12. The applicant has not been found guilty of, or received a prayer for Judgment Continued, or suspended sentence for offenses constituting a misdemeanor under any of the following specific statutes, or any other crime of violence:
a. 14-32.1: Assault on handicapped person.
b. 14-33(a): Simple assault, within 3 years prior to the date on the application.
c. 14-33(a)(1): Assault inflicting serious injury or using a deadly weapon.
d. 14-33(c)(2): Assault on a female.
e. 14-33(c)(3): Assault on a child under the age of 12.
f. 14-33(d): Assault inflicting serious injury or using a deadly weapon on a person in a personal relationship and in the presence of a minor.
g. 14-34: Assault by pointing a gun.
h. 14-34.3 Manufacture, sale, purchase or possession of Teflon-coated bullets.
i. 14-34.8: Criminal use of a laser device.
j. 14-134.3: Domestic criminal trespass.
k. 14-226.1: Violating court orders, within 3 years prior to the date on the application.
l. 14-258.1: Furnishing poison, controlled substances, deadly weapons, cartridges, ammunition, or alcoholic beverages to inmates of charitable, mental or penal institutions or local confinement facilities, within 3 years prior to the date on the application.
m. 14-269.2: Carrying weapons on campus or other educational property, within 3 years prior to the date on the application.
n. 14-269.3: Carrying weapons into assemblies and establishments where alcoholic beverages are sold and/or consumed, within 3 years prior to the date on the application.
o. 14-269.4: Carrying weapons on state property and courthouses, within 3 years prior to the date on the application.
p. 14-269.6: Possession and/or sale of spring-loaded projectile knives, within 3 years prior to the date on the application.
q. 14-277: Impersonation of a law-enforcement or other public officer, within 3 years prior to the date on the application.
r. 14-277.1: Communicating threats, within 3 years prior to the date on the application.
s. 14-277.2: Carrying weapons at parades and other public gatherings, within 3 years prior to the date on the application.
t. 14-277.3: Stalking.
u. 14-283: Exploding dynamite cartridges and/or bombs. (Except for a violation involving fireworks – N.C.G.S. 14-414), within 3 years prior to the date on the application.
v. 14-288.2: Rioting or inciting to riot, within 3 years prior to the date on the application.
w. 14-288.4(a)(1): Fighting or conduct creating the threat of imminent fighting or other violence, within 3 years prior to the date on the application.
x. 14-288.6: Looting and trespass during an emergency, within 3 years prior to the date on the application.
y. 14-288.9: Assault on emergency personnel, within 3 years prior to the date on the application.
z. 14-288.12: Violations of city State of Emergency Ordinances, within 3 years prior to the date on the application.
aa. 14-288.13: Violations of county State of Emergency Ordinances, within 3 years prior to the date on the application.
bb. 14-288.14: Violations of State of Emergency Ordinances, within 3 years prior to the date on the application.
cc. 14-318.2: Child Abuse.
dd. 14-415.21(b): Violations of the standards for carrying a concealed weapon, within 3 years prior to the date on the application.
ee. 14-415.26: Misrepresentation on certification of qualified retired law enforcement officers, within 3 years prior to the date on the application.
ff. 50B-4.1: Domestic violence protective order violations.
gg. Has been adjudicated guilty or received a prayer for judgement continued or a suspended sentence for crimes involving an assault or a threat to assault a law enforcement officer, probation or parole officer, person employed by the State or local detention facility, firefighter, emergency medical technician, medical responder, or emergency department personnel.
hh. Any person convicted of “misdemeanor crime of domestic violence” as defined in federal law at a8 U.S.C. § 922(g)(8).
13. The person is not free on bond or personal recognizance pending trial, appeal, or sentencing for a crime which would disqualify him/her from obtaining a concealed handgun permit.
14. The applicant has not been convicted of an impaired driving offense under any of the following General Statutes within 3 years prior to the date on which the application is submitted:
20-138.1: Impaired driving.
20-138.2: Impaired driving in commercial vehicle.
20-138.3: Driving by person less than 21 years old after consuming alcohol or drugs.
15. Domestic Violence Issues:
A court in any domestic violence protective order can prohibit a party from possessing, purchasing or receiving a firearm for a time fixed in the order and effective September 30, 1996, 18 U.S.C. § 921(a) was modified in the “Lautenberg Amendment” to prohibit the possession of firearms and ammunition by anyone convicted of a misdemeanor under federal or state law which has, as an element, the use or attempted use of physical force, or the threatened use of a deadly weapon, committed by a current or former spouse, parent, guardian of the victim, by a person with whom the victim shares a child in common, by a person who is cohabitating with, or has cohabited with the victim as a spouse, parent, or guardian, or by a person similarly situated to a spouse, parent, or guardian of the victim.