You can carry a concealed handgun in Kentucky at age 21 without any license, if you may lawfully possess a firearm. Someone carrying without a license...
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You can carry a concealed handgun in Kentucky at age 21 without any license, if you may lawfully possess a firearm. Someone carrying without a license may carry in the same locations as a person holding a valid license. The Department of Kentucky State Police is still authorized to issue and renew the license to carry concealed deadly weapon (CCDW license). The answers below cover fees, training, places, vehicles, and stops.
No. Persons age 21 or older who are otherwise able to lawfully possess a firearm may carry concealed deadly weapons without a license under KRS 237.109(1). That authorization took effect June 27, 2019, and the statute titles it carrying concealed deadly weapons without a license. See also: permitless carry.
The license extends concealed carry eligibility to people ages 18 through 20 through the provisional license, while permitless carry requires being 21 or older. It also gives the licensee the benefit of the written reciprocity agreement the Department of Kentucky State Police enters into with the appropriate agency in each state that agrees to permit Kentucky residents to carry concealed deadly weapons in the other state on the basis of a Kentucky-issued concealed deadly weapon license. See also: permit basics.
Under KRS 237.118(2), the Department of Kentucky State Police shall issue provisional licenses, effective July 15, 2026, and the minimum age for one is 18. The department is not yet accepting those applications, and its concealed carry page says the online application portal is expected to be updated this fall and will then begin accepting applications from eligible individuals ages 18 to 20. A provisional license is valid until the holder turns 21. See also: permit basics.
Kentucky State Police must mail the switch notice not less than 90 days before the provisional license expires, under KRS 237.118(6)(a). A holder who does not apply to switch within six months of expiration must apply as a new applicant, under KRS 237.118(6)(f). A provisional licensee who switches is not required to retake the firearms training, under KRS 237.118(6)(g). See also: renewal process.
Yes. Under KRS 237.110(19), no person who qualifies may be denied a license. A citizen applicant must generally be a Kentucky resident, though active-duty military posted here and lawfully admitted aliens residing here may also qualify, under KRS 237.110(4)(b). See also: permit basics.
A paper application or renewal fee is $60, and the paper application goes to the office of the sheriff in the county where you reside, under KRS 237.110(7). An electronic application or renewal fee is $70, and the electronic application goes to the Department of Kentucky State Police. Certain active and retired peace officers are exempt from the paper or electronic application or renewal fees, under KRS 237.110(7)(d). See also: fees and costs.
Under KRS 237.110(9), an electronic application must be granted or denied within 15 business days of receipt of the required items, and a paper application within 60 days. A denied applicant may seek de novo review of the denial in the District Court of his or her place of residence within 90 days of the denial letter, under KRS 237.110(9)(b). See also: application process.
A license is valid for five years from issuance, under KRS 237.110(2)(b). Kentucky State Police mails a renewal notice not less than 120 days before expiration, under KRS 237.110(14)(a). Renewing after the expiration date adds a $15 late fee to the license fees, and no license may be renewed six months or more after its expiration date, when it is deemed permanently expired, under KRS 237.110(14)(c). See also: renewal process.
Replacement costs $15 for a paper request, under KRS 237.110(12). Replacement costs $25 for an electronic request submitted in lieu of a paper request. See also: fees and costs.
An applicant must complete a qualifying firearms training course before the license issues, under KRS 237.110(4)(i). The approved course is not more than eight hours in length and covers instruction on handguns and marksmanship principles, actual range firing, and a copy of the laws on carrying firearms and the use of force. The live-fire portion is not more than 20 rounds at a full-size silhouette target, under KRS 237.110(4)(i)3. See also: training requirements.
Kentucky imposes no duty to tell a law enforcement officer that you are carrying a concealed weapon; the licensee must carry the license while carrying concealed and display it upon an officer's request, and the statute requires nothing more. Failing to carry or display the license is a noncriminal violation with a $25 penalty and no court costs. See also: duty to inform.
A license does not authorize carrying into police stations and sheriffs' offices, detention facilities, prisons and jails, courthouses and court proceedings, certain governing body meetings, the alcohol service area of a licensed premises, elementary and secondary schools and child-care facilities, secured areas of an airport, or any place federal law prohibits, under KRS 237.110(16). A person carrying without a license may carry in the same locations as a person holding a valid license. See also: prohibited places.
State law bars possession of a loaded firearm in the room of a licensed premises where alcohol is sold by the drink for on-site consumption, with exceptions for staff, law enforcement, and qualifying restaurants, under KRS 244.125(1). Separately, a license does not authorize concealed carry in the portion of an establishment licensed to dispense beer or alcoholic beverages for on-premises consumption that is primarily devoted to that purpose. See also: carrying under the influence.
Kentucky has no statute that sets a blood alcohol threshold for carrying and no offense of carrying a firearm while intoxicated, and KRS 527.020, the carrying statute, defines the offense of carrying a concealed weapon with no intoxication element. The rule about the room where alcohol is sold by the drink still applies whether or not you have had a drink. See also: carrying under the influence.
The owner or manager of a private business enterprise may prohibit concealed carry on the premises, and if the premises are open to the public it shall post signs, under KRS 237.110(17). Carrying past such a sign is not a criminal act but may subject the person to denial of entry or removal from the premises. A city or county is a different matter, because Kentucky preempts local governments from regulating the manufacture, sale, purchase, transfer, ownership, possession, carrying, storage, or transportation of firearms and ammunition, and declares any conflicting local ordinance null and void, under KRS 65.870(1). See also: prohibited places and preemption.
Under KRS 237.106(1), no property owner, lessee, occupant, or employer may prohibit a person legally entitled to possess a firearm from keeping a firearm, part of a firearm, ammunition, or ammunition component in a vehicle on the property. An employer that fires, disciplines, demotes, or otherwise punishes an employee for lawfully exercising that right is liable in civil damages, under KRS 237.106(4). See also: vehicle carry.
No. Under KRS 527.020(8), a loaded or unloaded firearm in a factory-installed glove compartment, center console, seat pocket, or other enclosed container is not deemed concealed. That rule in KRS 527.020(8) does not apply to a person prohibited from possessing a firearm under KRS 527.040. See also: transport.
Yes. Under KRS 237.110(20)(a), a valid license from another state is considered valid for carrying concealed in Kentucky. A person moving here may use a valid out-of-state license from a reciprocity-agreement state for the first 120 days of Kentucky residency, if within 60 days of moving to Kentucky the person completes the required notarized form, under KRS 237.110(20)(b). See also: reciprocity.
No. Under KRS 503.050(4), a person does not have a duty to retreat prior to the use of deadly physical force. Deadly physical force is justifiable only when the defendant believes it is necessary to protect himself against death, serious physical injury, kidnapping, sexual intercourse compelled by force or threat, or a felony involving the use of force, or under those circumstances permitted pursuant to KRS 503.055, under KRS 503.050(2). See also: use of force.
Under KRS 503.085(1), a person who uses force as permitted is immune from criminal prosecution and civil action for that use of force. That immunity does not apply where force was used against an identified peace officer acting in the performance of official duties. See also: castle doctrine.
This page covers one part of our Kentucky concealed carry guide.
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