You apply to the Department of Public Safety, not to a county sheriff or a city police department. The Concealed Handgun Carry Act gives licensing...
Reviewed by Will Luker, Founder of CCW Hub. USCCA Training Counselor, USCCA Certified Instructor, NRA Certified Instructor, Law Enforcement.
You apply to the Department of Public Safety, not to a county sheriff or a city police department. The Concealed Handgun Carry Act gives licensing authority to "the department" and defines that word as the department of public safety (NMSA 1978, Section 29-19-2).
Two texts govern. The statute, Sections 29-19-1 through 29-19-15, fixes the minimum packet and the decision deadline; the rule, 10.8.2 NMAC, sets out how DPS collects and reviews it. DPS states 10.8.2 NMAC was amended effective December 9, 2025, and tells applicants not to rely on materials dated earlier.
Under 10.8.2.11 NMAC an applicant must file with the department in person, by mail, or online at dps.nm.gov, where the portal also handles license replacement and status checks. Mailed packets go to the Concealed Carry Unit at 6301 Indian School Road NE, Suite 310, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87110. Hearing filings and correspondence go to the DPS Office of Legal Affairs Concealed Handgun Section, PO Box 1628, Santa Fe, New Mexico 87504-1628 (10.8.2.8 NMAC).
Use the current department-prescribed form wherever one exists, unless DPS waives that requirement (10.8.2.10 NMAC). Fees may be paid by credit card, personal check, cashier's check, certified check, or money order payable to the department (10.8.2.11 NMAC), and the DPS application instructions say cards are accepted in person at the Albuquerque office.
NMSA 1978, Section 29-19-5 sets the statutory list. You submit a completed application form, a nonrefundable application fee not to exceed $100, two full sets of fingerprints, a certified copy of a certificate of completion for a department-approved firearms training course, two color photographs, a certified copy of a birth certificate or proof of United States citizenship if you were not born in the United States, and proof of residency in New Mexico. The form is executed under penalty of perjury and collects identifying and physical description information and your driver's license or other state-issued identification number. It carries a conspicuous warning that a materially false answer or document may result in denial or revocation and may subject the applicant to prosecution for perjury as provided in Section 30-25-1 NMSA 1978.
Two statutory items reach DPS differently today. 10.8.2.14 NMAC requires all applicants to submit electronic fingerprints, with new prints for every new and renewal application. Photographs may never be asked of you, because 10.8.2.12 NMAC lets DPS obtain digital color photographs from the Motor Vehicle Division or another government agency. If DPS does request them, they must be in color, at least two inches by two inches, and a full frontal view without a hat, sunglasses, or any other item that would obstruct or alter your features.
DPS's checklist for a civilian initial application adds its own paperwork: an Authorization to Obtain Health Information signed by a witness over the age of 18, an Authorization for Release of Information notarized before you submit it, a photocopy of a valid New Mexico driver's license or identification card, and the fingerprint Transaction Control Number. DPS states the birth certificate photocopy is not required if the New Mexico license is a Real ID. The fees section carries the full schedule.
One form question does not match the statute. Section 29-19-4 conditions issuance on being a citizen of the United States, while question 1 of the DPS application form, revised December 9, 2025, asks whether the applicant is a citizen of the United States or a permanent resident. The statute is the controlling authority on its face, and DPS applies its own form, so a lawful permanent resident should confirm eligibility with the Concealed Carry Unit before paying the nonrefundable fee.
Registration is at nm.ue.state.identogo.com/ue using service code 2BH245 for a civilian or 2BH25N for a military or law enforcement applicant. DPS instructs applicants to schedule an appointment rather than mail-in fingerprint cards, and the fingerprint location issues a Transaction Control Number that goes on the application or is attached when filing online.
Under 10.8.2.14 NMAC you must submit your application within 30 days of being fingerprinted, and DPS may refuse prints it determines are not legible and classifiable. If the FBI does not accept the prints for comparison purposes, DPS states processing may be significantly delayed and another set may be required. Section 29-19-5 separately allows a law enforcement agency to fingerprint an applicant and charge a reasonable fee.
10.8.2.12 NMAC controls what DPS accepts. Residency is proved by a copy of a valid New Mexico driver's license or personal identification card from the Motor Vehicle Division, by armed forces identification with orders of a permanent duty station in New Mexico, or by other proof acceptable to the department. Another state's driver's license creates a rebuttable presumption that you are a resident of that state.
The rule defines "resident" strictly. Under 10.8.2.7 NMAC a resident is a person who, for not less than 90 days immediately preceding the date of application, has been domiciled in New Mexico, does not claim residence elsewhere for any purpose, and is not otherwise entitled to claim residence in another state. Paragraph (2) of Subsection O adds a second route: a member of the armed forces of the United States permanently assigned to a military installation located within this state is a resident, and that member's dependent may be considered one.
Age is proved by a government-issued identification card stating your age, a passport, or a certified copy of your birth certificate. Competency is proved by a certified copy of a certificate of completion issued by an approved instructor, submitted not more than 90 days before the application (10.8.2.12 NMAC). Where a conviction or a discharge is in question, the applicant bears the burden of documenting a pending or successfully completed conditional discharge, or a conviction overturned on appeal.
Under Section 29-19-5, on receipt of the required items DPS makes a reasonable effort to determine whether the applicant qualifies, checks available records, and forwards the fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for a national criminal background check. Under 10.8.2.23 NMAC it conducts a state and national criminal background check plus a court records check for protective orders on every applicant for an original, transferred, or renewed license, and conducts such other investigation as it deems necessary to determine the applicant's suitability. A state or local government agency must comply with a DPS request made under the Concealed Handgun Carry Act within 30 days (Section 29-19-5). Information relating to an applicant or a licensee received by DPS or any other law enforcement agency is confidential and exempt from public disclosure unless a court of competent jurisdiction orders disclosure, and DPS makes it available to a state or local law enforcement agency on request (Section 29-19-6).
Under 10.8.2.9 NMAC a filing is incomplete if it is unsigned, if required certifications or notarizations are missing, if it omits information required by law or by department rule, form, or order, if it is not on a department-prescribed form where one exists, or if the required fee is not paid. DPS may deny or reject an incomplete filing.
An incomplete application is curable, but only twice. Under 10.8.2.11 NMAC DPS notifies the applicant in writing and outlines the deficiencies, and the applicant has 45 days from that notification to cure. If corrections arrive in time but the application is still deficient, a second written notice allows 30 days from it. Miss either window and the application is deemed abandoned, the file is closed, and all fees are forfeited to the state.
Section 29-19-6 gives DPS 30 days after receiving both a completed application and the results of a national criminal background check to issue the license or deny it on the ground that the applicant failed to qualify under the Act. 10.8.2.13 NMAC states the same trigger. DPS's published answer adds that a background investigation could take 90 days or more. Plan on the background check, not on the 30 days.
One loose thread sits in the statute itself. Section 29-19-5 tells DPS to comply with "the license-issuing requirements set forth in Section 29-19-7," but Section 29-19-7 sets firearms training course standards, and the issuing deadline is in Section 29-19-6.
An issued license carries a color photograph, the licensee's name, address, and date of birth, the expiration date, and the category and largest caliber the licensee may carry (Section 29-19-6). DPS may add a physical description, the state seal, and instructions (10.8.2.13 NMAC).
Section 29-19-3 makes original and renewed licenses valid for four years from issuance unless suspended or revoked, and Subsection D of 10.8.2.13 NMAC puts that four-year term on civilian licenses and a five-year term on military and law enforcement licenses. A retired law enforcement officer's license is printed "retired police officer" and runs five years (Section 29-19-14); a military service person's license is printed "military service person" and runs five years (Section 29-19-15); and a current peace officer residing in New Mexico may obtain a five-year license (Subsection A of 10.8.2.30 NMAC).
If DPS finds an applicant does not meet the requirements, it issues a notification of denial citing the provisions of the Act or rule the applicant failed to meet (10.8.2.13 NMAC). Under 10.8.2.27 NMAC the notification arrives with instructions for requesting a hearing and becomes final on the 30th day after the date it was postmarked unless DPS receives a hearing request first.
A request for hearing must be in writing, be received by DPS within 30 days from the date on the notification, state with specificity the basis for the challenge, and provide supporting documentation. DPS mails a notice of hearing within 30 days of a timely request and holds the hearing within 180 days of it, with one discretionary extension of up to 60 days. The respondent may enter evidence, be represented by counsel at their own expense, and call and cross-examine witnesses. The hearing examiner submits findings of fact, conclusions of law, and a recommended decision to the secretary within 20 days of the close of the hearing, and the secretary issues a final order within 20 days.
A respondent adversely affected by a final order may file a petition for a writ of certiorari under Rule 1-075 NMRA in the district court of the county where the respondent resides, within 30 days of the date the final order was postmarked, and the appellant bears the costs. That route runs only from a final order: under 10.8.2.27 NMAC a notice that becomes final is not a final order for purposes of the Subsection P appeal, so a respondent who lets the 30 days pass has nothing to take to district court.
10.8.2.21 NMAC permits DPS to deny, suspend, or revoke where the person violated any provision of the Act or the rule, where a Section 29-19-4 disqualifier applies, or where the person is subject to a valid protective order issued by a court. Section 29-19-6 separately requires suspension or revocation for false information on an application or renewal form, for not having satisfied the issuance criteria when licensed, or for violating the Act after licensure.
Under 10.8.2.16 NMAC a licensee must, within 10 days, both notify DPS in writing and return the license upon an adjudication of mental incompetence, a commitment for treatment of mental illness or of addiction to alcohol, controlled substances, or other drugs, a court order of protection against the licensee, an indictment or criminal information for a felony or a criminal complaint for a disqualifying misdemeanor under Section 29-19-4, no longer being a full time salaried peace officer, or a military discharge other than honorable.
A change of name, address, or law enforcement status requires a replacement license filed within 30 days: the department's replacement application, a certified copy of the legal document proving a name change where applicable, a nonrefundable $10 processing fee, and proof of reemployment with a law enforcement agency where applicable (10.8.2.19 NMAC). Section 29-19-6 sets the same 30-day deadline for a change of name or permanent address.
A lost, stolen, or destroyed license is invalid, so do not carry until the replacement arrives. Section 29-19-6 requires the licensee to notify DPS within 10 days, and 10.8.2.19 NMAC requires a police report within 10 days of discovering the loss, theft, or destruction. The replacement filing is the department's application, the case number of the police report, a notarized statement made under oath that the license was lost, stolen, or destroyed, and the $10 fee, and DPS issues the replacement within 10 days of receipt (10.8.2.19 NMAC). Those deadlines run on the rule's clock: 10.8.2.7 NMAC counts business days for a period of 10 days or less, calendar days for 11 or more.
To add a category or a higher caliber, 10.8.2.18 NMAC requires an endorsement application, a certified range competency certificate for each addition, your current license, and a $10 fee. DPS issues the updated license within 10 days, and you may not carry the higher caliber concealed until it arrives.
A person establishing New Mexico residency must transfer their out-of-state license, and has 90 days from establishing residency to file on the department's form (10.8.2.17 NMAC). Subsection U of 10.8.2.7 NMAC defines transfer as issuance of a New Mexico permit where the applicant holds a valid concealed carry permit or license from another state with which New Mexico has reciprocity, so a new resident holding any other state's license files the ordinary initial application instead. A transfer applicant may not carry concealed here until the New Mexico license issues, unless New Mexico accepts the other state's license by reciprocity. The filing adds proof of residency, proof of age, and a photocopy of the license being transferred to the ordinary renewal items. Confirm the training piece with DPS first: the rule's two transfer clauses set different look-back windows for prior training, one at not more than one year before filing and the other at more than 180 days before it.
This page covers one part of our New Mexico concealed carry guide.
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