New York carry law is a triangle. Penal Law article 265 makes possessing a handgun a crime. Penal Law 265.20 exempts a person licensed under Penal Law...
Reviewed by Will Luker, Founder of CCW Hub. USCCA Training Counselor, USCCA Certified Instructor, NRA Certified Instructor, Law Enforcement.
New York carry law is a triangle. Penal Law article 265 makes possessing a handgun a crime. Penal Law 265.20 exempts a person licensed under Penal Law 400.00, which is the path to lawful carry. And two location statutes, Penal Law 265.01-d and 265.01-e, sit outside that exemption, so they bind an ordinary carry licensee the same way they bind everyone else.
New York does not write a separate crime of carrying concealed without a permit. It criminalizes possession and then exempts the licensed. Penal Law 265.01(1) makes a person guilty of criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree when he or she possesses "any firearm". Criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree is a class A misdemeanor. Penal Law 265.01-b(1) reaches the same conduct, providing that a person is guilty of criminal possession of a firearm when he or she "possesses any firearm". Criminal possession of a firearm is a class E felony. "Firearm" is defined at Penal Law 265.00(3) to mean "(a) any pistol or revolver", along with short shotguns and rifles, assault weapons, and certain frames or receivers.
Add ammunition and the grade jumps. Under Penal Law 265.03(3), a person is guilty of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree when "such person possesses any loaded firearm." That subdivision carries its own exception, and the exception has two carve-outs: "Such possession shall not, except as provided in subdivision one or seven of section 265.02 of this article, constitute a violation of this subdivision if such possession takes place in such person's home or place of business." Subdivision one of Penal Law 265.02 covers a person who commits fourth-degree possession under subdivision one, two, three or five of Penal Law 265.01 and "has been previously convicted of any crime"; subdivision seven covers a person who "possesses an assault weapon". Where either applies, the home-or-business shelter is unavailable. Criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree is a class C felony, and Penal Law 70.02(1)(b) lists it among the class C violent felony offenses.
"Loaded firearm" is broader than it sounds. Penal Law 265.00(15) defines it as "any firearm loaded with ammunition or any firearm which is possessed by one who, at the same time, possesses a quantity of ammunition which may be used to discharge such firearm." Separated gun and usable ammunition still count.
Penal Law 265.20 subdivision a opens by naming the article 265 offenses its exemptions reach, an enumerated set that includes 265.01, 265.01-b, 265.02, 265.03 and 265.04. Paragraph 3 of that subdivision then exempts "Possession of a pistol or revolver by a person to whom a license therefor has been issued as provided under section 400.00 or 400.01 of this chapter". That clause is why a 400.00 license is the route to lawful handgun carry in New York.
Two sections are missing from that list: 265.01-d and 265.01-e. A carry license is not a defense to either the restricted-location offense or the sensitive-location offense. Each of those statutes carries its own exemption list, at 265.01-d(2) and 265.01-e(3), and neither list includes ordinary licensees.
Penal Law 400.00(2) sets out what each license type is issued for. A license for a pistol or revolver "shall be issued to" one of seven listed holders, and the concealed carry license is paragraph (f): "have and carry concealed, without regard to employment or place of possession subject to the restrictions of state and federal law, by any person". Paragraphs (a) and (b) are the premises licenses, for a householder's dwelling and a merchant's place of business. Penal Law 400.00(7) requires the license to "indicate whether issued to carry on the person or possess on the premises, and if on the premises shall also specify the place where the licensee shall possess the same." New York State says so on gunsafety.ny.gov: a premises license holder cannot carry a concealed pistol or revolver outside the home, because a premises license "only allows you to possess a pistol or revolver in your home or place of business."
Penal Law 400.00(6) states that a license "not otherwise limited as to place or time of possession, shall be effective throughout the state, except that the same shall not be valid within the city of New York unless a special permit granting validity is issued by the police commissioner of that city."
The same subdivision preserves five narrow ways into the city without the special permit, including where the covered firearms "are being transported by the licensee in a locked container and the trip through the city of New York is continuous and uninterrupted", and for certain retired police and federal law enforcement officers whose licenses are marked accordingly. In Frey v. City of New York, No. 23-365-cv (2d Cir., decided September 19, 2025), the Second Circuit affirmed the denial of a preliminary injunction against the city's special permit requirement.
Penal Law 400.00(8) puts the license in your pocket: "Every licensee while carrying a pistol or revolver shall have on his or her person a license to carry the same." It adds an exhibition duty, "Upon demand, the license shall be exhibited for inspection to any peace officer, who is acting pursuant to his or her special duties, or police officer", and an evidentiary consequence: "Failure of any licensee to so exhibit or display his or her license, as the case may be, shall be presumptive evidence that he or she is not duly licensed."
Penal Law 400.00(15) supplies the penalty for the section as a whole: "Any violation by any person of any provision of this section is a class A misdemeanor."
New York licenses concealed carry and does not license open carry. The Second Circuit said so in Frey: "Because Section 400.00(2) only grants licenses for concealed public carry, a license holder that carries openly in public would violate the terms of that license and may thereby be subject to prosecution under Section 400.00(15)." A licensee who carries openly is exposed to that class A misdemeanor.
For someone without a license, open carry is not a separate offense. It is the same possession offense described above, since Penal Law 265.01(1), 265.01-b(1) and 265.03(3) turn on possession rather than on how the handgun is worn.
Frey affirmed the denial of a preliminary injunction against the open carry ban, holding the plaintiffs unlikely to succeed on the merits. The court noted that its affirmance "does not determine the ultimate constitutionality of the challenged [] provisions, which await further briefing, discovery, and historical analysis". Per the August 14, 2026 joint status letter in Christian, the Frey plaintiffs have since stipulated to dismissal of their claims, so that analysis is not coming in this case.
Penal Law 265.01-e(1) makes a person guilty when he or she possesses a firearm, rifle or shotgun in or upon a sensitive location "and such person knows or reasonably should know such location is a sensitive location." Subdivision 2 defines twenty categories, paragraphs (a) through (t): any place owned or controlled by federal, state or local government for the purpose of government administration, including courts; locations providing health, behavioral health, or chemical dependence care or services; places of worship, "except for those persons responsible for security at such place of worship"; libraries, public playgrounds, public parks and zoos, with public parks excluding privately held land within a public park that is not dedicated to public use, and the forest preserve; children and family services programs and permitted childcare; nursery schools, preschools and summer camps; programs of the offices for people with developmental disabilities, addiction services and supports, mental health, and temporary and disability assistance; shelters; health department residential settings; schools, colleges and universities; public transportation and its facilities; on-premises alcohol and cannabis consumption establishments; performance, entertainment, gaming and sporting venues; polling places; permitted or access-restricted public areas identified by clear and conspicuous signage; protests and assemblies; and Times Square as identified by the city with signage. Criminal possession of a firearm, rifle or shotgun in a sensitive location is a class E felony. Subdivision 3 exempts fifteen categories of person, including police and peace officers, 18 U.S.C. 926B and 926C officers, registered armed security guards at work, and active-duty military personnel. The prohibited places guide covers the full enumeration.
Treat the whole list as in force. New York publishes all twenty paragraphs on gunsafety.ny.gov with no non-enforcement notice attached, in contrast to the notice it attaches to the restricted-location statute discussed below. In Antonyuk v. James, 120 F.4th 941 (2d Cir. 2024), decided on remand October 24, 2024, the Second Circuit vacated the preliminary injunction against the sensitive-location provisions challenged in that case, affirming the district court's injunction in part, vacating it in part, and preserving it only as to Penal Law 400.00(1)(o)(iv) and 265.01-d as applied to private property held open to the general public. That opinion left undisturbed the place-of-worship relief the December 8, 2023 consolidated opinion upheld for certain plaintiffs in a companion case. The Supreme Court denied certiorari on April 7, 2025 (No. 24-795). The public parks provision, Penal Law 265.01-e(2)(d), was then upheld against a facial challenge in Christian v. James, 176 F.4th 189 (2d Cir., decided May 18, 2026), which affirmed judgment for the State and declined to reach an as-applied challenge to rural parks because it had not been raised below. Frey affirmed the denial of preliminary relief as to Times Square and public transit, Penal Law 265.01-e(2)(t) and (2)(n).
Penal Law 265.01-d(1) makes it an offense to possess a firearm, rifle or shotgun and enter or remain on private property "where such person knows or reasonably should know that the owner or lessee of such property has not permitted such possession by clear and conspicuous signage indicating that the carrying of firearms, rifles, or shotguns on their property is permitted or by otherwise giving express consent." Criminal possession of a weapon in a restricted location is a class E felony.
As to private property open to the public, it is under a federal injunction and the State Police say they are not enforcing it. On October 10, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York entered a permanent injunction in Christian v. James, No. 22-cv-00695, ordering that "Defendants and their officers, agents, servants, employees, and all persons in concert or participation with them who receive notice of this Order are permanently enjoined, effectively immediately, from enforcing N.Y. Pen. L. ยง 265.01-d with respect to private property open to the public, and their regulations, policies, and practices implementing it". The Second Circuit affirmed that permanent injunction on May 18, 2026. Christian v. James, 176 F.4th 189 (2d Cir. 2026). New York State Police say the same in operational terms on gunsafety.ny.gov: "Due to a court ruling NYSP is not currently enforcing this provision with respect to possession of a firearm, rifle, or shotgun upon private property that is held open to the public."
The statute has not been repealed and has not been struck down as a whole. As to private property that is not held open to the public, 265.01-d still applies on its own terms. The injunction takes nothing away from property owners: an owner or lessee who does not want firearms on the premises may still say so and exclude accordingly. What changed for private property open to the public is the default. Instead of possession being criminal unless the owner affirmatively permits it, permission is presumed unless the owner withdraws it. The sensitive-location statute is a separate layer and is untouched by this injunction. A bar, a theater, a stadium, a hospital, a place of worship, a transit station and Times Square are all private or public property that people walk into, and all remain class E felony locations under Penal Law 265.01-e. Nothing here changes that, and nothing here helps a person who is not licensed, because Penal Law 265.01(1), 265.01-b(1) and 265.03(3) still reach the possession itself.
The Supreme Court reached the same conclusion about a Hawaii law in Wolford v. Lopez, No. 24-1046 (decided June 25, 2026), holding that prohibiting licensed concealed-carry permit holders from carrying on private property open to the public without the owner's express authorization violates the Second and Fourteenth Amendments.
Treat all of this as of a date. In an August 14, 2026 joint status letter, the parties in Christian reported that plaintiffs anticipated petitioning for certiorari on the public parks ban "before the deadline of September 16, 2026", with the public transit claim still unresolved. Confirm the current enforcement status on gunsafety.ny.gov before you rely on any of it.
Two federal provisions are written directly into New York's location statutes. Under 18 U.S.C. 926B, a qualified law enforcement officer carrying the required identification "may carry a concealed firearm that has been shipped or transported in interstate or foreign commerce," and 18 U.S.C. 926C does the same for a qualified retired law enforcement officer. New York names both in Penal Law 265.01-e(3)(a) and 265.01-d(2)(c), so 926B and 926C officers are outside the sensitive-location and restricted-location offenses.
Federal law does not override the property and government-property rules, though. Section 926B(b) says it shall not be construed to supersede or limit state laws that "permit private persons or entities to prohibit or restrict the possession of concealed firearms on their property" or that "prohibit or restrict the possession of firearms on any State or local government property, installation, building, base, or park."
For travelers, 18 U.S.C. 926A protects transporting an unloaded firearm between two places where possession is lawful, if neither the firearm nor the ammunition is readily or directly accessible from the passenger compartment. In a vehicle with no compartment separate from the driver's compartment, the firearm or ammunition must be in a locked container other than the glove compartment or console. That is a transport protection, not a carry right, and the transport guide covers how it interacts with New York's rules.
This page covers one part of our New York concealed carry guide.
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