Application Process

Tennessee handgun carry permits are issued by the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security, Handgun Carry Permit Unit (not by county sheriffs). You apply online through the state's Driver Services portal at dl.safety.tn.gov, complete the required training, then finish the transaction at a Driver Services Center (or fully online if you have a Real ID compliant Tennessee driver license). Fingerprints go to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) and the FBI for a background check, and if you clear the search the permit is mailed to you. The statute gives the Department of Safety up to ninety (90) days from receipt of a complete application to either issue the permit or notify you of a problem. Application fees are non-refundable. Incomplete applications will not be processed.

You must decide up front which permit you are applying for, because the training requirement, the fee, and the reciprocity footprint differ:

• Enhanced Handgun Carry Permit (EHCP) under Tenn. Code Section 39-17-1351. Open or concealed carry, broadest reciprocity. Requires an 8-hour in-person handgun safety course.
• Concealed Handgun Carry Permit (CHCP) under Tenn. Code Section 39-17-1366. Concealed only, narrower reciprocity. Training may be online (90 minutes minimum) or proven through one of the alternative courses listed in subsection (b)(4).

Constitutional carry under Tenn. Code Section 39-17-1307(g) does not eliminate either permit. If you want a permit for travel or for federal Gun-Free School Zones Act coverage, you still go through the application process below.

Who is eligible

To be issued an EHCP under Section 39-17-1351(b) you must be a Tennessee resident who is a United States citizen or a lawful permanent resident as defined by Section 55-50-102. You must not be prohibited from possessing a firearm under Section 39-17-1307(b), 18 U.S.C. Section 922(g), or any other state or federal law. The CHCP under Section 39-17-1366(a) uses the same citizenship/residency rule and incorporates the EHCP eligibility list at Section 39-17-1351(b) and (c) by reference.

Age requirement (Section 39-17-1351(b)):

• 21 or older; or
• 18 or older if you are an honorably discharged or retired veteran of the U.S. armed forces (submit a certified DD 214), an honorably discharged member of a reserve component or the army or air national guard who completed basic training (DD 256 or NGB 22), or a current active-duty member of the U.S. armed forces, national guard, or reserves who completed basic training (military ID).

Following the federal court decision in Beeler v. Long and Public Chapter 829 (2024), the Department of Safety also processes permit applications from civilian residents who are 18 to 20. Confirm the current 18-20 policy with the Handgun Carry Permit Unit before applying because the statutory text still ties the under-21 path to military status.

You are disqualified if any of the following apply (Section 39-17-1351(c), incorporated for CHCP by Section 39-17-1366(b)(3)):

• Felony conviction in any state.
• Conviction of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence as defined in 18 U.S.C. Section 921.
• Under indictment for a crime that would disqualify you if convicted.
• Fugitive from justice.
• Unlawful user of, or addicted to, any controlled substance or controlled substance analogue (subject to the rehabilitation lookback in Section 39-17-1351(c)(10): no court-ordered inpatient treatment within 10 years and no voluntary inpatient treatment within 3 years).
• Two or more DUI convictions within the prior 10 years, or any DUI conviction within the prior 5 years, in any state.
• Adjudicated as a mental defective, judicially committed or hospitalized in a mental institution under Title 33, had a conservator appointed by reason of mental defect, judicially determined disabled by mental illness or developmental disability, or within the prior 7 years found by a court to pose an immediate substantial likelihood of serious harm because of mental illness.
• Alien illegally or unlawfully in the United States.
• Discharged from the armed forces under dishonorable conditions.
• Renounced United States citizenship.
• Convicted of stalking.
• Receiving Social Security disability benefits by reason of alcohol dependence, drug dependence, or mental disability.
• For applicants under 25, certain prior juvenile adjudications listed in Section 39-17-1351(c)(19).

The application includes a perjury warning. Section 39-17-1351(c) requires the form to state in bold face directly above the signature line that an applicant who makes a false statement with intent to deceive commits the felony offense of perjury under Section 39-16-702.

Steps to apply (original Enhanced or Concealed permit)

1. Start the application online. Go to dl.safety.tn.gov and select "Apply for a Permit" under the Handgun Carry Permits section. Pick Enhanced or Concealed.
2. Complete the required training within 12 months before application.
   • Enhanced: complete an 8-hour Tennessee-certified Enhanced Handgun Safety Course (classroom plus live-fire range). The Department keeps a list of certified schools under "Lookup Handgun Information" at dl.safety.tn.gov.
   • Concealed: complete one of the qualifying courses listed in Section 39-17-1366(b)(4), including department-approved online courses (the agency-published minimum is 90 minutes), hunter safety, a firearms safety or training course from an organization specializing in firearms training, or law enforcement / military training. A current valid handgun permit from Arizona, Florida, Idaho, Iowa, Massachusetts, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Virginia, Wisconsin, or Wyoming is also accepted as proof of training.
   • The Enhanced course is an acceptable substitute for the Concealed course, but not the other way around.
3. Finish the application. If you have a Real ID compliant Tennessee driver license, log back into dl.safety.tn.gov, choose "Finish Your Application" under Handgun Carry Permits, upload your training certificate and proof documents, and pay the fee. Otherwise, schedule a Driver License Appointment at tndscappt.cxmflow.com and visit a Driver Services Center.
4. At the Driver Services Center (if not finishing online):
   • Pay the application fee (see the fee table below). Fees are non-refundable.
   • Provide certified proof of U.S. citizenship or lawful permanent residency. Photocopies are not accepted.
   • Provide proof of your full Social Security number.
   • Have your photo taken for the permit card.
   • If you do not currently hold a Tennessee driver license, present two proofs of Tennessee residency showing your name and resident address (P.O. boxes are not accepted; documents must be dated within the last 4 months).
   • Present a photo ID at filing. Under Section 39-17-1351(d)(2), if the names on your photo ID, your application, and your fingerprint card do not match, the Department must refuse the application. If the photo on your ID is not you, the Department must refuse the application.
5. Get fingerprinted. Two full sets of classifiable fingerprints are required under Section 39-17-1351(d)(1). After your Driver Services Center transaction (or after you upload online), the examiner emails or hands you instructions and a registration code for IdentoGO, the state's contracted live scan vendor. Schedule at an IdentoGO center through tn.state.identogo.com.
   • You may alternatively have a sheriff's office take and submit the fingerprints. A sheriff may charge a fee not exceeding five dollars ($5.00) for the service.
   • The person being fingerprinted must present a photo ID matching the application. If it does not match, the prints will not be taken.
   • New fingerprints are not required for renewals, duplicate cards, lifetime upgrades from an 8-year EHCP, or upgrades from CHCP to EHCP.
6. Background check. Under Section 39-17-1366(c) (which mirrors Section 39-17-1351(h)) the Department forwards both fingerprint sets to TBI and sends a copy of the application to the sheriff of your county of residence. Within 30 days the sheriff reports any knowledge bearing on the truthfulness of your eligibility answers. TBI runs the state criminal history search and submits prints to the FBI through the Tennessee Instant Check System (TICS) framework, then returns results to the Department.
7. Issuance and delivery. Upon a name-search approval from TBI, the Department may issue the permit. The Department's published policy and the prior version of Section 39-17-1351 require a decision within ninety (90) days of the date of application. The permit is then mailed to you. If your application is denied, you are notified by mail and the statute provides for appeal of an adverse determination.

What about the constitutional-carry alternative

If you are 18 or older, lawfully in possession of a handgun, and not otherwise prohibited, you may carry openly or concealed in Tennessee without applying at all under Section 39-17-1307(g). But a Tennessee permit is the only practical vehicle for interstate reciprocity, for the federal Gun-Free School Zones Act exemption, and for cleaner authority in some posted-premise and judicial-proceeding edge cases. Most carriers who travel still apply.

Fees

Tenn. Code Section 39-17-1351 fixes the EHCP application and processing fee at $100; Section 39-17-1366(b)(5) fixes the CHCP fee at $65. Lifetime EHCP and non-resident EHCP fees come from the same statutory framework. The military reduction is the long-standing Department of Safety policy under Section 39-17-1351, charging only the portion of the initial fee needed to fund the background check.

To use the military reduction, present your current active-duty military ID or your DD-214 showing an honorable discharge at filing.

Application fees are non-refundable. Incomplete applications will not be processed. A separate fee applies to a replacement (duplicate) permit card.

Records confidentiality

Permit-holder records are not generally public. Under Tenn. Code Section 39-17-1356, the Department's records identifying permit applicants and holders are confidential and exempt from most public disclosure. Limited disclosure to law enforcement, by court order, or to the permit holder is allowed.

Where the public-facing rules and the statute differ

• Non-resident track. The Department of Safety issues a non-resident EHCP only to applicants who hold a valid carry permit in their home state and have been employed full-time (at least 30 hours per week for at least 6 consecutive months) in Tennessee. The statute itself authorizes the Department to set rules for non-resident issuance; the eligibility filter above is the Department's published policy.
• 18-20 civilian eligibility. The statute as written limits the under-21 path to military service. The Department of Safety has been issuing permits to 18-20 year old civilians since 2024 following Beeler v. Long and Public Chapter 829. The Department's online application accepts those applicants, but the published statute text has not yet been updated. Confirm current eligibility before relying on the under-21 civilian path.
• CHCP application "in person." Section 39-17-1366(b)(1) says the CHCP applicant must "apply in person to the department." The Department's published instructions for both permits allow finishing the application online if you have a Real ID compliant Tennessee driver license. The Driver Services Center fingerprint and document-verification step is the agency's implementation of the "in person" requirement for non-Real-ID applicants.

Quick reference

Where to confirm before you apply

• Department of Safety, Handgun Carry Permit page: tn.gov/safety/tnhp/handgun.html
• Online application portal: dl.safety.tn.gov
• IdentoGO Tennessee: tn.state.identogo.com
• Tenn. Code Section 39-17-1351 (Enhanced) and Section 39-17-1366 (Concealed): law.justia.com codes mirror
• Department of Safety FAQ: safetysupport.tn.gov