Tennessee runs a layered restrictions framework: a categorical state list of prohibited weapons at Tenn. Code 39-17-1302, a state firearm-possession...
Reviewed by Will Luker, Founder of CCW Hub. USCCA Training Counselor, USCCA Certified Instructor, NRA Certified Instructor, Law Enforcement.
Tennessee runs a layered restrictions framework: a categorical state list of prohibited weapons at Tenn. Code 39-17-1302, a state firearm-possession ban for certain convicted persons at 39-17-1307(b) and (c), and a full overlay of the federal 18 U.S.C. 922(g) "prohibited persons" categories that the state expressly incorporates into its permit and possession statutes. There is no Tennessee assault-weapon ban, no state magazine-capacity limit, no universal background check requirement on private transfers, no firearm registration, no waiting period, and no extreme-risk protection order statute. Most of the weapon-category restrictions that look strict on the face of 39-17-1302 are softened by a federal-registration defense at 39-17-1302(b)(7) that defers to the federal National Firearms Act for suppressors, machine guns, destructive devices, and similar items.
This section covers the PEOPLE-based prohibitions (who may not possess a firearm in Tennessee) and the WEAPON-category restrictions (what items the state prohibits absent the federal-registration defense). Storage rules sit in STORAGE. The mechanics of federal NFA registration are in NFA_ITEMS. Location-based prohibitions are in PROHIBITED_PLACES.
Section 39-17-1302(a) makes it a state offense for any person to "intentionally or knowingly possess, manufacture, transport, repair, or sell" an item on the prohibited list. As of 2026 the list reaches:
A handgun is not a "weapon prohibited by 39-17-1302(a)." This matters because several other Tennessee statutes (for example, 39-17-1311 governing parks and 39-17-1306 governing judicial buildings) reference "weapon prohibited by 39-17-1302(a)" as a shorthand. A Tennessee Attorney General opinion confirms that ordinary handguns and long guns are not on the 39-17-1302(a) list, so the cross-references to that list do not by themselves bar carrying a handgun.
The state ban is softened by a defense in 39-17-1302(b). The two paragraphs that matter for civilians are:
Paragraph (b)(7) is the operative carve-out for NFA-style items. A Tennessee resident who has cleared an ATF Form 1 or Form 4 for a machine gun (subject to the federal 1986 Hughes Amendment transferability cutoff), suppressor, destructive device, or AOW has a complete defense to the 39-17-1302 prohibition. The state does not run its own NFA registry. If the federal paperwork lapses or the owner becomes a federal prohibited person, the state defense disappears and every day of possession is a Tennessee felony in addition to the federal offense.
Under 39-17-1302(d):
| Item | Grade |
|---|---|
| Explosive or explosive weapon (a)(1)-(2) | Class B felony as of 2025 amendments where the device is designed to cause death or serious injury; otherwise Class E felony |
| Machine gun (a)(3) | Class C felony (raised from Class E by Public Chapter 513, effective July 1, 2025) |
| Firearm silencer (a)(5), without federal registration | Class E felony (state-level defense available under (b)(7)) |
| Switchblade knife (a)(6) | Class A misdemeanor |
| Knuckles, other prohibited weapons (a)(7)-(8) | Class A misdemeanor |
Public Chapter 513 (SB1075 / HB1093), effective July 1, 2025, also expanded the state machine-gun definition to include "any part, or combination of parts, designed and intended solely for use in converting a firearm into a machine gun." Auto sears, "switches," forced-reset triggers, and similar conversion devices are state felonies in Tennessee on top of the existing federal prohibition at 18 U.S.C. 922(o).
Two state-level possession bars sit inside Tennessee's omnibus carry/possession statute. Both run alongside (not instead of) the federal 18 U.S.C. 922(g) framework.
A person commits an offense who unlawfully possesses a firearm (defined at 39-11-106, includes handguns, rifles, shotguns, and any weapon that expels a projectile by explosive action) and:
Public Chapter 513 (effective July 1, 2025) expanded this offense to include possession of firearm ammunition, not only firearms. A person with a qualifying felony conviction who possesses a single round of ammunition now commits a Class B or Class C felony in addition to any federal 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(1) charge. Persons convicted under (b)(1)(A) on or after July 1, 2024, must serve 85 percent of the sentence imposed under 40-35-501(y), with earned credits capped at 15 percent.
A person commits a Class E felony under (c)(1) who possesses a handgun and has been convicted of any felony, unless one of three relief pathways applies:
The pardon-or-expungement track in Tennessee differs in two respects from the federal felon-in-possession bar under 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(1): the state offense is handgun-only (long-gun possession by an ordinary nonviolent felon is not separately criminalized by (c), although (b) reaches violent and drug felons for all firearms), and restoration of civil rights under Title 40 Chapter 29 can lift the state disability if the restoration order does not preserve the firearm bar. Federal 18 U.S.C. 921(a)(20) treats state restoration of rights as removing the federal disability only if state law itself recognizes the firearm right as restored, so the two layers must be cleared together.
Public Chapter 513 also expanded (c) to include possession of handgun ammunition (Class E felony).
A separate paragraph (d) makes it a Class E felony to possess any deadly weapon with intent to employ it during the commission of, attempt to commit, or escape from, any offense not already defined as a "dangerous offense" by 39-17-1324. The maximum fine rises to $6,000 if the deadly weapon is a switchblade knife.
Subsection (f) makes it a state offense for a person to possess a firearm if the person:
For purposes of (f), 39-17-1316(a)(1) treats a Tennessee violation of a protective order under 39-13-113 as a "misdemeanor crime of domestic violence" for federal 18 U.S.C. 921 purposes.
A separate safe-harbor at 39-17-1307(f)(3) provides that, for purposes of (f), a person does not possess a firearm (including a federally-registered NFA firearm) if the firearm is in a safe or similar container that is securely locked and to which the respondent does not have the combination, keys, or other means of normal access.
Tennessee's permit eligibility statutes at 39-17-1351 (enhanced) and 39-17-1366 (concealed-only) expressly incorporate 18 U.S.C. 922(g) as a disqualifier: a permit applicant who "is prohibited from possessing a firearm in this state pursuant to 39-17-1307(b), 18 U.S.C. 922(g), or any other state or federal law" shall not be issued a permit. The same incorporation applies to the constitutional-carry authority at 39-17-1307(g): a person who would otherwise qualify for permitless carry is not authorized if forbidden to possess a firearm under Tennessee law, federal law, or any other state law.
The federal 18 U.S.C. 922(g) list reaches:
A parallel federal provision, 18 U.S.C. 922(n), prohibits a person under indictment for a felony from acquiring (but not from continuing to possess) a firearm. A person under federal or state indictment may not receive a transfer from an FFL until the case is resolved.
When a Tennessee court issues an order of protection that fully complies with 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(8), 36-3-625 requires the order to include on its face a disclosure that:
The respondent must complete and return an affidavit of firearm dispossession to the court. The same 48-hour dispossession requirement applies after a domestic-violence conviction under 40-14-109.
Section 39-17-1316(a)(1) makes it a state offense for a federally-licensed firearms dealer to sell a firearm to a person who:
The state thus piggybacks the full federal 18 U.S.C. 922 bar onto in-state dealer transactions. For purposes of this rule, a violation of a Tennessee protective order under 39-13-113 is treated as a "misdemeanor crime of domestic violence" under 18 U.S.C. 921. The felony bar in (a)(1) does not apply if the underlying felony was pardoned, expunged, or the person's civil rights have been restored under Title 40 Chapter 29 and the person is not prohibited under 39-17-1307.
Tennessee restricts juvenile handgun possession at 39-17-1319 and criminalizes adults who supply a handgun to a juvenile at 39-17-1320. The age 18 cutoff for general handgun possession aligns with the federal floor at 18 U.S.C. 922(x). Long guns are governed by federal law alone for under-18 possession.
A new state restriction at 39-17-1351(c)(19) bars permit issuance to applicants under 25 who have been adjudicated delinquent on or after July 1, 2024, for acts that, if committed by an adult, would have been:
This provision does not by itself disqualify a person from possessing a firearm, but it tracks the same population as the federal mental-defective and felony bars.
Possession or employment of a firearm during the commission of, or attempted commission of, a "dangerous felony" defined in 39-17-1324(i)(1) is a separate offense with a mandatory minimum and consecutive-sentencing rule. The list of "dangerous felonies" includes most violent crimes against the person and drug offenses involving children. This is a sentencing enhancement, not a baseline possession prohibition: the underlying conduct is already criminal under another statute, and 39-17-1324 adds a separate firearm-related count with mandatory consecutive time.
A first conviction is a Class D felony with a mandatory minimum of three years, served consecutively. A second or subsequent conviction is a Class C felony with a mandatory minimum of five years. The mandatory minimum cannot be served on probation.
Several discrete state disqualifiers sit outside 39-17-1307 but are incorporated through permit-eligibility cross-references and the dealer-sale bar at 39-17-1316:
For carry purposes (as opposed to possession), Public Chapter 513 also reduced the carrying-with-intent-to-go-armed offense for stalking, DUI, and mental-defective adjudication from a Class B to a Class C misdemeanor.
Tennessee's restrictions framework is notable for what is absent. These gaps frequently trip up students who have moved from stricter states.
If your students have moved from California, Massachusetts, New York, Illinois, Maryland, Connecticut, New Jersey, Hawaii, or Washington, make the contrast clear. None of those state-specific restrictions follow them into Tennessee.
The constitutional-carry authority at 39-17-1307(g) (Public Chapter 108, effective July 1, 2021) does not exempt a carrier from the felon-in-possession, domestic-violence, mental-defective, or other prohibited-person bars. The text of (g) authorizes carry only by a "person authorized to carry without a permit," which the statute defines as a person who (1) is not forbidden to carry a firearm under Tennessee law, including 39-17-1307(b); (2) meets the age requirement (21+, or 18+ for active-duty, reserve, and National Guard members and honorably discharged or retired veterans); (3) lawfully possesses the handgun; and (4) is in a place where the person is lawfully present.
A felon, person under protective order, unlawful drug user, or any other 922(g) category remains barred from carrying or possessing under constitutional carry. The change in 2021 was permission-to-carry, not lifting of any prohibited-person disability.
| Question | Answer | Authority |
|---|---|---|
| Can a Tennessee resident possess a federally-registered suppressor? | Yes. State 39-17-1302 prohibition is defeated by the (b)(7) registration defense. | Tenn. Code 39-17-1302(b)(7); 26 U.S.C. 5841-5862 |
| Can a Tennessee resident possess a federally-registered short-barreled rifle? | Yes. SBRs were removed from the state prohibited-weapons list in 2022; federal NFA registration still required. | Public Chapter 1038 (2022) |
| Can a Tennessee resident possess an unregistered suppressor or machine gun? | No. State felony under 39-17-1302 in addition to federal felony. | Tenn. Code 39-17-1302 |
| Is a "switch" or auto sear a state felony in Tennessee? | Yes, as of July 1, 2025. State machine-gun definition expanded to include conversion devices. | Public Chapter 513 (2025) |
| Can a Tennessee felon possess a firearm? | No. State and federal prohibitions both apply. | Tenn. Code 39-17-1307(b), (c); 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(1) |
| Can a Tennessee felon possess firearm ammunition? | No, as of July 1, 2025 (Public Chapter 513 expanded 39-17-1307(b) and (c) to include ammunition). | Public Chapter 513 (2025) |
| Does a Tennessee pardon restore firearm rights automatically? | Pardon defeats 39-17-1307(c) for ordinary felons; pardon for violent or drug felons may not by itself defeat 39-17-1307(b) without restoration under Title 40 Chapter 29. Federal 922(g)(1) is a separate analysis. | Tenn. Code 39-17-1307(c)(1)(A); Tenn. Code 40-29 |
| Does Tennessee have an assault weapon ban? | No. | No statute |
| Does Tennessee have a magazine capacity limit? | No. | No statute |
| Are background checks required for private intrastate sales? | No state requirement. Federal requirement applies only to FFL transactions. | 18 U.S.C. 922(t); no Tennessee add-on |
| Is there a waiting period? | No. | No statute |
| Is firearm possession registered with the state? | No. State and local agencies are statutorily barred from operating a registry. | Tenn. Code 39-17-1305 |
| Does Tennessee have a red flag / ERPO law? | No. The state expressly preempted ERPOs. | Tenn. Code 39-17-1329 |
| Does Tennessee have a duty to inform law enforcement when armed? | No. | No statute (see DUTY_TO_INFORM) |
| Are minors prohibited from possessing handguns? | Yes, under 39-17-1319, with carve-outs that track 18 U.S.C. 922(x). | Tenn. Code 39-17-1319; 18 U.S.C. 922(x) |
| Does an active protective order require firearm dispossession? | Yes. The respondent must dispossess all firearms within 48 hours, by lawful transfer to a non-prohibited third party. | Tenn. Code 36-3-625; 39-17-1307(f); 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(8) |
| Are constitutional carriers exempt from the prohibited-person bars? | No. 39-17-1307(g) authority extends only to persons not otherwise forbidden to carry under Tennessee or federal law. | Tenn. Code 39-17-1307(g) |
The operative rule for a Tennessee student: the state restrictions sit on top of the federal 18 U.S.C. 922(g) framework, the state adds 39-17-1302 for prohibited weapon categories (with a federal-registration defense at (b)(7)) and 39-17-1307(b), (c), and (f) for prohibited persons, and what is not prohibited by either layer is generally lawful to possess. Tennessee adds none of the assault-weapon, magazine, registration, waiting-period, or ERPO restrictions found in stricter states.
This page covers one part of our Tennessee concealed carry guide.
Read the complete Tennessee guideBrowse local instructors offering state-approved training in your area. Book online, complete your training, and get one step closer to your concealed carry permit.