State-specific carry guides
When your permit doesn't reach.
Reciprocity answers “where can I carry?” It does not answer the harder question: what do I do about the states it never covers? For a handful of states, no combination of out-of-state permits is the answer.
How can I legally carry in a state that doesn't recognize my permit?
There are only three ways carry is lawful in any state: that state recognizes a permit you already hold, that state does not require a permit of someone in your situation, or you hold that state's own license. If the first two do not apply, the third is the only route — and some states make it very difficult.
Recognition
The destination state recognizes a permit issued elsewhere, subject to its own laws and restricted locations. This is what a reciprocity map shows — and it is what most people mean by 'my permit works there.'
Recognition can be withdrawn. It is a decision that state makes, not a right you hold.
Permitless carry
The state does not require a carry permit of qualifying people. Your permit is irrelevant here — this is that state's own law working in your favor.
Eligibility rules still apply, and they are not identical to your home state's.
That state's own license
The state recognizes nothing from outside, so the only lawful route is a license it issues. Whether it will issue one to a nonresident is the whole question.
This is what the guides below are for.
Another permit cannot create recognition
In progress
States that need their own analysis.
Each of these requires investigating that state's own licensing process rather than relying on a permit from elsewhere. We are writing these one at a time, against each state's licensing authority — none is published until it is verified.
Illinois
ILIllinois does not simply recognize other states' concealed carry licenses. It runs its own license, including a nonresident process with eligibility conditions Illinois sets.
Guide in progress
New York
NYNew York licensing is handled by local licensing officers and is legally complex. Do not assume an out-of-state permit is recognized, and do not assume a nonresident cannot obtain any license.
Guide in progress
New Jersey
NJNew Jersey does not recognize out-of-state carry permits. Any lawful carry route runs through New Jersey's own permit process.
Guide in progress
Massachusetts
MAMassachusetts does not recognize out-of-state carry licenses. It issues its own licenses, including a nonresident category with its own requirements.
Guide in progress
Maryland
MDMaryland does not recognize out-of-state carry permits. Carrying there requires a Maryland wear-and-carry permit, which is available to nonresidents under Maryland's own standards.
Guide in progress
Hawaii
HIHawaii does not recognize out-of-state carry licenses. Licensing is handled by county chiefs of police under Hawaii's own standards.
Guide in progress
California
CACalifornia does not recognize out-of-state carry licenses. The route is a California CCW, issued county by county — and since 2025, nonresidents can apply.
We publish one of these only after reading that state's licensing authority in full and dating the page. Nonresident eligibility in these states is narrow, fact-sensitive and frequently in litigation — it is the last place to guess.
After the decision
A carry permit answers only part of the legal question.
Everything on this page is about authority — which states accept which credential, and what to do where none of them do. That's the question you can research in advance.
If a firearm is ever displayed or used in self-defense, an entirely different set of legal issues can follow, and they don't depend on which permit you were carrying on. Lawful, justified defensive force can still bring an investigation, a charging decision, or a civil claim months later.
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FAQ
What people ask about the gaps.
Is there a permit that lets me carry in all 50 states?
No. No single permit is recognized by every state, and several states do not recognize any out-of-state permit at all. Anyone selling a '50-state permit' is describing something that does not exist.
Will getting a Florida or Utah permit let me carry in Illinois or New York?
No. Those states do not solve their problem through recognition. Illinois runs its own license with its own eligibility rules, and New York licensing is handled by local licensing officers under New York's own standards. Adding another state's permit does not create recognition where a state has chosen not to grant it.
What are my options in a state that doesn't recognize my permit?
Broadly three: check whether the state allows permitless carry for someone in your situation, investigate whether it issues its own license to nonresidents, or don't carry there and follow that state's transport rules instead. Which of those is available depends entirely on the state.
Can nonresidents get a license in restrictive states?
It varies enormously and the answer is genuinely fact-sensitive. Some states issue nonresident licenses under narrow conditions, some effectively do not, and several are actively litigating the question. This is exactly the kind of claim we will not make without verifying it against the state's own licensing authority first.
Sources & official resources
Last reviewed: August 2026
- ATF — State Laws and Published Ordinances: Firearms
Federal compilation of state firearms laws
- 18 U.S.C. § 926A — Interstate transportation of firearms
Federal safe-passage provision and its conditions
Each state guide will carry its own licensing-authority sources when published. Recognition and eligibility change; verify with the destination state before traveling armed.
Educational information only. Not legal advice. Firearm laws change, and requirements vary by state, county and issuing authority. Verify current requirements with the issuing authority before you apply.
Start with what you have
Work out which states your current permit actually covers.
Before chasing a restrictive state, it is worth knowing where your existing license already reaches — and which single additional permit would close the most gaps.