Carrying
Penal Law § 400.00 — a license to carry, with sixteen hours of training and the license on the person
In New York, a person who possesses any firearm, as the penal law defines one, is guilty of criminal possession of a firearm, a class E felony.
The license is the exemption. The section on criminal possession of a firearm, with others, does not apply to a person possessing a pistol or revolver under a license issued under section 400.00.
No license issues except after an investigation finds every statement in the application true, and only to an applicant who is, among other things:
- Twenty one or older, unless honorably discharged from the United States army, navy, marine corps, air force or coast guard, or the New York national guard.
- Of good moral character: the character, temperament and judgement needed to be trusted with a weapon and to use it without endangering oneself or others.
- Not convicted anywhere of a felony or a serious offense, and not the subject of an outstanding warrant for one.
- Not a fugitive from justice, and not an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance.
Sixteen hours, and two on a range. Before a license to carry concealed issues or renews, the applicant completes an in person live firearms safety course: a minimum of sixteen hours of live curriculum and a minimum of two hours of live fire range training, scoring at least eighty percent on the written test.
The licensing officer acts on an application within six months of its presentment, unless a written notice to the applicant states the reasons for the delay, and a delay may only be for good cause. A denial comes in writing with its reasons, and the applicant may ask for a hearing before the appeals board within ninety days of receiving it.
The license goes with the pistol. Every licensee carrying a pistol or revolver has the license to carry it on his or her person, and on demand shows it for inspection to any police officer, or to a peace officer acting under special duties.
Where a licensee may not carry, and what the penal law counts as a firearm, are set in other sections and are not reproduced here. Any violation of the licensing section itself is a class A misdemeanor. Whether a person's possession was lawful is a question for a court and for a licensed New York attorney.
Sources for this section (3)
- Penal Law § 265.01-b — Criminal possession of a firearm
- Penal Law § 265.20 — Exemption
- Penal Law § 400.00 — Licenses to carry, possess, repair and dispose of firearms
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed New York attorney.