Who Cannot Carry
18 Pa.C.S. 6105 — the listed offenses regardless of the length of sentence, and the other persons the section names
The listed offenses. A person convicted of an offense the section lists, in Pennsylvania or elsewhere, regardless of the length of sentence, may not possess, use, control, sell, transfer or manufacture a firearm, or obtain a license to do so.
- A fugitive from justice, other than one whose status rests on a summary offense under the Vehicle Code.
- A person convicted of an offense under The Controlled Substance, Drug, Device and Cosmetic Act, or an equivalent law, that may be punishable by imprisonment exceeding two years.
- A person convicted of driving under the influence on three or more separate occasions within a five-year period, as to purchases and transfers after the third conviction.
- A person adjudicated incompetent, or involuntarily committed for inpatient care under the Mental Health Procedures Act.
- A person subject to an active final protection from abuse order, or another active one that provided for relinquishing firearms, until the order expires or is vacated.
- A person adjudicated delinquent for conduct that would be a listed offense. For most such offenses the prohibition ends 15 years after the last adjudication or at age 30, whichever is earlier; for the most serious ones the section names, it does not end.
Those are among the other persons the section names.
Sixty days to transfer. A person newly prohibited generally has a reasonable period, not to exceed 60 days from the date the disability is imposed, to sell or transfer firearms to another eligible person who is not a member of the household. That period does not apply to a person prohibited by a protection from abuse order.
The grade. A person convicted of a listed felony or a felony drug offense who violates the section commits a felony of the second degree, and a felony of the first degree with a prior violation of the section, or when in physical possession or control of a firearm at the time.
Federal law keeps its own list of prohibited persons, which applies alongside the state's and is not on this page. Whether a particular conviction, order or commitment brings a person within the section, and whether rights can be restored, are questions for a licensed Pennsylvania attorney.
Sources for this section (1)
- 18 Pa.C.S. 6105 — Persons not to possess, use, manufacture, control, sell or transfer firearms
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of September 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Pennsylvania attorney.