Gun laws in New Hampshire


Gun laws in New Hampshire regulate the sale, possession, and use of firearms and ammunition in the state of New Hampshire in the United States.

Summary table


Subject/LawLong gunsHandgunsRelevant statutesNotes
State permit required to purchase?NoNo
Firearm registration?NoNo
Assault weapon law?NoNo
Magazine capacity restriction?NoNo
Owner license required?NoNo
License required for concealed carry?N/ANoConstitutional carry legal as of February 22, 2017. Licenses remain available on a Shall-Issue basis for reciprocity purposes.
License required for open carry?NoNo
Handgun open carry without license. Loaded long guns prohibited from motor vehicles.
State preemption of local restrictions?YesYesIncludes knives.
NFA weapons restricted?NoNo
Peaceable Journey laws?NoNo
Background checks required for private sales?NoNo

Concealed and open carry

Since 22 February 2017, New Hampshire is a constitutional carry state, requiring no license to open carry or concealed carry a firearm in public. Concealed carry permits are still issued for purposes of reciprocity with other states.
The New Hampshire license is issued for carry of a "pistol or revolver," and is not a license to carry "weapons" as exists in some other states. The New Hampshire license is issued by the local mayor, selectmen, or police department at a cost of $10 for residents, and by the New Hampshire State Police at a cost of $100 for non-residents. The term of issue of the license is five years. Turn around time is generally one to two weeks, with fourteen days being the maximum time allowed by law.
New Hampshire has no laws restricting the age at which a person may possess and carry firearms.
On June 2, 2016, the New Hampshire Supreme Court, in Bach v. New Hampshire Dept. of Safety, No. 2014–0721, 2016 WL 3086130, threw out a rule imposed by concealed carry permit issuing authorities that had required non-residents to have a permit to carry issued by the state in which they resided. The basis for invalidating such rule was that it denied a New Hampshire non-resident permit to residents of jurisdictions that are effectively No-Issue, such as New Jersey, California, Hawaii, and others.