North Carolina State Laws
| Open Carry: | Lawful |
| Duty to Notify Law Enforcement: | Required by law to notify the officer upon official contact or when ID requested |
| State Parks: | Concealed Carry is legal in accordance with state laws that regulate the right to carry |
| Restaurants Serving Alcohol: | Those with permits may carry in establishments that serve alcohol. |
| Firearms at Colleges: | Concealed guns allowed only in locked cars in parking lots |
| Firearms at K-12 Schools: | NC permit holder may have loaded handgun in vehicle only. Private schools may adopt a policy allowing licensed individuals to be armed on the property of the private school. |
| Magazine Capacity Limitations: | No restrictions |
| Suppressor Ownership: | Ownership & Hunting Legal. |
| Vehicle Possession Without Recognized Permit: | Firearms are legal when they are openly displayed OR in a locked glove box, locked console, or in the trunk |
| Firearm Law Uniformity: | Mostly uniform but some local carry restrictions exist. |
| Permit Training Requirements: | The class consists of a classroom portion and a live range fire portion. |
| Permit Issuing Authority: | County sheriff |
| State Contact / Source: |
North Carolina A.G. 9001 Mail Service Center Raleigh, NC 27699-9001 919-716-6400 www.ncdoj.com |
| Length of Permit Validity: | 5 Years |
| Permit Application Process: | Apply at the sheriff office. Complete an application, pay the fee, submit fingerprints and provide proof of training. |
| Non-Resident Permits: | Non-residents may not apply |
| Places Off Limits: |
- Educational property of any public or private school, community college, college, or university — buildings, buses, campuses, grounds, recreational areas, athletic fields, and any other property owned, used, or operated by a school. Also any curricular or extracurricular activity sponsored by a school. This is a Class I felony - The State Capitol Building, the Executive Mansion, the Western Residence of the Governor, and the grounds of any of these - Any building housing a court of the General Court of Justice. If the court shares the building with non-court uses, the ban reaches only the court portion while it's being used for court purposes - State office buildings, or any portion of a building containing state offices - Law enforcement and correctional facilities - Any picket line or demonstration on a private health care facility or on public property owned or controlled by the state or a political subdivision, for participants, affiliates, or spectators - Any private premises posted with a conspicuous notice prohibiting concealed carry by the person in legal possession or control - Local government buildings and their appurtenant premises, where a unit of local government has adopted an ordinance permitting the posting - Municipal and county recreational facilities specifically identified by local ordinance — meaning athletic fields during scheduled organized events, swimming pools, and gymnasiums or other athletic-event facilities. Greenways, biking and walking paths, and open fields are excluded - The State Fairgrounds during the State Fair, at the Commissioner of Agriculture's discretion - Certain game lands — Buckhorn, Chatham, Harris, Hyco, Lee, Mayo, Sutton Lake, Pee Dee River north of US 74, and part of R. Wayne Bailey-Caswell — during closed seasons on game birds and animals, unless the firearm is cased, in a designated camping area, or is a .22 pistol with a barrel under 7.5 inches carried as a sidearm - Charlotte-Douglas International Airport real property, by city ordinance. Other North Carolina airports may have similar rules - TVA day-use areas, campgrounds, and developed recreation land. Boat ramps and in-season hunting with an unloaded, cased firearm are allowed - State parks located on Army Corps of Engineers land, per federal law |
| Duty to Retreat: | No Duty to Retreat |
| Constitutional Carry: | No |
| Hotels: | No legal restriction - Reference article on page 67 |
| Church Carry: |
Churches act like any other private property and may restrict on a church by church basis |
| Secure Storage Requirements: | There are legal consequences if one fails to secure their firearm and that leads to a minor gaining unauthorized access. |
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