Armed Security License in NC: Training, Fees, and Renewal

To work as an armed guard in North Carolina you need a firearm registration permit from the Private Protective Services Board (PPSB), and getting an armed security license in North Carolina requires an employer to sponsor you, 36 hours of training, a passing score on day and night range qualification, a clean background check, and $83 in fees paid to the Board. You cannot apply on your own.

Who Qualifies

You must be at least 21 years old. The Board also evaluates every applicant for good moral character and temperate habits under North Carolina General Statute 74C-8, and the standard is specific rather than subjective. Any of the following is treated as automatic evidence that an applicant fails it:

A conviction involving the illegal use, carrying, or possession of a firearm or deadly weapon
A conviction involving the use, possession, sale, or distribution of a controlled substance, drug, or alcoholic beverage
A conviction involving assault or an act of violence
A conviction involving breaking and entering, burglary, or larceny
A documented history of addiction to alcohol or a narcotic drug

“Conviction” here covers guilty pleas, no-contest pleas, and verdicts from any local, state, federal, or military court.¹ Separately, the Board cannot issue a firearm registration permit to anyone prohibited from possessing a firearm under federal or state law, which rules out all felony convictions and anyone subject to a domestic violence protective order, among other categories.²

Disclose any prior arrests or charges in full. The Board runs its own background investigation and cross-references what you report against SBI and FBI results, and omissions cause more trouble than the underlying issue would.

You Need an Employer First

This is the piece most applicants miss. You cannot submit the application yourself. North Carolina law requires each armed security guard employer, or their designee, to file the online registration application on behalf of the guard, and the Board will not issue a permit until the employer provides evidence that the applicant has completed approved training and meets all qualifications.²

So the real first step is landing a position with a licensed contract security company or a proprietary security organization. A proprietary security organization is a business that employs its own in-house security staff instead of contracting the work out. Department stores and manufacturing plants sometimes run security this way, and armed guards they employ go through the same registration process as guards at contract agencies.

Your employer must register you within 30 days of your employment start date. Once registered, you may carry an approved firearm while on duty and while traveling directly to and from work.²

The 36 Hours of Training

Before an application can go in, you must complete two separate courses totaling at least 36 hours of instruction, both taught by a PPSB-certified trainer.³

Unarmed Course: 16 Hours

Every security guard in North Carolina starts with the 16-hour unarmed course, which covers general industry standards, legal authority, report writing, and emergency procedures. You have to complete it before moving on to the armed program, even if you never plan to work an unarmed post.

Armed Course: 20 Hours

The armed course is a 20-hour program broken into topic blocks set by the North Carolina Administrative Code:

Legal limitations: at least 4 hours on when and how an armed guard can use a firearm, including the guard’s actual legal authority
Handgun safety and range procedures: at least 1 hour on safe handling on the firing line and standard range commands
Handgun operation and maintenance: at least 3 hours on field-stripping, cleaning, and maintaining the duty weapon
Handgun fundamentals: at least 8 hours on grip, stance, sight alignment, trigger control, and practical marksmanship
Night firing: at least 4 hours of low-light shooting instruction and practice⁴

Range Qualification

You must pass both a day and a night firing qualification course with a minimum score of 80% accuracy. The qualification has to be shot with your actual duty weapon and duty ammunition, or a ballistic equivalent, not a personal firearm or a different caliber than what you will carry at work.

Fail either course and you get a second chance of three consecutive attempts on the course you did not pass. If you still cannot qualify after that second series, you have to repeat the full 20-hour armed course before trying again. All attempts must happen within 20 days of completing the initial course.⁴ Scoring 80% under timed conditions at night is harder than most applicants expect without serious practice time beforehand.

Documents and Fees

Your employer gathers most of the application package, but some items are on you to obtain.

What Goes In the Package

A full set of classifiable fingerprints on standard FBI applicant cards, used for both SBI and FBI background checks⁵
At least one recent photograph of acceptable quality for identification
A 60-month online criminal history report from CRC.com, dated no more than 60 days before submission⁶
Signed certificates from a PPSB-certified trainer confirming successful completion of both the 16-hour and 20-hour courses
A copy of your high school diploma or GED certificate

What It Costs

For a new armed guard registration, the PPSB charges a $45 application fee plus a $38 fingerprint processing fee, for a total of $83 paid to the Board.⁶ The $38 fingerprint fee covers both the SBI and FBI checks.⁷ You will pay separately for the CRC.com criminal history report, plus any convenience or credit card fees the online application system adds. Some employers absorb these costs and some pass them through to the applicant, so ask before you start.

Your employer uploads the documents and pays the fees through the Board’s online portal.⁸ Processing takes several weeks, depending on how fast fingerprint results come back and whether the Board flags any deficiencies. Once approved, you receive a pocket card that serves as your legal authorization to work armed. Carry it while on duty.

Annual Renewal

The permit is not a one-time credential. You have to requalify every year on both the day and night courses. The renewal application has to be submitted no more than 90 days before the current permit expires, and renewal requires:

A 4-hour refresher course covering legal limitations, handgun safety, operation, fundamentals, and night firing
Day and night range requalification at the same 80% accuracy standard
A 12-month criminal history check from CRC.com, dated no more than 60 days before the renewal application
A $45 renewal fee⁶

Let the permit lapse and you cannot legally carry a firearm on duty until it is renewed.

Weapons Rules On Duty

Every firearm you carry on duty must be approved by the Board and owned or leased by your employer. Personally owned firearms are not allowed.²

If you work for more than one company and the duty firearms are the same make, model, and caliber, no additional training is required. If a second employer issues you a different weapon, you must complete the full day and night range qualification course with that firearm before carrying it on duty.⁴

What the Permit Does Not Give You

Armed security guards in North Carolina do not have police powers. Your authority to use a firearm tracks the same framework that applies to private citizens: use is limited to situations involving an immediate threat of death or serious bodily harm, and only when less drastic options would not resolve the danger. Courts evaluate reasonableness based on the severity of the threat, the level of resistance, and the alternatives available. Four hours of the armed course are dedicated to these legal boundaries. Misjudging when deadly force is justified ends careers and starts prosecutions.

The permit also does not travel. A North Carolina firearm registration permit does not authorize you to carry a firearm while performing security work in another state. The federal Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act, which lets qualified officers carry concealed across state lines, applies only to employees of government agencies with arrest powers; private security guards do not qualify. If your duties could take you across state lines, you would need to meet the licensing requirements of each state where you work.

Penalties for Working Without a Valid Permit

Working as an armed guard without a valid firearm registration permit is a Class 1 misdemeanor, carrying up to 120 days in jail. The same charge applies to an employer who knowingly allows an unregistered guard, or one whose permit has expired, to carry a firearm on duty. The Board can also impose civil penalties of up to $2,000 per violation as an alternative to revoking or suspending a permit.⁹

1
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina General Statutes 74C-8 – License Requirements
2
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code 74C-13 – Armed Licensee or Registered Employee Required to Have Firearm Registration Permit
3
NC DPS. Frequently Asked Questions
4
Legal Information Institute. 14B NC Admin Code 16 0807 – Training Requirements for Armed Security Guards
5
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code Chapter 74C – Private Protective Services
6
NC DPS. Security Employee Registration
7
North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation. Fingerprinting
8
NC DPS. Apply for a License
9
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code Chapter 74C – Private Protective Services