No, a person with a felony conviction cannot buy a gun in Texas. Federal law imposes a lifetime ban on firearm and ammunition possession for anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison, and that ban applies in every state. Texas does carry a narrow exception that allows home possession five years after a sentence ends, but it is a defense to state charges only and offers no protection against federal prosecution.
The Federal Lifetime Ban Blocks Any Purchase
The Gun Control Act makes it a federal crime for anyone convicted of a felony to possess a firearm or ammunition.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts The prohibition covers every felony conviction in Texas, violent or not, and it has no expiration date. Ammunition counts the same as a gun. A single round in a drawer is enough.
Any attempt to buy from a licensed dealer will fail the background check. The National Instant Criminal Background Check System screens every purchase through a federally licensed dealer, and a felony record returns a denial.2FBI. Challenges / Appeals Private sales in Texas do not require a background check, but that does not make the sale legal. Buying through a private seller while federally prohibited is still a federal crime, and the absence of a check does nothing to shield either party.
Federal Penalties for Illegal Possession
A person with a felony conviction caught with a firearm or ammunition faces up to 15 years in federal prison. The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act of 2022 raised the ceiling from the previous 10-year maximum.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 924 – Penalties Federal judges have less sentencing flexibility than state judges, and these cases tend to produce substantial time.
The exposure escalates sharply with prior records. Under the Armed Career Criminal Act, anyone illegally possessing a firearm who has three or more prior convictions for violent felonies or serious drug offenses faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 924 – Penalties The priors do not need to be recent. Federal prosecutors in Texas pursue these charges aggressively.
The Texas Five-Year Rule
Texas Penal Code Section 46.04 sets up two phases for anyone convicted of a felony. For the first five years after you finish your prison sentence or complete supervision (parole, probation, or mandatory supervision), whichever ends later, you cannot possess a firearm anywhere for any reason.4State of Texas. Texas Penal Code 46.04 – Unlawful Possession of Firearm The clock starts on the later of those two dates. Someone who serves a five-year prison term and then three years of parole starts counting from the end of parole.
After that five-year window closes, the state restriction narrows but does not go away. You can possess a firearm, but only at the premises where you live.4State of Texas. Texas Penal Code 46.04 – Unlawful Possession of Firearm Possession anywhere else remains a third-degree felony under state law, punishable by 2 to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.5State of Texas. Texas Penal Code 12.34 – Third Degree Felony Punishment
What “Premises” Covers
“Premises” is broader than the inside of your house. It includes real property and recreational vehicles being used as living quarters.4State of Texas. Texas Penal Code 46.04 – Unlawful Possession of Firearm Your yard, your land, and any structures on it count. If you live full-time in an RV or travel trailer, that counts too.
What it does not cover is anywhere beyond where you live. A gun in your car, at your workplace, or at a friend’s house would violate Section 46.04 and create a fresh third-degree felony. You also cannot obtain a Texas License to Carry, and the state’s permitless carry law does not extend to anyone with a felony conviction. The Texas exception is for home defense only.
Why Texas Compliance Does Not Protect You Federally
This is the trap. Meeting every condition of the Texas five-year rule does nothing to protect you from federal charges. The two legal systems operate independently, and federal agents and prosecutors are not bound by the state exception.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts You can be fully legal under Texas law, sitting in your own living room with a shotgun six years after discharge, and still be committing a federal felony that carries up to 15 years.
Federal cases get built from ordinary police contact. A traffic stop, a domestic call, or any other encounter that turns up a gun can lead to a referral to a federal prosecutor, regardless of what Texas law permits inside the home.
Constructive Possession and Household Risk
Prosecutors do not need to prove you were holding the gun. Constructive possession means that if you knew about a firearm and had the ability to control it, the law treats you as possessing it. A gun in your nightstand, your closet, or a shared bedroom can support a charge.
For people with felony convictions who live with family who own firearms, this matters a great deal. If your spouse keeps a loaded handgun in a drawer you can open, a prosecutor can argue you possess it. The safer practice is to make sure any firearms in the home are locked in a container another household member controls exclusively, and that you do not have the key or combination.
The household member faces their own risk. It is a federal crime to knowingly sell, give, or make a firearm available to a person you know is prohibited, with penalties of up to 10 years in federal prison.6Department of Justice. Quick Reference to Federal Firearms Laws “Knowingly” is interpreted broadly, and a spouse or parent who knows about the conviction will struggle to claim ignorance.
Antique Firearms and Black Powder
Federal law excludes “antique firearms” from its definition of a firearm, and the exclusion applies to people with felony convictions. Antiques include guns manufactured in or before 1898, replicas that do not use modern rimfire or centerfire ammunition, and muzzleloading rifles, shotguns, or pistols designed to use black powder that cannot accept fixed ammunition.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 921 – Definitions
The ATF has confirmed that a prohibited person can lawfully possess a qualifying muzzleloader along with up to 50 pounds of black powder for sporting or recreational use.8ATF. Top 10 Frequently Asked Firearms Questions and Answers The weapon cannot be readily convertible to fire fixed ammunition by swapping the barrel, bolt, or breechblock. A muzzleloader built on the frame or receiver of a modern firearm is classified as a firearm and remains off-limits. Texas law may add its own restrictions, and the line between a legal antique and an illegal firearm is technical enough that it is worth verifying before any purchase.
Restoring Gun Rights in Texas
For a person with a felony conviction to legally possess a firearm under both state and federal law, rights have to be formally restored. Federal law recognizes three paths: a pardon, an expungement of the conviction, or a state procedure that restores civil rights. If any of those documents says the person still cannot possess firearms, it does not count for federal purposes.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 921 – Definitions
Gubernatorial Pardon
In Texas, the most reliable route is a full pardon from the Governor that specifically restores firearm rights. The Governor cannot act alone. The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles must first recommend the pardon, and the Board’s own rule states it will consider recommending restoration of firearm rights “only in extreme and unusual circumstances.”9Cornell Law School. 37 Texas Administrative Code 143.12 – Restoration of Firearm Rights Pardons are rare. When one is granted with explicit restoration of firearm rights, both state and federal authorities recognize it.
Expungement Is Usually Not Available
Federal law treats expungement as a possible path, but Texas expunction law is not built for this. Texas allows expunction of records mainly in cases of acquittal, dismissed charges, or certain pardons based on actual innocence.10Justia. Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Title 1 Chapter 55 A person who was convicted, served the sentence, and completed supervision is generally not eligible. For most people asking the question, this path is closed.
Updating NICS
A pardon or other restoration does not update the background check database automatically. You have to submit documentation to the FBI’s Appeal Services Team to get the record corrected, and until the update is processed, a dealer check will still return a denial.11FBI. Guide for Appealing a Firearm Transfer Including the court documentation or pardon order with the appeal speeds things along.
Where the Law May Be Moving
The constitutional ground under the federal ban is less settled than it was a few years ago. In 2023, the Third Circuit held in Range v. Attorney General that the federal lifetime ban was unconstitutional as applied to a man whose decades-old conviction was for nonviolent food stamp fraud.12Justia. Range v. Attorney General United States, No. 21-2835 (3d Cir. 2023)
In June 2024, the Supreme Court decided United States v. Rahimi, upholding the federal ban on firearm possession by people subject to domestic violence restraining orders. The Court repeated language from Heller describing prohibitions on firearm possession by felons as “presumptively lawful,” and sent Range back to the Third Circuit for reconsideration rather than ruling on it directly.13Supreme Court of the United States. United States v. Rahimi, No. 22-915 (2024)
The practical takeaway: the federal ban remains intact and enforceable today. Future challenges may succeed for specific categories of nonviolent offenders, but no court has struck it down in a way that applies broadly. Relying on an unsettled legal theory as a defense to a charge that carries 15 years is not a risk to take without an attorney.