Yes, you can buy a gun with a misdemeanor in California in most cases. State law bans firearm ownership only for people convicted of specific misdemeanors, mostly involving violence, threats, weapons, or domestic abuse. If your conviction isn’t on that list and nothing else disqualifies you, you can legally purchase a firearm after passing the standard background check. If it is on the list, you face either a 10-year or a lifetime ban, and common workarounds like expungement won’t lift it.
Misdemeanors That Don’t Block a Purchase
California’s prohibiting list under Penal Code 29805 is long, but it is still a list. Offenses that don’t appear on it generally carry no automatic state-level firearm ban. Common misdemeanors like DUI, petty theft of non-firearm property, trespassing, disorderly conduct, and drug possession are not on the list. If one of these is your only conviction and you have no other disqualifying record, state law does not stop you from buying a gun.
Federal law adds one wrinkle to watch. Under 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(1), anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison is federally prohibited from possessing firearms. Most California misdemeanors cap at one year or less, which keeps them below the federal threshold. But if your specific offense carried a possible sentence exceeding one year, the federal ban can apply even though California classifies the conviction as a misdemeanor. This situation is uncommon, and it tends to surprise people when it comes up.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts
Misdemeanors That Trigger a 10-Year Ban
Penal Code 29805 lists dozens of misdemeanors that automatically trigger a 10-year prohibition on owning, buying, or possessing any firearm. The clock starts on the date of conviction. During those 10 years you cannot legally have a gun in your home, your car, or anywhere else under your control.2California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 29805 – Prohibitions on Firearm Access
The offenses on this list generally involve violence, threats, or dangerous conduct with weapons. Some of the ones charged most often include:
- Assault and battery under Penal Code sections 240 through 245, including simple assault, battery, sexual battery, assault with a deadly weapon, and assault on school employees
- Criminal threats under Penal Code 422
- Stalking under Penal Code 646.9
- Brandishing a weapon under Penal Code 417
- Violating a protective order under Penal Code 273.6
- Bringing a firearm onto school grounds under Penal Code 626.9
- Intimidating witnesses under Penal Code 136.1
- Child endangerment under Penal Code 273a, for convictions on or after January 1, 2023
- Negligent firearm storage under Penal Code 25100, 25135, or 25200, for convictions on or after January 1, 2020
The full statutory list is longer and reaches offenses like filing a false report about a stolen firearm, elder abuse, and certain hate crimes. One detail catches people off guard: the ban applies even if the charge started as a felony and was reduced to a misdemeanor through a plea deal. The statute also reaches outstanding warrants, so possessing a gun while you have a warrant for one of these offenses is itself illegal.2California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 29805 – Prohibitions on Firearm Access
Lifetime Ban for Domestic Violence Misdemeanors
A misdemeanor conviction for inflicting corporal injury on a spouse, cohabitant, or co-parent under Penal Code 273.5 triggers a lifetime firearm prohibition if the conviction occurred on or after January 1, 2019. The statute uses the word “subsequently” rather than “within 10 years,” which means the ban has no expiration date. Convictions for the same offense before that date fall under the 10-year ban at the state level.2California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 29805 – Prohibitions on Firearm Access3California Department of Justice. Firearms Prohibiting Categories
Federal law runs alongside the state rule. Under 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(9), anyone convicted of a “misdemeanor crime of domestic violence” in any court is permanently barred from possessing firearms or ammunition. This federal ban has been in place since 1996 and applies regardless of when the conviction occurred. It covers offenses involving the use or attempted use of physical force, or the threatened use of a deadly weapon, committed against a current or former spouse, a co-parent, a current or former cohabitant, or someone in a dating relationship with the offender.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts
The practical effect: even before California aligned its state law in 2019, a domestic violence misdemeanor already meant a lifetime federal ban. If you have a domestic violence misdemeanor from any year, treat the prohibition as permanent.
Restraining Orders Can Block a Purchase on Their Own
Even if your conviction isn’t on the Penal Code 29805 list, an active restraining order can prohibit a purchase independently. Under California Family Code 6389, anyone subject to a domestic violence protective order cannot own, buy, or possess a firearm or ammunition while the order is in effect. Courts require respondents to surrender their firearms, generally within 24 hours, either to law enforcement or to a licensed dealer for sale or storage. Violating the order is a separate offense under Penal Code 29825. Before attempting a purchase, confirm that no restraining order currently applies to you.
Why Expungement Won’t Restore Your Gun Rights
This is where most people’s assumptions break down. Expunging a misdemeanor in California (technically a “dismissal” under Penal Code 1203.4) does not lift a firearm ban. The statute says so directly: a dismissal does not permit a person to own or possess a firearm if they would otherwise be prohibited.4California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 1203.4 – Dismissal of Accusation or Information
Expungement lets you withdraw your guilty plea and have the case dismissed, which helps with employment applications and other areas of life. For firearm purposes, though, the historical fact of the conviction still counts. California treats any qualifying conviction under Penal Code 29805 as prohibiting whether or not it was later dismissed. The same principle generally applies at the federal level for domestic violence convictions, because most courts have held that a California expungement does not satisfy the federal standard for restoring firearm rights.4California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 1203.4 – Dismissal of Accusation or Information
A Certificate of Rehabilitation also does nothing for firearm rights. It can help with occupational licensing and serves as an automatic application for a Governor’s pardon, but it does not lift a gun ban on its own.
How to Confirm Your Eligibility Before You Buy
General recollections of what happened in court are not reliable enough. What matters is the exact Penal Code section listed on your record, not what you remember being charged with or what your attorney said years ago. Two steps give you a clear answer.
Pull Your Criminal History Record
You can request your official California criminal history from the Department of Justice through a Live Scan fingerprint submission using form BCIA 8016RR. The record shows the specific statute and disposition for every conviction, which is what you need to compare against the Penal Code 29805 list.5California Department of Justice. Criminal Records – Request Your Own
Request a Personal Firearms Eligibility Check
For a direct answer, the DOJ offers a Personal Firearms Eligibility Check (PFEC) for a $20 fee. You submit a notarized application with a copy of your California driver’s license or ID card, and the DOJ issues a written determination of whether you are eligible to possess a firearm under state and federal law. It is the closest thing to an official yes or no you can get without attempting a purchase, and it is especially useful if your record includes wobbler offenses, old convictions with unclear paperwork, or out-of-state charges that could trigger a federal prohibition.6California Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Personal Firearms Eligibility Check Program
If You’re Currently Banned
For a 10-year ban, the simplest path is waiting. Once a decade passes from the date of conviction with no new prohibiting offenses, the state ban expires automatically and your eligibility returns.
For a lifetime ban, or for situations where waiting isn’t an option, the realistic choices are narrow. A full and unconditional pardon from the Governor of California can restore firearm rights, but pardons are rare and the process is lengthy, typically requiring years of documented law-abiding conduct. If your conviction was a reduced wobbler, the interaction between Penal Code 17(b) relief and the 29805 ban is complicated enough that you should have a firearms attorney review your specific record. For federal lifetime bans tied to domestic violence convictions, even a state pardon may not resolve the federal prohibition, because 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(9) operates on its own terms.
Expungement, a Certificate of Rehabilitation, and early termination of probation are not shortcuts here. None of them restores the right to possess a firearm.