A concealed carry class in Colorado is an in-person course of at least eight hours taught by a sheriff-verified instructor, covering firearm safety, state and federal gun law, use of deadly force, and conflict avoidance, and ending with a 50-round live-fire exercise and an open-book written exam you must pass with at least 80 percent. The class itself is the gateway: without a valid certificate from a qualifying course, your county sheriff won’t process a concealed handgun permit application.
The rules tightened on July 1, 2025, when HB24-1174 took effect. The older system accepted a wider range of competency evidence and let certificates stay valid for up to ten years. Under the current law, a certificate from an initial class expires one year after completion, so you need to apply to the sheriff within that window.
What the Class Covers
Every minute of instruction has to happen in person with the instructor physically present. No portion of the course can be taken online. The eight-hour minimum doesn’t have to be a single day, but every required topic and exercise must be finished before you receive a certificate.
The curriculum goes well past basic marksmanship:
- Safe handling and storage of firearms and ammunition, including child safety and secure storage practices.
- Federal and Colorado law on buying, owning, transporting, and carrying firearms, plus the state’s extreme risk protection order law and the rules for reporting lost or stolen guns.
- Colorado’s law on self-defense and when lethal force is legally justified.
- Avoiding criminal attacks, de-escalation, and judgment in the use of lethal force.
- Safely interacting with law enforcement during an emergency while carrying.
The live-fire exercise requires you to fire at least 50 rounds and hit a minimum 70 percent accuracy as scored by the instructor. It doesn’t have to happen on the same day as the classroom portion. After the range work you take an open-book written exam on everything taught in class, and you need at least 80 percent to pass. Fail either the shooting test or the written exam and you don’t get a certificate.1FindLaw. Colorado Revised Statutes Title 18 Criminal Code 18-12-202.5
Finding a Verified Instructor
A certificate only counts if the class was taught by a “verified instructor.” A verified instructor must hold a valid Colorado concealed handgun permit, carry a firearms instructor certification from a law enforcement agency, college or university, nationally recognized firearms organization, or firearms training school, and be formally verified by the sheriff in the county where they primarily teach.2Colorado General Assembly. HB24-1174 Concealed Carry Permits and Training
Claiming to be a verified instructor without actually holding that status is a deceptive trade practice under Colorado law. Before you pay for a class, ask the instructor for their verification and confirm it with the local sheriff’s office if anything feels off. Most county sheriff websites keep a list of verified instructors, or will point you toward one. This is where applicants waste the most money: paying for a class from an unverified instructor and discovering at the sheriff’s counter that the certificate is worthless.
How Long the Certificate Is Good For
For a new applicant, a training certificate expires one year after the class is completed. Plan the class around when you’ll actually apply, because an expired certificate means retaking the course. Renewal applicants face a tighter window still, covered below.
What You’ll Pay
Class tuition varies by instructor and isn’t set by state law. What is set is the sheriff’s intake fee once you apply, and you’ll pay that on top of whatever the instructor charges. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation portion of the background check is $52.50. The sheriff’s administrative fee is added on top and varies by county. Expect roughly $100 to $152 total at the sheriff’s office depending on where you live. Payment methods differ by office; some take only cash and money orders, others accept credit or debit cards with a processing surcharge. Check your county sheriff’s website before you go in.3Colorado Bureau of Investigation. Concealed Handgun Permit (CHP)
Who Can Actually Get a Permit After the Class
The class is only worth taking if you can lawfully receive a permit at the end of it. Colorado is a shall-issue state, so the sheriff must grant your permit if you meet the statutory criteria. You have to be at least 21 and a legal Colorado resident. Active-duty military personnel stationed in Colorado under permanent duty orders, along with their immediate family living in the state, count as legal residents.4Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Title 18 Article 12 Part 2 18-12-203
Several categories of applicant are disqualified no matter how well they do in the class:
- Anyone with a felony conviction, who is barred from firearm possession under state and federal law.
- Anyone with a misdemeanor domestic violence conviction, which triggers a federal firearms prohibition.
- Anyone currently subject to a restraining order, temporary protection order, or extreme risk protection order.
- Unlawful users of or people addicted to controlled substances, and chronic alcohol abusers whose use impairs normal functioning. A recovering alcoholic sober for at least three years can submit an affidavit from a licensed addiction counselor.
- Anyone who lied on a previous concealed carry application.
These bars come from both state law and federal firearms prohibitions.4Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Title 18 Article 12 Part 2 18-12-2035Colorado Bureau of Investigation. State and Federal Firearm Prohibitors
There is also a narrow discretionary piece to the shall-issue rule: even if you meet every statutory requirement, the sheriff can deny the permit if documented behavior suggests you’d be a danger to yourself or others. The power is limited and the sheriff carries a higher burden of proof if you challenge a discretionary denial in court.6FindLaw. Colorado Revised Statutes Title 18 Criminal Code 18-12-207
What Happens After the Class
With your certificate in hand, you apply in person at the sheriff’s office in the county where you live. Mail and online applications aren’t accepted. Bring the completed application form from the county sheriff’s website or office, your training certificate, and a valid Colorado driver’s license or state ID. Military applicants bring their permanent duty station orders and military ID instead.
The application asks for a ten-year residency history, any previous names you’ve used, your physical description, and a sworn statement of eligibility. False information is perjury. At the appointment, staff verify your documents, witness your signature, take your photo, and collect digital fingerprints that are transmitted to the CBI for both fingerprint-based and name-based background checks, including a search of the federal NICS database.3Colorado Bureau of Investigation. Concealed Handgun Permit (CHP)
The sheriff then has up to 90 days to approve or deny the application once the background check is back. A decision arrives by mail. An approved permit comes as a physical card similar to a driver’s license, is valid for five years from the date of issuance, and must be carried together with a valid photo ID whenever you’re carrying concealed.
Renewal Training Is Different
If you already hold a permit, the training rules for renewal aren’t the same as for a first-time applicant. You can retake the full eight-hour initial class, or complete a shorter refresher class of at least two hours. The refresher must be in person, taught by a verified instructor, and includes both a live-fire exercise and a written exam under the same standards as the initial class, with instruction focused on legal updates and continued competency.2Colorado General Assembly. HB24-1174 Concealed Carry Permits and Training
Timing is tighter on renewal: your training certificate must be dated within six months of submitting the renewal application, not the one year allowed for new applicants. You can begin the renewal process up to 120 days before your current permit expires, and you file with the sheriff in the county where you currently live even if that’s different from where you first got the permit.
Some renewal applicants can skip the class entirely. Current military service, participation in organized shooting competitions, active peace officer certification, status as a verified firearms instructor, or an honorable military discharge reflecting pistol qualifications within the past ten years all satisfy the renewal competency requirement without a classroom course.