El Paso County Concealed Carry Permit: Training, Cost, and Renewal

To get an El Paso County concealed carry permit, you apply in person at the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, which handles every concealed handgun permit for county residents. The total fee is $135.00, and the sheriff has up to 90 days under Colorado law to approve or deny your application.¹² One thing changed on July 1, 2025: your training certificate must now be dated within the past 12 months, so if you took a class years ago, you need a new one before you apply.³

Who Qualifies

Colorado sets the eligibility rules statewide in C.R.S. § 18-12-203. You must be at least 21 and a legal resident of Colorado, and you file in the county where you live. Active-duty military stationed in Colorado on permanent duty orders count as legal residents, and so do their immediate family members living in the state.⁴

The statute disqualifies you if any of the following is true:

You are prohibited from possessing a firearm under state or federal law, which includes a felony conviction or a conviction for a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence.
You are subject to a protection order or an extreme risk protection order when you apply.
You chronically and habitually use alcohol to the point that your normal faculties are impaired.
You unlawfully use or are addicted to a controlled substance as defined under federal law.
You are a fugitive from justice or have a pending criminal case that could lead to a disqualifying conviction.

That controlled-substance line catches people who do not expect it. Marijuana remains a Schedule I substance under federal law, and 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(3) prohibits any unlawful user of a controlled substance from possessing firearms. Colorado’s legalization does not change the federal classification, so current marijuana use can get your application denied.

The Training Class

You have to complete a qualifying handgun class before you apply. Colorado defines a qualifying course as one taught in person by a certified instructor; fully online courses do not count.⁵ Acceptable options include law enforcement training programs, courses from accredited institutions or firearms training schools, and private classes led by certified instructors.

Under HB 24-1174, your certificate has to be from a class completed within one year of the date you submit your application.³ Older certificates no longer work, which is the biggest change from prior law. Private instructor fees typically run $75 to $350 depending on class length and whether live-fire range time is included. Confirm the instructor holds a valid Colorado verification before you pay.

What to Bring and What It Costs

Before you book your appointment, pull together three things:

Your training certificate, dated within the past year and issued by a certified instructor.
A current Colorado driver’s license or state ID showing your El Paso County residential address.
The completed application form from the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office website.

The new-application fee is $135.00 total, which covers both the Colorado Bureau of Investigation background check and the Sheriff’s Office processing charge.¹ CBI’s share of that is $52.50.⁶ The fee is non-refundable even if your application is denied.

Payment can be cash (exact change), debit or credit card (with a 2.39% bank surcharge, $2.00 minimum), personal check, money order, or cashier’s check. Non-cash payments are made out to E.P.S.O.¹

The Appointment

You schedule an in-person appointment through the Sheriff’s Office online booking system. Walk-ins are not part of the standard process. Plan for about 20 minutes on site.¹

During the appointment, staff review your application, collect the fee, take a digital photo for your permit card, and capture your fingerprints digitally. Those prints go to both the CBI and the FBI for criminal history screening.⁶ Make sure every detail on the application matches your ID exactly. Every question must be answered truthfully, and you sign the form in front of the staff member during intake.

How Long It Takes and What Happens If You’re Denied

Once the Sheriff’s Office has your application, fee, fingerprints, and training certificate, the 90-day clock starts.² Most applicants hear back sooner, but the sheriff can use the full window. Approved permits arrive by mail at the address on file.

A denial must rest on the eligibility criteria in C.R.S. § 18-12-203 or on a finding that you would pose a danger. You have the right to seek judicial review under C.R.S. § 18-12-207. In that review, the sheriff bears the burden of proving you are ineligible by a preponderance of the evidence, and if the denial was based on a danger determination, the sheriff must meet the higher clear-and-convincing-evidence standard. The court may award attorney fees to the prevailing party.⁷

How Long the Permit Lasts and When to Renew

A Colorado concealed handgun permit is valid for five years from the date of issuance.⁸ You can start the renewal process as early as 120 days before expiration by submitting a renewal form, a notarized affidavit that you still meet eligibility requirements, and the renewal fee.⁹ The statutory cap on the sheriff’s renewal fee is $50, and a CBI background check fee may be added on top. Call the Sheriff’s Office for the current renewal total.

Miss the expiration date and you can still renew by paying a $15 late fee on top of the renewal fee. The hard cutoff is six months after expiration. After that, the permit is permanently expired, and you start over with a new application, new training, and the full new-application fee.⁹

What the Permit Does Not Cover

The permit is not blanket authorization to carry everywhere. Under C.R.S. § 18-12-214, concealed carry is prohibited in public K-12 schools and on school grounds (with a limited exception for a handgun locked in a private vehicle), licensed child care centers, colleges and universities, government buildings with permanent weapons screening at every entrance, and polling places, ballot drop boxes, and central count facilities. Local governments and higher education boards can also designate additional posted no-carry areas, with a civil fine up to $50 for a first violation.¹⁰

Federal law adds its own restrictions. Under 18 U.S.C. § 930, knowingly bringing a firearm into a federal facility is a federal crime punishable by up to one year in prison, and up to two years for a federal courthouse.¹¹ Post offices, federal office buildings, VA hospitals, and Social Security offices are all covered. A Colorado permit gives you no exemption from federal law.

1
El Paso County Sheriff’s Office. Concealed Handgun Permit
2
Colorado Bureau of Investigation. Colorado Revised Statutes 18-12-206 – Sheriff – Issuance or Denial of Permits – Report
3
Colorado General Assembly. HB24-1174 Concealed Carry Permits and Training
4
Justia. Colorado Code 18-12-203 – Criteria for Obtaining a Permit
5
FindLaw. Colorado Code 18-12-202 – Definitions
6
Colorado Bureau of Investigation. Concealed Handgun Permit (CHP)
7
Justia. Colorado Code 18-12-207 – Judicial Review
8
FindLaw. Colorado Code 18-12-204 – Contents of Permit – Validity
9
Colorado Bureau of Investigation. Colorado Revised Statutes 18-12-211 – Renewal of Permits
10
Justia. Colorado Code 18-12-214 – Authority Granted by Permit – Carrying Restrictions
11
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 930 – Possession of Firearms and Dangerous Weapons in Federal Facilities