Gun laws in Virginia set an 18-year-old minimum for buying rifles and shotguns and 21 for handguns, require background checks on essentially every sale, allow open carry without a permit, and require a Concealed Handgun Permit to carry a handgun hidden on your person. Beyond those basics, state and federal law each maintain separate lists of people who cannot possess firearms and places where firearms cannot go, and the penalties for getting it wrong scale quickly from misdemeanor to felony.
Buying a Firearm
You must be at least 18 to buy a rifle or shotgun and at least 21 to buy a handgun from a licensed dealer. Every firearm sale in Virginia, including private transactions between individuals, must go through a federally licensed dealer, who runs a background check through the Virginia State Police. The seller can be charged up to $15 for the check.1Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 18.2-308.2:5 – Criminal History Record Information Check Limited exceptions exist for transfers between immediate family members.
Handgun purchases are capped at one per 30-day period. Violating that cap is a Class 1 misdemeanor. Holders of a valid Virginia Concealed Handgun Permit are exempt from the one-handgun-a-month limit.
Open Carry
Virginia does not prohibit the open carrying of a handgun by anyone at least 18 years old who is legally allowed to possess a firearm. No permit is required.
There is one significant carve-out. In several urban jurisdictions, including the cities of Richmond, Alexandria, Norfolk, and Virginia Beach and the counties of Arlington, Fairfax, and Prince William, it is illegal to openly carry a loaded semi-automatic center-fire rifle or pistol equipped with a magazine holding more than 20 rounds, or a shotgun with a magazine holding more than seven rounds.2Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 18.2-287.4 – Carrying Loaded Firearms in Public Areas Prohibited; Penalty Concealed handgun permit holders are exempt from that restriction.
People under 18 cannot possess or transport a handgun in Virginia at all, with narrow exceptions for being on their own property, hunting, or supervised range use.3Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 18.2-308.7 – Possession or Transportation of Certain Firearms by Persons Under the Age of 18; Penalty
Concealed Carry and the CHP
Carrying a hidden handgun without a Concealed Handgun Permit is a Class 1 misdemeanor on a first offense, which can mean up to 12 months in jail. A second offense is a Class 6 felony. A third or subsequent offense is a Class 5 felony.4Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 18.2-308 – Carrying Concealed Weapons
To carry concealed legally, you apply for a Concealed Handgun Permit (CHP) at the circuit court in the city or county where you live. You must be at least 21. There is no minimum residency period. You must also demonstrate competence with a handgun in person, and Virginia accepts several ways to do that: a hunter education course, an NRA or USCCA safety course, a law enforcement training course, or any firearms training class taught by a certified instructor. Prior military service or organized shooting competition experience also qualifies.5Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 18.2-308.02 – Application for a Concealed Handgun Permit
The total application fee is capped at $50: $10 to the clerk, up to $35 for the local law enforcement background investigation, and up to $5 for Virginia State Police processing.6Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 18.2-308.03 – Fees for Concealed Handgun Permits The court must issue or deny the permit within 45 days of receiving a completed application. An approved permit is valid for five years.7Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 18.2-308.04 – Processing of the Application and Issuance of Permit
Who Cannot Possess a Firearm
Virginia and federal law each disqualify certain people from possessing firearms, and the lists overlap without being identical. If any category under either system applies to you, you cannot legally buy, possess, or transport a firearm in the Commonwealth.
Virginia Prohibitions
Anyone convicted of a felony in Virginia is prohibited from possessing or transporting a firearm. Penalties depend on the nature of the prior conviction. A person previously convicted of a violent felony who is caught with a firearm faces a mandatory minimum of five years in prison. For someone with a non-violent felony conviction within the past 10 years, the mandatory minimum is two years.8Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 18.2-308.2 – Possession or Transportation of Firearms by Certain Persons These mandatory minimums run on top of any other sentence.
Virginia also prohibits firearm possession by people who have been found legally incompetent or involuntarily committed to a mental health facility, people subject to protective orders involving family abuse, and individuals convicted of certain misdemeanor offenses involving domestic violence or assault.9Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 18.2-308.2:2 – Criminal History Record Information Check Required
Federal Prohibitions
Federal law under 18 U.S.C. 922(g) adds categories that apply nationwide. You cannot possess a firearm or ammunition if you have a felony conviction (any crime punishable by more than one year in prison, whether or not you served time), are a fugitive from justice, use or are addicted to controlled substances, have been adjudicated mentally defective or committed to a mental institution, are unlawfully in the United States, were dishonorably discharged from the military, have renounced U.S. citizenship, are subject to a qualifying domestic restraining order, or have been convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts
Where Firearms Are Off-Limits
Even with a valid CHP, some locations are firearm-free by law. Getting this wrong can convert a lawful gun owner into a felon.
Possessing a firearm on the property of any K-12 school, child care center, or preschool is a Class 6 felony. If the firearm is possessed inside the building with intent to use it or in a threatening manner, the charge carries a mandatory minimum of five years in prison served consecutively with any other sentence.11Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 18.2-308.1 – Possession of Firearm, Stun Weapon, or Other Weapon on School Property Prohibited; Penalty Firearms are also banned in courthouses, airport terminals, and buildings owned or leased by the Commonwealth where state employees work. You cannot carry within 40 feet of a polling place while voting is happening or ballots are being counted.
Local governments in Virginia are largely preempted from writing their own gun rules, but the state allows them to ban firearms in four specific place types, with proper notice: government buildings, public parks, recreation and community centers, and public streets or open spaces at or adjacent to a permitted event.12Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 15.2-915 – Control of Firearms; Applicability to Authorities and Local Governmental Entities Because each city and county decides independently whether to enact these ordinances, the rules can vary from one jurisdiction to the next. Check your locality’s current ordinances before assuming a park or community center allows firearms.
Federal property has its own rules that apply throughout Virginia. Bringing a firearm into a federal building, including post offices, federal courthouses, and Social Security offices, is punishable by up to one year in prison. In a federal court facility the maximum is two years, and if the firearm was brought in with intent to use it in a crime the penalty is five years.13Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 930 – Possession of Firearms and Dangerous Weapons in Federal Facilities
Substantial Risk Orders
Virginia’s “red flag” law is called a substantial risk order. Only a Commonwealth’s attorney or a law enforcement officer can petition for one, and only after an independent law enforcement investigation confirms grounds exist. A judge or magistrate then decides whether to issue an emergency order based on probable cause that the person poses a substantial risk of injury to themselves or others in the near future.14Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 19.2-152.13 – Emergency Substantial Risk Order
An emergency order expires at 11:59 p.m. on the fourteenth day after it is issued. Before it expires, the circuit court must hold a hearing to decide whether a longer-term order is warranted. If the court finds sufficient evidence, it can issue a final substantial risk order lasting up to 180 days. While the order is in effect, the person cannot purchase, possess, or transport any firearm and must surrender their concealed handgun permit if they have one.15Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 19.2-152.14 – Substantial Risk Order Possessing a firearm while subject to a substantial risk order is a separate criminal offense.16Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 18.2-308.1:6 – Purchase, Possession, or Transportation of Firearms by Persons Subject to Substantial Risk Orders; Penalty
Restoring Firearm Rights After a Felony
If a felony conviction stripped your firearm rights, restoring them is a two-step process. The Governor has sole authority to restore your civil rights, meaning voting, holding office, and serving on juries. The Governor cannot restore firearm rights.17Virginia.gov. Restoration of Rights That requires a separate petition to your local circuit court after your civil rights have already been restored.
The court weighs the nature of the original offense, your criminal history since the conviction, and evidence of rehabilitation. Restoration is not automatic. Courts have discretion to grant or deny the request.