How to Apply to Restore Gun Rights in Kentucky

To restore gun rights in Kentucky, you generally take one of three routes: a full pardon from the Governor or the President, expungement of the felony conviction that triggered the prohibition, or, if you lost your rights because of a mental health commitment, a court petition under KRS 237.108. Which path fits depends entirely on why your rights were taken away, and even a successful state restoration can leave a separate federal prohibition in place.

Why You Lost Your Rights in the First Place

Kentucky’s felon-in-possession statute, KRS 527.040, bars anyone convicted of a felony in any state or federal court from possessing, manufacturing, or transporting a firearm. The prohibition covers every felony, violent or not, and violating it is itself a Class D felony (Class C if the weapon is a handgun).¹

Federal law layers its own ban on top. Under 18 U.S.C. 922(g), firearm possession is prohibited for nine categories of people, including anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison, anyone adjudicated as mentally defective or committed to a mental institution, anyone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence, and anyone subject to a qualifying domestic violence protective order.² A Kentuckian whose state rights come back can still face federal charges if the federal disability was not also removed.

One boundary worth flagging up front. Kentucky’s civil-rights restoration for convicted felons, which Governor Beshear’s executive order handles automatically for many nonviolent felonies, restores voting and the right to hold public office.³ It does not restore firearm rights. You need one of the paths below.

Path One: A Governor’s Pardon

KRS 527.040 lifts its firearm ban when the person receives a full pardon from the Governor or the President of the United States.¹ For most Kentucky felons, a Governor’s pardon is the primary executive route. It’s discretionary, not a right.

How to Apply

The form is the Application for Gubernatorial Pardon and/or Commutation of Sentence, available on the Governor’s website.⁴ The completed form and supporting documents go to the Office of the Governor, ATTN: Office of the General Counsel, 501 High Street, 2nd Floor, Frankfort, Kentucky 40601.⁵

You must include at least three letters of recommendation. They can come from neighbors, employers, coworkers, pastors, elected officials, judges, prosecutors, or family members, and additional letters beyond the three are encouraged.⁵ Submitting the application authorizes the Governor’s office to investigate your criminal and employment history, and the Governor may ask the Kentucky Parole Board to investigate and make a recommendation, though that step isn’t automatic.⁴

What to Put in the File

Build the strongest possible rehabilitation record. Documentation of steady employment, community involvement, and completion of educational or treatment programs helps. A candid narrative about the offense and what has changed since carries weight. Disclose every interaction with the legal system on the application, including arrests that did not lead to convictions; omissions can sink a case.

You will need your criminal history report from the Administrative Office of the Courts. The AOC background check fee is $25, with a small additional processing fee for card payments.⁶

How Long It Takes

There is no statutory deadline for the Governor to act. Expect many months, sometimes years. And here is what frustrates applicants most: if your application is denied, you will not be notified. The Governor’s office only contacts applicants whose requests are granted.⁴

Path Two: Expungement

If your conviction qualifies for expungement under KRS 431.073, this is often more reliable than waiting on a pardon. When the court vacates the conviction and seals the record, the conviction is treated as if it never happened, which removes the basis for the prohibition under KRS 527.040 and, in most cases, under federal law too.

Who Qualifies

Kentucky allows expungement of Class D felonies in two categories. One is a specific list of enumerated offenses, mostly drug, theft, fraud, and certain property crimes. The other is a catch-all covering any Class D felony that was not a DUI, sex offense, offense against a child, or abuse of public office, and that did not result in serious bodily injury or death.⁷ People who already have a full pardon can also apply.

The waiting period is five years after you finish your sentence, or five years after you complete probation or parole, whichever comes later. During those five years and the five years before filing, you cannot have been convicted of any felony or misdemeanor, and no criminal proceeding can be pending against you.⁷

How It Works

You file a verified application in the court where you were convicted. The court evaluates whether you have been rehabilitated and pose no significant threat of reoffending. The standard civil filing fee in Kentucky circuit court is $150 based on current fee schedules, though fees can change. If the court grants the application, the judgment is vacated and the records are expunged.

Expungement is often the cleanest solution because it addresses the state and federal disability at the same time. A pardon can leave a gap on the federal side; expungement removes the conviction itself.

Path Three: Restoring Rights After a Mental Health Commitment

If your firearm prohibition traces back to a mental health commitment or adjudication, you use a court process under KRS 237.108 rather than seeking executive clemency.⁸

Filing the Petition

The form is AOC-032, Petition/Motion for Removal of Firearm Prohibitions.⁹ Don’t confuse it with AOC-031, which is only the notice of firearm prohibitions the court hands you at commitment.¹⁰ You file AOC-032 in the court where the original commitment, finding, or adjudication occurred. The form must be signed before a circuit court clerk or a notary public.

Serve copies on the Director of the Division of Behavioral Health and on the county attorney for the county where the original proceeding took place. Either may appear at the hearing to support or oppose your petition.⁸

What the Court Weighs

The hearing is closed. The court considers five categories of evidence: the circumstances of the original commitment or adjudication, your mental health and criminal history records, your reputation, your identifying information, and any changes in your condition. You are responsible for obtaining and providing your own mental health and criminal history records.⁸

The court grants the petition if it finds, by a preponderance of the evidence, that you are not likely to act in a manner dangerous to public safety and that granting relief would not be contrary to the public interest. If the court denies you, you can appeal, and the appellate review is de novo. You can refile a new petition no more than once every two years.⁸

Cleaning Up the Databases

When the court grants relief, the circuit clerk immediately forwards the order to the Kentucky State Police, which passes it to the FBI to update the National Instant Criminal Background Check System. Kentucky State Police must also remove related information from any database they control and destroy paper copies of the commitment order and related documents.⁸ That cleanup is what makes the KRS 237.108 process effective at the federal level, because it was designed to satisfy the federal NICS Improvement Amendments Act.

The Federal Layer

Kentucky can restore your rights under state law, but federal law operates on its own track. If you received a Governor’s pardon that does not expressly restore firearm rights, or if your underlying conviction was in federal court, you may still be prohibited under 18 U.S.C. 922(g).²

Federal law does have a relief mechanism. Under 18 U.S.C. 925(c), someone under a federal firearm disability can apply to the Attorney General for relief. The standard tracks the mental health petition: not likely to be dangerous, and relief not contrary to the public interest.¹¹ For decades, Congress stripped funding from the program, making it effectively unavailable. The Department of Justice has recently said it is developing a web-based application for 925(c) relief, though the program is not yet accepting applications.¹² A denial by the Attorney General can be reviewed in federal district court.

Practical takeaway: if a Governor’s pardon is your only option because the offense isn’t eligible for expungement, talk to an attorney about whether the pardon language will satisfy the federal test. A full pardon that expressly restores firearm rights generally does, but the wording matters. Expungement is cleaner because it removes the conviction itself.

Domestic Violence Convictions and Protective Orders

Federal law also prohibits firearm possession for anyone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence or subject to a qualifying domestic violence protective order.² These operate entirely at the federal level and apply even when the offense was a misdemeanor. Kentucky pardon or expungement can address a misdemeanor DV conviction, but a protective order prohibition lifts only when the order expires or is dissolved by the court that issued it.

If You Get Denied at the Gun Counter

Even after your rights are restored, you can still be denied at purchase because the background check databases haven’t caught up. Kentucky is not a NICS point-of-contact state, so firearms dealers contact the FBI directly. If FBI records still show an active disability, you’ll be denied on the spot.

You can request the reason for a denial and file a formal challenge with the FBI’s NICS Section. Electronic and mail-in options are available for both. If the denial involves identity confusion from a common name, the FBI encourages going through the challenge process, and you may need to submit fingerprint cards.¹³ The FBI won’t advise you on how to get rights restored; they only look at whether the denial was based on accurate records. Bring certified copies of whatever restored your rights when you file a challenge; that’s the fastest way to clear a database lag.

What It Costs

Criminal history report from the AOC: $25, plus a small processing fee for card payments.⁶
Governor’s pardon application: no filing fee, but documentation, recommendation letters, and attorney help add up.
Expungement: the standard circuit court civil filing fee in Kentucky is $150, plus certified copies and any attorney fees.
Mental health petition under KRS 237.108: circuit court filing fee, plus the cost of obtaining mental health records and any professional evaluations.
Attorney fees: vary widely, from several hundred dollars for a straightforward expungement consultation to significantly more for a complex pardon or federal relief matter.

Timelines vary just as much. A KRS 237.108 petition moves on the court’s docket and can conclude in months. Expungement runs on a similar judicial timeline. A Governor’s pardon has no deadline and no guaranteed response, so it’s the least predictable of the three. If the federal 925(c) program becomes operational, expect to manage that timeline on top of the state one.

1
Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Kentucky Revised Statute 527.040 – Possession of Firearm by Convicted Felon
2
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S.C. 922 – Unlawful Acts
3
Commonwealth of Kentucky. Restoration of Civil Rights for Convicted Felons
4
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear. Application for Pardons and Commutations
5
Office of Governor Andy Beshear. Application for Gubernatorial Pardon and/or Commutation of Sentence
6
Kentucky Department for Natural Resources. Blaster AOC Background Check Form
7
Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Kentucky Revised Statute 431.073 – Certain Felony Convictions May Be Vacated and the Records Expunged
8
Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Kentucky Revised Statute 237.108 – Persons Adjudicated Mentally Defective and Committed to Mental Institutions
9
Kentucky Court of Justice. AOC-032 – Petition/Motion for Removal of Firearm Prohibitions
10
Kentucky Court of Justice. AOC-031 – Notice of Firearm Prohibitions
11
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S.C. 925 – Exceptions: Relief From Disabilities
12
U.S. Department of Justice. Federal Firearm Rights Restoration
13
Federal Bureau of Investigation. Challenges / Appeals