There is no single document called a firearms license in California. How to get a firearms license in California depends on what you actually want to do: buy a gun, carry one concealed, or sell firearms as a business. Buying requires a Firearm Safety Certificate, a background check through the Dealer Record of Sale system, and a 10-day wait. Carrying concealed requires a separate permit from your county sheriff or local police chief. Selling commercially requires both a federal license from the ATF and a California dealer’s license from the Department of Justice. Each track has its own eligibility rules, fees, and timeline, and the requirements below apply on top of each other, not instead of each other.
Who Can Legally Own a Firearm in California
Before any permit or certificate matters, you have to be someone the law allows to possess a firearm at all. Penal Code 29800 permanently bars anyone convicted of a felony from owning or possessing firearms, along with anyone convicted of certain violent misdemeanors, including brandishing a weapon. People subject to domestic violence restraining orders and those a court has found mentally incompetent are also prohibited under state law.
Federal law adds its own list on top of the state’s: fugitives, anyone dishonorably discharged from the military, unlawful users of controlled substances, and anyone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence cannot possess firearms or ammunition.
You also have to be at least 21 to buy any firearm from a licensed dealer. Penal Code 27510 originally applied that age to handguns only; the legislature later extended it to all firearms sold through dealers. And if you’re moving from another state, know that California does not recognize concealed carry permits or firearms licenses issued anywhere else. Whatever paperwork you hold from another state has no legal effect here.
Getting a Firearm Safety Certificate
The Firearm Safety Certificate is the closest thing California has to a general firearms license for buyers. Penal Code 31615 makes it a misdemeanor to purchase or receive a firearm without one, with antique firearms as the only exception.
You earn the certificate by passing a 30-question multiple-choice exam administered by a DOJ Certified Instructor, typically at a gun store or shooting range. You need at least 75% to pass. The fee is $25, and it covers two attempts with the same instructor if you don’t pass the first time. The certificate is good for five years.
A few people are exempt: active and retired law enforcement officers, active military members, and holders of a valid concealed carry permit. If you still hold an unexpired Handgun Safety Certificate from the older program, it works for handgun purchases but not for long guns.
Buying the Firearm: DROS, Fees, and the 10-Day Wait
Every firearm transaction in California runs through the Dealer Record of Sale system, administered by the DOJ. When you buy from a licensed dealer, the dealer submits your information through DROS, which checks it against state and federal databases including the National Instant Criminal Background Check System and the state’s Armed Prohibited Persons System. The system flags criminal history, outstanding warrants, active restraining orders, and mental health prohibitions such as involuntary psychiatric holds.
Even if your background check clears in minutes, you cannot take possession of the firearm for 10 days. The waiting period applies to every purchase. The DROS fee is $31.19 per transaction. Private party transfers between two unlicensed individuals still have to go through a licensed dealer, who runs the same DROS check and charges the same fee plus any service charge of their own.
Getting a Concealed Carry Permit
A concealed carry weapon (CCW) permit is a separate license that lets you carry a loaded, hidden handgun in public. It is not automatic once you own a gun, and buying a gun does not entitle you to carry one. You apply through the sheriff of your county or, in some cities, the local police chief.
The 2022 Supreme Court decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen struck down discretionary “good cause” requirements nationwide. California responded with SB 2, which eliminated the good-cause standard but tightened training requirements and expanded the list of places where carrying is banned even with a permit.
Training and Application
New CCW applicants must complete a DOJ-approved firearms course of at least 16 hours covering firearm safety, self-defense law, and the legal use of force. The course includes live-fire exercises where you demonstrate safe handling and proficiency with each firearm you want listed on your permit. Some issuing agencies also require a psychological evaluation or a personal interview.
You fill out the DOJ’s Standard Initial Application for License to Carry a Concealed Weapon (Form BOF 4012), which asks for personal details, five years of residential addresses, employment history, and any criminal or mental health history. Fingerprints go through the Live Scan system, which sends biometric data to both the DOJ and the FBI. The base fingerprinting fees for a firearms permit total $87 before the Live Scan operator’s site fee, which varies by location.
Between the application fee, Live Scan, and the required training course, expect to spend several hundred dollars or more depending on your county. Processing times also vary a lot by jurisdiction, ranging from a few weeks to several months.
How Long It Lasts and Where You Still Can’t Carry
CCW permits are valid for up to two years. Renewal requires a fresh background check and a renewal training course of at least eight hours with live-fire exercises. Miss your renewal window and you have to start over with the full initial application, including the 16-hour course.
Even with a valid permit, SB 2 designated numerous “sensitive places” where concealed carry is banned. The list includes schools, government buildings, public transit facilities, parks, places of worship, medical facilities, and bars. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals largely upheld these restrictions in 2024, though injunctions remain in place for banks and for private businesses that have not posted DOJ-compliant signs prohibiting firearms. This area is still being litigated, so the list of restricted locations may shift.
Getting a Dealer’s License
Selling firearms commercially in California requires two licenses. The federal Firearms License (FFL) from the ATF comes first. You apply on ATF Form 7, and the ATF runs its own background investigation, including an in-person interview and inspection of your proposed business premises.
Once you hold an FFL, you apply to the DOJ for a California dealer’s license under Penal Code 26700 through 26915. This requires a Certificate of Eligibility, which confirms through a background check that you are not prohibited from possessing firearms. Dealers must maintain detailed records of every transaction through DROS, enforce the 10-day waiting period, and verify that every buyer has a valid Firearm Safety Certificate and passes a background check. Failure to comply can result in license revocation, fines, or criminal prosecution.
Dealer licenses require annual renewal, and you must keep your COE current. The DOJ can revoke the COE if you become a prohibited person, which ends your ability to operate.
One federal rule matters for anyone thinking about buying on someone else’s behalf. Under the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, straw purchasing is now a standalone felony carrying a maximum of 25 years in federal prison, and the fine can be set at twice the gross proceeds of the offense. It applies whether or not the end user turns out to be a prohibited person.
Collector (Curio and Relic) Licenses
California does not issue its own collector’s permit, but the federal government offers a Type 03 Curio and Relic license through the ATF. It covers firearms that are at least 50 years old, certified as museum pieces, or recognized as historically significant. You apply on ATF Form 7CR, and the license lets you acquire qualifying firearms directly from other licensees or out-of-state sellers without routing each transaction through a local dealer.
In California, collectors must also obtain a Certificate of Eligibility from the DOJ. With both a C&R license and a COE, you can acquire qualifying curio and relic firearms from a licensed dealer without the standard 10-day waiting period. Private party transfers still require a dealer and a background check regardless of the firearm’s age.
Federal regulations require C&R license holders to keep a bound book. Log each acquisition by the close of the next business day, recording the manufacturer, model, serial number, caliber, and the name and address of the seller. Record dispositions within seven days. All C&R acquisitions must also be reported to the California DOJ within five days. Sloppy recordkeeping can cost you the license or the firearms.
What California Won’t Let You Own, License or Not
No permit gets you around California’s category bans. The Roberti-Roos Assault Weapons Control Act prohibits assault weapons, defined by specific features: a semiautomatic centerfire rifle with a detachable magazine and any one of several features (a pistol grip, thumbhole stock, or flash suppressor, for example) qualifies. Semiautomatic pistols with detachable magazines and certain features are also banned. The state maintains a list of firearms prohibited by name as well. Possession of an unregistered assault weapon is a felony.
California also restricts .50 BMG rifles and prohibits magazines that hold more than 10 rounds. Suppressors, short-barreled rifles, and short-barreled shotguns are generally illegal to possess here even though federal law allows them in many states through NFA registration and a $200 tax stamp. If you are moving from a state where you legally own any of these items, you cannot bring them.
Handguns face a separate filter. The Roster of Handguns Certified for Sale under Penal Code 32000 lists the only new handguns dealers may sell. It has been shrinking for years because newer models must meet microstamping requirements most manufacturers have not adopted. Private party transfers and certain law enforcement transactions are exempt from the roster, which is why off-roster handguns sometimes appear on the secondary market at significant premiums.
If Your Application Is Denied
A state denial comes with a notice from the DOJ explaining why. Common causes include a criminal record the applicant didn’t know was disqualifying, an old warrant, or a restraining order they thought had expired. If the denial rests on an error in your records, you have to get the underlying record corrected through the court or agency that maintains it, then resubmit.
Federal NICS denials have their own appeal path. Request the reason for denial from the FBI in writing, online, or by fax, then submit an appeal with your full name, mailing address, and NICS or state transaction number. The FBI’s Appeal Services Team must provide the general reason for denial within five business days of receiving your inquiry. You can challenge the accuracy of the record by providing court documents showing the disqualifying conviction was expunged or the charges were dismissed. If the problem is mistaken identity, submitting your fingerprints can resolve it. If the Appeal Services Team cannot resolve the issue directly, they will refer you to the agency that maintains the disqualifying record. A successful appeal produces documentation you can bring back to the dealer to complete the transaction.