Louisiana Concealed Carry Permit: Training, Costs, and Reciprocity

A Louisiana concealed carry permit is a five-year or lifetime license issued by the Department of Public Safety and Corrections under Louisiana Revised Statute 40:1379.3. Since July 4, 2024, anyone 18 or older who can legally possess a firearm may carry concealed in Louisiana without any permit at all. The permit still exists, and getting one is worth the trouble if you travel, want recognized proof of a state background check, or prefer the clarity it brings to encounters with law enforcement.

Why Get a Permit Under Permitless Carry

Interstate travel is the main reason. Louisiana’s permit is honored in 37 other states through mutual recognition agreements, and without one your right to carry concealed ends the moment you cross into a state that requires a license.¹ Permitless carry only works inside Louisiana’s borders.

A permit also documents that you’ve passed a state-level background investigation, which can smooth traffic stops and venue security checks. It does not, however, let you skip the federal background check when buying from a licensed dealer. Louisiana is not on the ATF’s Brady Permit Chart, so permit holders still run through NICS at the counter like anyone else.²

Who Qualifies

You must be at least 21. That’s a firm cutoff, three years above the permitless-carry age, with no exceptions. You must also be legally domiciled in Louisiana and show it with a valid Louisiana driver’s license or state ID. Military members stationed elsewhere who keep a dwelling in Louisiana still count as residents.³

The criminal-history bars are broad. A permit is off the table if you have a felony conviction, have been convicted of or charged with any crime of violence, or have been convicted of or charged with any offense punishable by more than one year in prison. There’s a narrow opening for certain expunged felonies: if the conviction was expunged before August 1, 2014 under R.S. 44:9, or after that date under the Code of Criminal Procedure, and ten years have passed since you finished probation, parole, or a suspended sentence, it won’t block the application. Crimes of violence stay disqualifying even when expunged.³

Substance history has its own bars. You’re disqualified if you’ve been committed for substance abuse, convicted of or pled guilty to any drug-related misdemeanor, or admitted for alcohol treatment within the five years before you apply. On the mental-health side, anyone adjudicated mentally deficient or committed to a mental institution is barred unless their firearm rights have been restored under R.S. 28:57, and a separate provision disqualifies anyone with a mental or physical condition that prevents the safe handling of a handgun.³

Training You’ll Need

You must complete a qualifying firearms course within the twelve months before you apply, and the completion certificate expires at that twelve-month mark. Louisiana recognizes several course types:³

Any handgun safety or training course taught by a certified NRA instructor.
Any handgun safety or training course taught by a certified USCCA instructor.
Any firearms safety course approved by the Department of Public Safety and Corrections, offered through a law enforcement agency, college, or private institution.
A DPSC-approved firearms course designed for correctional officers, investigators, or security personnel.
Military small arms training completed within the preceding 60 months, documented by a DD-214 showing honorable or general discharge, or by active-duty records showing completed small arms qualification.

Every qualifying course other than military training must cover preventing unauthorized access by children, a live-fire proficiency exercise, and safe handgun handling. Live fire can use standard ammunition or fixed-case marking projectiles.

Veterans more than 60 months out of service have a different path: a three-hour course on deadly force and conflict resolution plus a one-hour course on child access prevention, both completed within the preceding five years.

What It Costs

A standard five-year permit is $125, billed at $25 per year. Shorter terms are available at proportionally reduced fees. A lifetime permit requires prepaying 20 years, for a total of $500. Applicants 65 or older prepay only 10 years for the lifetime permit, bringing it to $250.³

Military discounts are significant. Active-duty and reserve members pay half the annual rate, so a five-year permit costs $62.50; the lifetime permit for active-duty members prepays 10 years at the reduced rate instead of 20. Veterans who received an honorable or general discharge under honorable conditions pay nothing for either the five-year or lifetime permit.

How to Apply

Applications go through the Louisiana State Police online portal at chp.la.gov.⁴ You’ll submit your full legal name, Social Security number, physical descriptors, a copy of your Louisiana driver’s license or state ID, and your original training certificate. False statements on the application can trigger criminal charges, so double-check the details.

Fingerprints are required. As of May 1, 2024, the Louisiana State Police no longer accept fingerprint cards taken by outside agencies for permit applications, so follow the fingerprinting instructions in the application portal.⁵

Once your packet is in, the deputy secretary of public safety services notifies your local chief of police and parish law enforcement within two working days. Those agencies have 10 days to pass along any information bearing on your eligibility. The statute tells the department to issue permits to qualified applicants “timely and without delay,” but sets no outside deadline. Plan on several weeks or more depending on application volume.³

If You’re Denied

A denial comes with a written notice stating the specific legal basis. You have two ways to challenge it, and the deadlines are strict.⁶

Request an informal review within 10 business days, submitting documentation that explains why the denial was wrong. If the department’s response doesn’t resolve it, you can escalate to a formal hearing within 20 business days of that decision.
Skip the informal step and request an administrative hearing directly, in writing, within 30 days of the denial notice.

Both routes lead to a hearing under Louisiana’s Administrative Procedure Act. Miss the deadline and the denial becomes permanent.

Where You Still Can’t Carry

A permit does not open every door. R.S. 40:1379.3(N) bans concealed carry in these places, and the ban applies equally under permitless carry:³

Law enforcement offices and stations.
Prisons, jails, and detention centers.
Courthouses and courtrooms, though judges may carry in their own courtrooms.
Polling places on election days.
Municipal buildings or public structures used as meeting places for a governing authority.
The State Capitol.
Secured areas of airports under federal law. A legally encased firearm can still enter the terminal for check-in as baggage.
Churches, synagogues, mosques, and similar places of worship, unless the administrator authorizes carry.
Permitted parades and demonstrations.
Any portion of a business operating under a Class A-General retail permit to sell alcohol for on-premises consumption.
Schools and school buses, as defined in R.S. 14:95.6.

A couple of these have nuance worth remembering. The alcohol ban applies to the portion of the premises covered by the Class A-General license, not every restaurant that serves a glass of wine. Houses of worship can grant permission to carry even though the default is no.

Private property owners, lessees, and anyone with lawful custody of a property can prohibit carry on their premises for permit holders and permitless carriers alike. The statute does not require any particular sign or format, so a verbal instruction or a posted notice is enough. You also cannot bring a concealed handgun into someone’s private residence without that person’s consent.

Lifetime Permits Still Require Training

A lifetime permit avoids the five-year renewal, but it’s not maintenance-free. Holders must complete continuing education every five years and submit proof to the department. The required training covers handgun handling, ammunition fundamentals, shooting positions, deadly force and conflict resolution, and child access prevention. The live-fire portion is 36 rounds total at six, ten, and fifteen feet, with at least one safe reload at each distance, and you must land 100% of your rounds within the silhouette on an NRA B-27 type target.³

Carrying Across State Lines

Louisiana’s permit is recognized in 37 states through mutual recognition. The states that will not honor it are California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, and Rhode Island.¹ Check current reciprocity before any trip, because states update their lists. Some states honor Louisiana resident permits but not non-resident ones, which can matter for military members. And even in states that recognize your permit, their rules apply to you while you’re there, from magazine limits to duty-to-inform laws.

Federal property stays off-limits regardless of your permit. Under 18 U.S.C. § 930, carrying a firearm into a federal facility can bring up to one year in prison, or up to five years if the weapon is intended for use in a crime. Post offices ban firearms on the entire premises under 39 CFR 232.1, not just inside the building.⁷ National parks and national forests in Louisiana follow state law for possession, so your permit is valid in those areas, but the buildings inside them (visitor centers, ranger stations, fee offices) remain federal facilities and off-limits.

Flying with a handgun means unloaded, locked in a hard-sided container, checked only, and declared at the ticket counter every time. TSA treats a firearm as loaded if a live round sits in the chamber, cylinder, or an inserted magazine.⁸ Airlines can add their own fees and restrictions on top, so check before you pack.

Tribal land is governed by tribal law, not state law, and your Louisiana permit likely does not cover you there. If you’re passing through on a state or federal highway, store the firearm unloaded and locked in a container in the trunk or rear of the vehicle.

1
Louisiana State Police. Reciprocity
2
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Brady Permit Chart
3
Louisiana State Legislature. Louisiana Code 40:1379.3 – Statewide Permits for Concealed Handguns
4
Louisiana Department of Public Safety. Louisiana Department of Public Safety Concealed Handgun Permit Unit Website
5
Louisiana State Police. Concealed Handgun Information
6
Cornell Law Institute. Louisiana Administrative Code tit. 55, I-1315 – Appeal and Hearing Procedures
7
United States Postal Service. Possession of Firearms and Other Dangerous Weapons on Postal Property Is Prohibited by Law
8
Transportation Security Administration. Transporting Firearms and Ammunition