Maryland Gun Laws: HQL, Wear and Carry, and Storage

Maryland gun laws are among the strictest in the country. To buy a handgun you need a Handgun Qualification License; to carry one in public you need a separate Wear and Carry Permit; assault weapons and magazines holding more than 10 rounds are banned; and every regulated firearm purchase, including private sales, runs through a state background check with a seven-day waiting period. The 2022 Supreme Court decision in NYSRPA v. Bruen ended Maryland’s “good and substantial reason” requirement for carry permits, but every other qualification still applies.¹

Who Cannot Possess a Firearm in Maryland

Before anything else, check whether you are eligible. Maryland Code, Public Safety § 5-133 lists more than a dozen categories of people barred from possessing a regulated firearm, and the list is broader than most people assume.

Anyone convicted of a crime of violence, any felony, or any misdemeanor carrying a maximum penalty of more than two years.
Anyone convicted of a common law offense who received more than two years of imprisonment.
Anyone currently on supervised probation for a crime punishable by a year or more, certain DUI offenses, or violating a protective order.
Fugitives from prosecution.
Habitual users of controlled substances and habitual drunkards.
Anyone involuntarily committed to a mental health facility (no minimum duration), voluntarily admitted for more than 30 consecutive days, found incompetent to stand trial, or found not criminally responsible.
Anyone who is a respondent under a current civil protective order or an out-of-state protection order.
Anyone under 21.
Anyone under 30 adjudicated delinquent as a juvenile for an act that would be a disqualifying crime if committed as an adult.

The mental health rule trips people up. Involuntary commitment disqualifies you regardless of how long it lasted; voluntary admission only disqualifies if it ran more than 30 consecutive days.²

A person previously convicted of a crime of violence or certain serious drug offenses who then possesses a regulated firearm faces a felony charge with a mandatory minimum of five years and a maximum of 15.²

Buying a Handgun: The Handgun Qualification License

Before you can buy, rent, or receive any handgun in Maryland, you need a Handgun Qualification License (HQL). The HQL is not a carry permit. It only authorizes you to acquire a handgun.

To qualify you must be at least 21, a Maryland resident, and not disqualified under § 5-133. You must also complete a firearms safety training course of at least four hours with a qualified handgun instructor, covering state firearm law, home firearm safety, and handgun operation, and including a live-fire component. Firing is not required beyond 15 yards. The training has to have been completed within three years before you apply.³⁴

Applications go through the Maryland State Police Licensing Portal. You submit fingerprints in a format approved by the Central Repository and the FBI, along with your training certificate. The fee is $50. Active law enforcement officers, members of the armed forces, and holders of a valid firearms instructor certification are exempt from the training requirement.³

The Purchase Itself

Every transfer of a regulated firearm in Maryland, whether through a dealer, a private sale, a gift, or an inheritance, requires the Maryland State Police Application and Affidavit to Purchase a Regulated Firearm (Form MSP 77R). Private sales are not exempt from background checks the way they are in many other states.⁵

A seven-day waiting period applies. After the Licensing Division receives the MSP 77R, it conducts a background investigation and notifies the applicant of the result by the morning of the eighth day. You cannot take possession before that notification clears.⁵

Long Guns, Assault Weapons, and Magazines

Maryland splits firearms into “regulated” and unregulated. Regulated firearms include all handguns and certain long guns classified as assault weapons. Standard rifles and shotguns that don’t fall into the assault weapon category are unregulated, meaning you can buy one without an HQL, though federal background check requirements still apply at licensed dealers.

Under Criminal Law § 4-303, you cannot possess, sell, purchase, or transport an assault weapon into Maryland. The ban covers assault long guns, assault pistols, and copycat weapons as defined by statute. Grandfathering is narrow: an assault pistol lawfully owned before June 1, 1994, and registered with Maryland State Police before August 1, 1994, is exempt. Assault long guns and copycat weapons lawfully possessed before October 1, 2013, are also grandfathered where the owner can document prior lawful possession.⁶

Maryland also prohibits manufacturing, selling, purchasing, or transferring a detachable magazine that holds more than 10 rounds. Possessing a pre-ban magazine is not itself a crime, but you cannot legally buy, sell, or receive a new one within the state. The restriction does not apply to .22 caliber rifles with tubular magazines or to law enforcement officers, active or retired in good standing.⁷

Carrying in Public: The Wear and Carry Permit

A Wear and Carry Permit allows you to carry a handgun on your person or in a vehicle beyond the limited transport exceptions available to everyone. Before 2022, applicants had to show a “good and substantial reason” to carry, which limited permits mostly to people with documented threats or specific occupational needs. The Supreme Court’s Bruen decision struck down that kind of requirement, and Maryland courts confirmed it applies here. Permits are now issued based on the remaining statutory criteria.⁸¹

The training is significantly heavier than the HQL course: 16 hours of firearms safety training approved by Maryland State Police. The initial application fee is $125. You submit fingerprints, and the application requires written recommendations from people who have known you for at least two years and can attest to your character. Maryland State Police conducts a background investigation covering criminal records, mental health databases, and interviews with your references.⁹

Your initial permit runs until the last day of your birth month, two years after issuance. Renewals extend it for three additional years. Denials can be appealed through the Office of Administrative Hearings.

Where You Still Cannot Carry With a Permit

The Gun Safety Act of 2023 organized restricted locations into three categories and added a private property consent requirement that catches many permit holders off guard.¹⁰

Areas for children and vulnerable people: preschools, private primary and secondary schools and their grounds, and health care facilities.
Government and public infrastructure: buildings owned or leased by state or local government, public and private colleges and universities, active polling places and ballot canvassing locations, electric plants and storage facilities, gas plants, and nuclear power plant facilities.
Special purpose areas: places licensed to sell alcohol or cannabis for on-site consumption, stadiums, museums, racetracks, and video lottery facilities.

The private property rule is broad. You cannot carry a firearm onto someone else’s property unless the owner or their agent has given permission, either individually or through a general public invitation. Property owners can post signage, but the default absent a sign is that carrying is not permitted.¹¹

Willfully violating any of these location restrictions is a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in prison and a fine of up to $1,000.¹⁰

Transporting a Firearm Without a Carry Permit

Without a Wear and Carry Permit, you can transport a handgun only for specific purposes: to or from a place of purchase, sale, or repair; between your residences or between your home and a business you substantially own; to and from target practice, a shooting event, hunting, or a dog obedience class; or moving a collection for exhibition. During any of these trips the handgun must be unloaded and in an enclosed case or enclosed holster. Maryland does not require ammunition to be in a separate container, but the firearm itself must be unloaded.

Rifles and shotguns transported in a motor vehicle must also be unloaded. Long guns do not carry the same destination restrictions handguns do.

For interstate travel, the federal Firearm Owners Protection Act (18 U.S.C. § 926A) lets you pass through Maryland if the firearm is unloaded and not readily accessible from the passenger compartment, and possession is lawful at both origin and destination. This covers pass-through travel only, not stops within the state for anything beyond fuel or emergencies.

Storage at Home

p>Maryland’s safe storage law, known as Jaelynn’s Law, requires firearm owners to store weapons so minors cannot access them. If a child could reasonably reach a firearm in your home, you should be using a gun safe, lockbox, or trigger lock at a minimum. Violations carry criminal penalties.

Ghost Guns and Privately Made Firearms

Since June 1, 2022, Maryland has required that all unserialized firearms and unfinished frames or receivers (commonly called ghost guns or 80% lowers) be marked with a personal identification number. The marking must be done by a Federal Firearms Licensee authorized to provide the service, and the firearm must then be registered with Maryland State Police through the Licensing Portal, which triggers a background investigation.¹²

If you inherit a non-serialized firearm or unfinished frame after June 1, 2022, you have 30 days to comply with the marking and registration requirements. Violating the law carries up to two years of imprisonment and up to $10,000 in fines.¹²

Red Flag Orders

Maryland’s red flag law allows certain people to petition a court for an Extreme Risk Protective Order (ERPO), which temporarily requires a person to surrender firearms and ammunition and bars them from buying or possessing any. It is a civil proceeding, but violating an active order is a crime that can bring contempt, arrest, and imprisonment.¹³

The list of eligible petitioners is broad: a spouse, cohabitant, relative by blood or marriage, someone who shares a child with the respondent, a current dating partner, a current or former legal guardian, any law enforcement officer, and medical professionals who have examined the person, including physicians, psychologists, clinical social workers, and nurse practitioners. An interim order lasts until the temporary hearing (typically within two business days). A temporary order lasts up to six months. A final order can remain in effect for up to one year and be extended for an additional six months. ERPO court records are confidential and will not appear on the Judiciary’s public Case Search.¹³

Federal Rules That Still Apply

Maryland’s prohibitions sit on top of federal law, not in place of it. Under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g), you cannot possess any firearm or ammunition anywhere in the United States if you fall into certain categories, including conviction of any crime punishable by more than one year, dishonorable discharge, renunciation of U.S. citizenship, or conviction of a misdemeanor domestic violence offense. The federal threshold (one year of potential imprisonment) is lower than Maryland’s threshold for some offenses (two years), so a conviction that clears Maryland’s bar can still violate federal law.

The federal ban on users of controlled substances deserves particular attention. Marijuana remains a Schedule I substance under federal law regardless of Maryland’s legalization for recreational use. Using marijuana, even legally under state law, makes you a prohibited person under federal firearms law. The ATF Form 4473 that every buyer completes at a licensed dealer asks directly about unlawful use of controlled substances, and answering falsely is itself a federal crime.

1
Maryland Courts. Court of Special Appeals Opinion – Rounds v. Maryland State Police
2
Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Public Safety 5-133 – Possession of Regulated Firearms
3
Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Public Safety 5-117.1 – Handgun Qualification License Required for Purchase of Handguns
4
Maryland Department of State Police. Handgun Qualification License
5
Maryland Department of State Police. Purchase a Regulated Firearm
6
Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Criminal Law 4-303 – Assault Weapons – Prohibited
7
Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Criminal Law 4-305 – Detachable Magazines – Prohibited
8
Supreme Court of the United States. New York State Rifle and Pistol Association Inc v Bruen
9
Maryland Department of State Police. Wear and Carry Permit
10
Maryland General Assembly. SB 1 Fiscal and Policy Note – Gun Safety Act of 2023
11
Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Senate Bill 1 – Gun Safety Act of 2023
12
Maryland Department of State Police. Registration of Unserialized Privately-Made Firearms in Effect as of June 1 2022
13
Maryland Courts. Extreme Risk Protective Orders