Rhode Island gun laws set a minimum purchase age of 21 for all firearms and ammunition, require a safety certificate before buying a handgun, impose a seven-day waiting period on every sale, ban magazines holding more than 10 rounds, and prohibit ghost guns and suppressors outright. A separate assault weapons ban takes effect in 2026. The state issues its own concealed carry permits and does not recognize permits from any other state.
Who Can Buy a Firearm
You must be at least 21 years old to purchase any firearm or ammunition in Rhode Island. The rule covers handguns, rifles, and shotguns. For handguns, the buyer must be a U.S. citizen or lawful Rhode Island resident who is 21 or older, or a non-resident member of the Armed Forces stationed in the state who is 21 or older.1Rhode Island General Assembly. Rhode Island General Laws 11-47-35 – Sale of Concealable Weapons The same age floor was extended to long guns in 2022.2Rhode Island Attorney General’s Office. 2022 Firearms Legislation Guidance (AG 2022-02)
Selling ammunition to anyone under 21 is a felony punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.3Rhode Island General Assembly. Rhode Island General Laws 11-47-64 – Sale of Ammunition Transferring any firearm to someone you know or should know is under 18 carries a much steeper penalty: 10 to 20 years in prison. Licensed dealers who make reasonable efforts to verify a buyer’s age are exempt from that provision.4Rhode Island General Assembly. Rhode Island Code 11-47-30 – Transfer or Delivery of Firearms to Minors
The Blue Card: Handgun Safety Certificate
Before you can buy a handgun or handgun ammunition, you need a Pistol/Revolver Safety Certificate, known as the Blue Card. The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management runs the free program. You take a 50-question multiple-choice test at a DEM-approved firearms dealer, a sporting club, or the DEM Permit Application Center in Providence. Passing is 80 or higher, and more than two cross-off corrections on the answer sheet counts as an automatic failure.5Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management. Handgun Safety Certification (Blue Card)
A Rhode Island Hunter Education card (the “orange card”) substitutes for the Blue Card. Hunter education cards from other states do not. Active military, National Guard members on active paid status, and law enforcement officers are exempt from the exam and receive certification automatically.5Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management. Handgun Safety Certification (Blue Card)
Waiting Period and Background Check
Every firearm sale in Rhode Island is subject to a seven-day waiting period. No dealer may release a handgun, rifle, or shotgun until seven days have passed from noon of the day after you submit the purchase application. Local police use that window to run a background check.1Rhode Island General Assembly. Rhode Island General Laws 11-47-35 – Sale of Concealable Weapons
The check applies to private sales too. Any transfer between individuals must go through a licensed dealer, who runs the check. At application, you must present a Blue Card for a handgun, a Rhode Island Hunter Education card, or a concealed carry permit.1Rhode Island General Assembly. Rhode Island General Laws 11-47-35 – Sale of Concealable Weapons
Magazine Capacity Limit
Rhode Island bans any magazine, drum, belt, or feeding device that holds more than 10 rounds, or that can be readily extended past 10. Attached tubular devices that hold only .22 caliber rimfire ammunition are excluded.6Rhode Island General Assembly. Rhode Island General Laws 11-47.1-2 – Definitions
Possessing, selling, or buying a prohibited magazine is punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $5,000, plus forfeiture of the device. A concealed carry permit does not create an exception. Active-duty military, National Guard members, and law enforcement officers (including certain retirees with a carry permit) are exempt. Federally licensed dealers may hold these magazines for sale to exempt entities or for out-of-state transactions.7Rhode Island General Assembly. Rhode Island General Laws 11-47.1-3 – Large Capacity Feeding Devices Prohibited The compliance window for pre-ban owners closed on December 18, 2022; anyone still holding a non-exempt over-capacity magazine faces the full penalties.8Rhode Island Attorney General’s Office. Office of the Attorney General Reminds Rhode Islanders of Approaching Dates for Recently Enacted Firearms Legislation
Assault Weapons Ban Takes Effect in 2026
An assault weapons ban passed in 2025 prohibits the manufacture, sale, purchase, and possession of a defined category of semi-automatic firearms. The law reaches semi-automatic rifles with a detachable magazine and at least one military-style feature (such as a pistol grip, folding stock, or threaded barrel), semi-automatic pistols over 50 ounces unloaded or that accept magazines outside the grip, semi-automatic shotguns with a detachable magazine and certain features, and any shotgun with a revolving cylinder. It also covers semi-automatic firearms with fixed magazines exceeding 10 rounds for rifles and pistols, or six rounds for shotguns.9Rhode Island General Assembly. Rhode Island General Laws 11-47.2-3 – Restrictions on Manufacture, Sale, Purchase and Possession of Assault Weapons
Ghost Guns, 3D-Printed Firearms, and Suppressors
Rhode Island bans ghost guns, undetectable firearms, and 3D-printed firearms. A ghost gun is any firearm whose frame or receiver lacks a serial number engraved by a licensed manufacturer under federal law. Undetectable firearms include weapons made entirely of plastic or fiberglass, weapons made through 3D printing, and weapons with unserialized frames.10Rhode Island General Assembly. Rhode Island Code 11-47-2 – Definitions
A conviction carries up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000. For anyone past a first offense, the court cannot suspend the sentence, grant probation, or defer punishment. The only exemption runs to manufacturers holding a Type 07 Federal Firearms License operating under ATF regulations.11Rhode Island General Assembly. Rhode Island Code 11-47-8 – License or Permit Required for Carrying Pistol, Other Weapons Prohibited
Suppressors are illegal for civilians. State law prohibits manufacturing, selling, purchasing, or possessing any muffler, silencer, or device for deadening the sound of a firearm. A federal ATF tax stamp or NFA trust is not a workaround; Rhode Island does not recognize one. You cannot legally bring a suppressor into the state, even in transit.
Concealed Carry Permits
Rhode Island has two paths to a concealed carry permit, operating under different standards.
Local Police
You can apply to your local police department, or the department in the town where you have a place of business. The statute uses “shall issue” language, meaning the department must grant the permit to a qualified applicant who is at least 21, demonstrates proficiency with the firearm they intend to carry, and is otherwise suitable. After the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 decision in NYSRPA v. Bruen, local authorities can no longer require applicants to show a specific need.12Rhode Island Attorney General’s Office. Concealed-Carry Permit Guidance
Attorney General
The Attorney General “may issue” a permit to applicants who are at least 21 and make a proper showing of need. This is a discretionary pathway and remains the primary option for non-residents without a permit from their home state. The AG’s office also issues permits to retired law enforcement officers.12Rhode Island Attorney General’s Office. Concealed-Carry Permit Guidance
Both pathways charge $40, and permits are valid for four years.13Rhode Island General Assembly. Rhode Island Public Law 96-342 – License or Permit Fee
No Reciprocity
Rhode Island does not honor concealed carry permits from any other state. If you hold an out-of-state permit, you need a Rhode Island license through local police or the Attorney General before carrying concealed here. Carrying on an out-of-state permit alone is illegal.
Open Carry
Open carry of a handgun without a permit is generally prohibited, except on your own property or at your place of business. A concealed carry permit also allows open carry. Long guns work differently. Open carry of rifles and shotguns is generally allowed, but a 2022 law made it illegal to carry a loaded rifle or shotgun on public roads or in vehicles on public roads unless you are actively hunting. Carrying an unloaded long gun while also possessing a loaded magazine falls under the same prohibition.
Where You Cannot Carry
Even with a valid permit, some locations are off-limits. School grounds are the most broadly restricted. You cannot possess any firearm on public or private school property, including buildings, grounds, and school transport vehicles.14Rhode Island General Assembly. Rhode Island Code 11-47-60 – Possession of Firearms on School Grounds
Exceptions are narrow: peace officers, retired law enforcement with a carry permit, contracted school security personnel, and sanctioned activities like ROTC programs, firearm safety courses, and interscholastic shooting events. An unloaded firearm stored in a locked container or locked rack inside a vehicle on school property is also exempt.14Rhode Island General Assembly. Rhode Island Code 11-47-60 – Possession of Firearms on School Grounds
State buildings, courthouses, and other government facilities also generally prohibit firearms. Private property owners can ban firearms on their premises through posted signage, and you must comply.
Safe Storage
Rhode Island’s criminal storage law creates liability when a firearm is left accessible to a child or a prohibited person. Adequate storage means keeping the firearm in a locked container or equipping it with a tamper-resistant mechanical lock or other safety device that renders it inoperable by anyone other than the owner or an authorized user. Second-degree criminal storage carries up to one year in prison and a $1,000 fine. First-degree criminal storage, which applies when the unsecured firearm causes injury or is used in a crime, carries up to five years and a $5,000 fine.15Rhode Island General Assembly. Rhode Island General Laws 11-47-60.1 – Safe Storage, Unsafe Storage of a Firearm
Extreme Risk Protection Orders
Rhode Island’s Extreme Risk Protection Order law allows a court to temporarily remove firearms from someone who poses a danger to themselves or others. Only a law enforcement agency can file the petition; family members and civilians cannot petition directly.16Rhode Island General Assembly. Rhode Island General Laws 8-8.3-3 – Contents of Petition
If the court finds probable cause that the person poses a significant danger of imminent injury, it issues a temporary order and a search warrant for any firearms in the person’s possession. The temporary order remains in effect until the full hearing.17Rhode Island General Assembly. Rhode Island Code 8-8.3-4 – Temporary Orders, Proceedings At the hearing the standard rises to clear and convincing evidence. If that threshold is met, the court issues a one-year order. During that year, the person must surrender all firearms and permits to local police and cannot buy or receive any firearms. The order can be renewed at expiration.18Rhode Island General Assembly. Rhode Island Code 8-8.3-5 – Hearings on Petition, Grounds for Issuance, Contents of Order Anyone subject to a temporary order has the right to an attorney, and the court will refer applicants who cannot afford one to the public defender.