Texas Gun Carry Laws: Permitless Carry, Locations, and Penalties

Most adults 21 and older can carry a handgun in public in Texas without any license, openly or concealed, under the permitless carry law that took effect September 1, 2021.¹ Texas gun carry laws still set real limits, though. Your age, your record, how the gun is carried, and where you take it all matter, and getting any of those wrong can turn a lawful carry into a felony.

Who Can Carry Without a License

Penal Code 46.02 makes it an offense to carry a handgun if you are under 21 or have been convicted of certain violent offenses in the past five years.² The disqualifying offenses are assault causing bodily injury, deadly conduct, terroristic threats, and disorderly conduct involving the discharge or display of a firearm.

A separate statute, Penal Code 46.04, bars some people from possessing any firearm at all. Convicted felons cannot possess a firearm for five years after release from confinement or supervision, and after that window they can only possess one at the place where they live.³ Anyone convicted of a Class A misdemeanor family violence assault is barred for five years. People under an active protective order cannot possess a firearm while the order is in effect. Known gang members cannot carry a handgun in a vehicle or on a boat.

Federal law adds another layer. Under 18 U.S.C. 922, you cannot possess a firearm if any of the following applies to you:⁴

You have been convicted of any crime punishable by more than one year in prison, whether or not you served time.
You are a fugitive from justice.
You are a current unlawful user of a controlled substance.
You were formally adjudicated as mentally defective or committed to a mental institution at age 16 or older.
You received a dishonorable discharge from the military.
You were convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence or are subject to a qualifying domestic violence restraining order.
You are in the United States unlawfully or on a nonimmigrant visa.
You formally renounced your U.S. citizenship.

Where state and federal law conflict, the stricter rule wins. A Texas statute that would otherwise let you carry does nothing to shield you from federal prosecution.

Can 18 to 20-Year-Olds Carry in Texas?

The statutory age to carry without a license is 21, but a 2022 federal court ruling in Firearms Policy Coalition v. McCraw held that barring law-abiding 18-to-20-year-olds from handgun carry on age alone violates the Second Amendment.⁵ The Texas State Law Library notes that 18-to-20-year-olds may not be prosecuted under the age restriction alone.⁶

Separately, Texas statute lets some 18-to-20-year-olds obtain a License to Carry outright. Active military members, reservists, National Guard members, and honorably discharged veterans at least 18 can apply. So can anyone 18 or older protected under an active domestic violence protective order or emergency magistrate’s order.⁷

How You Must Carry the Handgun

Texas does not require a holster at all times. The holster rule applies only when the handgun is visible. Penal Code 46.02(a-5) makes it an offense to intentionally display a handgun in plain view of another person in a public place, with an exception for a handgun carried in a holster.² If you carry concealed and the handgun stays concealed, no holster is required by statute. Safety is another matter, and most instructors recommend one either way.

You can choose open carry or concealed carry freely if you meet the age and background rules. There is no separate permit or registration for either method.

In a Vehicle

You may keep a handgun in your own vehicle whether you are 21 or not, as long as it is not in plain view. If the handgun is visible inside the car, the carrier must be 21 or older (or hold an LTC), and the handgun must be in a holster.² The vehicle exception does not apply if you are engaged in criminal activity beyond a minor traffic offense or are legally prohibited from possessing firearms.

Rifles and Shotguns

Long guns are not covered by the handgun carry statutes. Texas has no general prohibition on openly carrying a rifle or shotgun in public, and no holster or license is required.⁶ Displaying any firearm in a manner calculated to alarm others can still support a disorderly conduct charge, so context matters.

Where You Cannot Carry

Penal Code 46.03 lists locations where bringing a firearm is a criminal offense regardless of whether you hold a license, and no posted sign is required for enforcement.⁸ You are expected to know them:

K-12 schools, school-sponsored activity grounds, and school buses, public or private
Polling places on Election Day and during early voting
Government courts and offices used by the court, unless the court has adopted rules allowing carry
Licensed racetrack premises
Secured areas of airports past the screening checkpoint
Businesses that earn 51% or more of their revenue from on-premises alcohol sales, which must post a red “51%” sign at the entrance
High school, collegiate, and professional sporting events, unless the firearm is used in the event itself
Correctional facilities including jails and prisons
Within 1,000 feet of a designated execution facility on an execution day, if notice was given

Carrying in any of these places is a third-degree felony: 2 to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.⁹ A hip-holstered pistol inside a posted bar is a felony whether or not you noticed the sign.

Public university campuses are a narrow exception for license holders only. Under Penal Code 46.03, an LTC holder may carry a concealed handgun on a public college or university campus; a permitless carrier cannot.

Federal Buildings

Federal property runs on federal rules. Under 18 U.S.C. 930, knowingly bringing a firearm into any federal facility is a crime punishable by up to one year in prison, and up to two years for federal court facilities.¹⁰ Post offices, VA hospitals, Social Security offices, and federal courthouses all qualify. Signs are supposed to be posted, but actual knowledge of the prohibition is enough to convict.

Private Property Signs and Oral Notice

Property owners can prohibit firearms, and three different trespass statutes do the work depending on the carrier.

Penal Code 30.05 covers people carrying without a license. The sign must read “Pursuant to Section 30.05, Penal Code (criminal trespass), a person may not enter this property with a firearm,” appear in English and Spanish, use contrasting block letters at least one inch tall, and be posted at each entrance.¹¹ Entering with a firearm anyway is a Class C misdemeanor carrying a maximum $200 fine, which escalates to a Class A misdemeanor if you are personally told to leave and refuse.

License holders face two additional signs. A 30.06 sign prohibits concealed carry by LTC holders;¹² a 30.07 sign prohibits open carry by LTC holders.¹³ Both require specific statutory language in English and Spanish, one-inch contrasting block letters, and conspicuous placement at every entrance. Penalties mirror 30.05: Class C by default, Class A if you are told to leave and don’t.

A property owner or someone with apparent authority can also give oral notice. That verbal “no guns here” carries the same legal weight as a posted sign.

Self-Defense While Carrying

Texas gives armed defenders broad protection. Under Penal Code 9.31, you can use force when you reasonably believe it is immediately necessary to protect yourself against another person’s unlawful force.¹⁴ Your belief is presumed reasonable if the other person was unlawfully and forcibly entering your home, vehicle, or workplace, or was attempting to kidnap, murder, sexually assault, or rob you.

Penal Code 9.32 covers deadly force. You can use it when you reasonably believe it is immediately necessary to prevent another’s unlawful deadly force or certain violent felonies, including murder, aggravated robbery, and sexual assault.¹⁵ The same castle doctrine presumption applies for a forcible entry into your occupied home, car, or workplace.

There is no duty to retreat. If you have a right to be where you are, did not provoke the confrontation, and are not engaged in criminal activity, you do not have to try to flee first. A jury is specifically prohibited from considering whether retreat was possible. Those protections fall away if you provoked the fight or were carrying unlawfully at the time.

Dealing With Police

Texas has no proactive duty to inform. You are not required to volunteer that you are carrying when an officer approaches. If an officer asks directly, answer truthfully. Many carriers choose to mention it anyway during traffic stops, because it tends to make the encounter smoother.

If you hold an LTC, keep it with your ID. Officers can verify your status, and handing it over up front usually speeds things along.

Penalties for Carrying Illegally

Unlawful carry under Penal Code 46.02 is generally a Class A misdemeanor: up to one year in county jail and a fine of up to $4,000.¹⁶ If you are prohibited from possessing firearms under 46.04 due to a felony conviction, carrying becomes a second-degree felony with a five-year minimum. A prohibition stemming from a family violence conviction or protective order carries a third-degree felony enhancement.

Carrying in a 46.03 prohibited place is a third-degree felony on its own, with 2 to 10 years in prison and up to $10,000 in fines.⁹ Ignoring a posted private-property firearms sign is a Class C citation at first, but staying put after a personal order to leave upgrades it to a Class A misdemeanor with jail exposure.¹¹

Why Get a License to Carry Anyway

Permitless carry did not make the LTC pointless. A few reasons to still get one:

A Texas LTC is honored in dozens of other states under reciprocity agreements maintained by DPS. Permitless carry stops at the Texas border; crossing into a license-required state without one can mean jail.¹⁷
Only LTC holders may carry concealed on public university and college campuses under Penal Code 46.03.
The LTC course requires four to six hours of classroom instruction, a written exam, and a shooting proficiency test. Permitless carry requires no training.¹⁸
The application fee for a new or renewed LTC is $40.

Certain law enforcement officers, judges, and other roles listed in Penal Code 46.15 are exempt from most carry restrictions and need neither an LTC nor permitless carry authority.¹⁹ If that might apply to you, read the statute directly, because the exemptions are specific.

1
Texas Legislature Online. Texas Code HB 1927 – Firearm Carry Act of 2021
2
State of Texas. Texas Code Penal Code 46.02 – Unlawful Carrying Weapons
3
State of Texas. Texas Code Penal Code 46.04 – Unlawful Possession of Firearm
4
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 922 – Unlawful Acts
5
GovInfo. Firearms Policy Coalition Inc. v. McCraw, Case 4:21-cv-01245
6
Texas State Law Library. Carry of Firearms – Gun Laws
7
State of Texas. Texas Government Code 411.172 – Eligibility
8
State of Texas. Texas Code Penal Code 46.03 – Places Weapons Prohibited
9
State of Texas. Texas Code Penal Code 12.34 – Third Degree Felony Punishment
10
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 930 – Possession of Firearms and Dangerous Weapons in Federal Facilities
11
State of Texas. Texas Code Penal Code 30.05 – Criminal Trespass
12
State of Texas. Texas Code Penal 30.06 – Trespass by License Holder With a Concealed Handgun
13
State of Texas. Texas Code Penal Code 30.07 – Trespass by License Holder With an Openly Carried Handgun
14
State of Texas. Texas Code Penal Code 9.31 – Self-Defense
15
State of Texas. Texas Code Penal Code 9.32 – Deadly Force in Defense of Person
16
State of Texas. Texas Code Penal Code 12.21 – Class A Misdemeanor
17
Texas Department of Public Safety. State Reciprocity Information
18
Texas Department of Public Safety. Application FAQs
19
State of Texas. Texas Code Penal Code 46.15 – Nonapplicability