In Minnesota, you are disqualified from owning a gun if you fall into any category listed in Section 624.713 of the state code or any of the nine federal prohibited-person categories under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g). The state list covers people convicted of a “crime of violence,” people with certain mental health or chemical dependency commitments, people with recent drug convictions, people subject to protection or harassment orders, people subject to extreme risk protection orders, people convicted of stalking, and anyone under 18 outside a few supervised settings. Federal law adds its own disqualifiers on top, and the two systems do not always match.
Minnesota’s State Disqualifiers
Section 624.713 lists more than a dozen categories of people who cannot possess a pistol, semiautomatic military-style assault weapon, or ammunition. Most of these also bar possession of any firearm.1Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 624.713 – Certain Persons Not To Possess Firearms
Age
Anyone under 18 is barred from possessing a pistol or semiautomatic military-style assault weapon. Narrow exceptions apply for direct parental supervision, approved military drill, use of an approved firing range under supervision, or completion of an approved marksmanship and safety course.
Crime of Violence Convictions
A conviction, juvenile adjudication, or extended jurisdiction juvenile conviction for a “crime of violence” — in Minnesota or an equivalent offense elsewhere — disqualifies you. Minnesota defines the term broadly. It reaches well beyond murder and assault to include robbery, kidnapping, domestic assault, criminal sexual conduct, certain drug offenses, first- or second-degree burglary, arson, terroristic threats, and many others.2Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 624.712 – Definitions
Mental Health Commitments
You are disqualified if you have ever been judicially committed as mentally ill, developmentally disabled, or mentally ill and dangerous, or if you were found incompetent to stand trial or not guilty by reason of mental illness. This disqualification stands unless a court has restored your firearm rights.
Controlled Substance Convictions and Commitments
A misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor drug conviction disqualifies you until three years have passed without another drug conviction. Judicial commitment for habitual use of a controlled substance or marijuana also disqualifies you, as does commitment to a treatment facility as chemically dependent, unless treatment has been completed or firearm rights have been restored.
Peace Officers in Voluntary Treatment
A peace officer who voluntarily enters a treatment facility for mental health or chemical dependency issues faces temporary restrictions during that admission.
Protection and Harassment Orders
An active qualifying order for protection or harassment restraining order prohibits firearm possession for as long as the order is in effect.
Stalking Convictions
A stalking conviction within the previous three years disqualifies you. A gross misdemeanor stalking conviction involving a firearm can carry a prohibition ranging from three years to a lifetime, depending on what the court determines.
Extreme Risk Protection Orders
Since 2024, anyone subject to an extreme risk protection order (ERPO) is barred from purchasing or possessing firearms for the duration of the order. Only specific people can petition for one: a chief law enforcement officer or designee, a city or county attorney, a family or household member, or the respondent’s guardian. Once issued, the order goes to local law enforcement within 24 hours and is entered into the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) within three business days. The respondent must surrender firearms while the order is active.3Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 624.7171 – Extreme Risk Protection Orders
Federal Disqualifiers That Also Apply
Federal law under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g) lists nine categories of prohibited persons. Some overlap with Minnesota’s list; several go further. The federal categories cover anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison, fugitives from justice, unlawful users of or people addicted to controlled substances, people adjudicated as mentally defective or committed to a mental institution, unauthorized immigrants, people dishonorably discharged from the military, people who have renounced U.S. citizenship, people subject to qualifying domestic violence restraining orders, and people convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence.4Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Identify Prohibited Persons
The federal domestic violence misdemeanor ban, known as the Lautenberg Amendment, catches people most often. A misdemeanor domestic assault conviction triggers a permanent federal firearm prohibition even where Minnesota law would not independently bar you. There is no expiration, and for most people in this category there is no federal restoration process.5U.S. Marshals Service. Lautenberg Amendment
Cannabis Users Are Federally Disqualified
Minnesota has legalized recreational cannabis, but marijuana remains a Schedule I controlled substance under federal law. Under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(3), anyone who is an “unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance” is federally barred from possessing a firearm or ammunition. Because federal law still treats marijuana as unlawful regardless of state legalization, current users face federal felony exposure by possessing firearms, punishable by up to 15 years in prison.6Congressional Research Service. The Second Amendment and Unlawful Users of Controlled Substances
The law here is unsettled. Several federal appeals courts have found that Section 922(g)(3) may violate the Second Amendment as applied to marijuana users, and the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear Hemani v. United States, which addresses the question directly. Until the Court rules, the federal prohibition remains enforceable. ATF Form 4473, which you complete when buying from a dealer, still asks whether you are an unlawful user of marijuana or any other controlled substance. Answering falsely is a separate federal felony.
Penalties for Possessing While Prohibited
Violating Minnesota’s possession prohibition is a gross misdemeanor carrying up to one year in jail and a $3,000 fine. The federal penalties for a prohibited person in possession are steeper, with cannabis-user cases carrying up to 15 years in prison.
Can You Get Your Firearm Rights Back?
Whether you can restore your rights depends on why you were disqualified. The line between a “crime of violence” and other felonies matters most.
Non-Violent Felonies
If your felony conviction is not classified as a crime of violence, Minnesota law automatically restores your civil rights, including firearm rights, when you are discharged from your sentence. Discharge happens when the court lifts a stay of sentence or when your sentence expires. The order of discharge restores you to full citizenship as if the conviction had not occurred.7Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609.165 – Restoration of Civil Rights; Possession of Firearms and Ammunition
Crimes of Violence
If your conviction is for a crime of violence, the discharge order must state that you cannot possess firearms or ammunition for the rest of your life. That lifetime ban is written into the statute and is not discretionary. You can petition the court under Section 609.165, subdivision 1d, to restore your firearm rights. The court may grant the petition if you show good cause and have been released from physical confinement. If the petition is denied, you must wait three years before filing again unless the court gives permission sooner.
Mental Health and Chemical Dependency Disqualifications
Section 624.713, subdivision 4 provides a process to petition the court to restore your rights after a mental health or chemical dependency commitment. This generally requires medical evidence that the condition that led to the commitment no longer poses a risk. For chemical dependency commitments, completing treatment also removes the prohibition.
Restraining Orders and ERPOs
When your disqualification is tied to an active restraining order or ERPO, the firearm prohibition lasts as long as the order does. You can challenge the underlying order with new evidence or changed circumstances, but there is no separate firearm restoration petition while the order is active. When an ERPO expires or is terminated, the court submits a request to remove it from the background check system.
p>Federal disqualifiers do not automatically clear when state rights are restored. The Lautenberg domestic violence misdemeanor ban in particular has no federal restoration path for most people, so a state-level restoration will not fix a federal problem on its own.