Where Can You Not Carry Concealed in California?

Even with a valid California CCW permit, there are more than two dozen categories of places where you cannot carry a concealed firearm, and that is before federal restrictions enter the picture. Knowing where you can’t conceal carry in California matters because a single wrong step can cost you your permit and expose you to misdemeanor or felony charges. The current map was redrawn by Senate Bill 2 on January 1, 2024, then redrawn again by the Ninth Circuit in September 2024, which lifted some of the injunctions a lower court had placed on the new restrictions while leaving others in force.

Sensitive Places Where Carry Is Currently Illegal

Penal Code 26230 is the controlling state statute. Twenty of its categories are enforceable right now. Eleven of them were never blocked by any court; nine more came back into force after the Ninth Circuit’s ruling in May v. Bonta.¹ The California Department of Justice has confirmed the restrictions below are active for 2025.²

Schools, Childcare, and Youth Spaces

K-12 schools, public and private, including grounds, buildings, and the area within 1,000 feet of a school under Penal Code 626.9.
Colleges and universities, including all buildings, real property, and parking areas under their control.
Preschools and childcare facilities, including grounds and parking.
Playgrounds and youth centers designed primarily for children’s activities.

Government Buildings and Public Safety Facilities

State executive and legislative buildings.
Courthouses used for superior court, district court of appeal, or California Supreme Court proceedings, plus their parking areas.
Local government buildings, unless you are carrying for CCW training purposes.
Police stations and law enforcement property.
Jails, prisons, juvenile detention centers, and their grounds and parking areas.
Polling places during an election.
Property controlled by the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Transit, Travel, and Entertainment Venues

Airports and passenger vessel terminals. The ban covers the entire property, not just the sterile area past TSA screening.
Bars, restaurants serving alcohol for on-site consumption, and the surrounding property controlled by the business.
Casinos and licensed gambling establishments.
Stadiums, arenas, and large event venues.
Amusement parks, zoos, and museums.
Public libraries and their grounds.

Parks and Outdoor Spaces

Public parks and their grounds.
Athletic areas and facilities, including gyms and sports complexes.
Most property controlled by the California Department of Parks and Recreation or the Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Parking areas controlled by or adjacent to these locations are also restricted under Penal Code 26230.³ A vehicle storage exception softens that for most parking areas, covered further below.

Restrictions Currently Blocked by the Courts

Several categories that SB 2 added to Penal Code 26230 remain enjoined after the Ninth Circuit decision, so carrying in them is not currently a state crime. The injunctions are preliminary, meaning they can be lifted if the litigation ends differently, so track updates from the California DOJ before relying on this list long-term. The still-blocked categories include:

Hospitals, mental health facilities, nursing homes, medical offices, and urgent care centers.
Public transit vehicles, transit buildings, and transit parking areas.
Permitted public gatherings on public property, including sidewalks and streets within 1,000 feet.
Places of worship, unless the operator posts a sign allowing concealed carry.
Banks, credit unions, and other financial institutions, plus their parking areas.
The default rule that would have banned carry in all private commercial establishments open to the public unless the owner posted a sign expressly permitting it.

The Ninth Circuit left these injunctions in place after finding the state had not shown a sufficient historical tradition of restricting firearms in those settings.¹

Private Businesses and Posted Signs

Because the private-property default ban is enjoined, California currently runs on the opposite rule: you may carry on private commercial property unless the owner tells you otherwise. A business can bar firearms through signage or by direct communication. If a clear “no firearms” sign is posted and you enter anyway, you can be asked to leave and cited for trespassing. California regulations specify sign formats that reference Penal Code 26230, showing whether a given property allows or prohibits concealed carry.⁴

If the courts ultimately lift the injunction on the default ban, that rule flips. Every retail store, restaurant, and shopping center would become off-limits unless the owner posted a sign affirmatively allowing carry. This is the single provision most worth watching.

Storing Your Firearm in a Vehicle at a Restricted Location

Penal Code 26230(c) gives CCW holders a practical option when they need to enter a sensitive place. You may transport a concealed firearm through a parking area controlled by one of these locations, store it in your parked vehicle, or briefly carry it in the immediate area around your vehicle, but only to move it into or out of a lock box.

The firearm has to go into a lock box that appears on the California DOJ’s Roster of Firearm Safety Devices Certified for Sale. A lock box that was on the roster at the time of purchase still qualifies even if it later comes off the list.³ The ammunition and the firearm must be kept out of plain view inside the vehicle. This exception does not apply at every sensitive-place parking area the statute lists, so confirm the rule for the specific location before relying on it.

Federal Property, Where Your CCW Does Not Apply

Your California permit has no effect on federal restrictions. Federal law layers additional no-carry zones on top of state law, and the penalties stack.

Post Offices and Federal Buildings

Under 18 U.S.C. § 930, bringing a firearm into any federal facility where federal employees regularly work is a federal crime carrying up to one year in prison. A federal court facility raises that to two years, and up to five if prosecutors prove you intended to use the weapon in a crime.⁵

Post offices go further. The Postal Service regulation at 39 C.F.R. § 232.1 bans firearms on all postal property, parking lots included, whether carried openly or concealed.⁶ Federal courts have divided over whether that rule survives the Supreme Court’s 2022 Bruen decision, but it is still being enforced in most places.

Military Installations and VA Facilities

Military bases, recruiting centers, and other Department of Defense installations prohibit concealed carry. All Department of Veterans Affairs property, including VA hospitals, clinics, and grounds, is similarly off-limits under 38 C.F.R. § 1.218.⁷

Airport Sterile Areas

Everything past the TSA screening checkpoint is a firm no-carry zone under federal regulation.⁸ Civil penalties start at $3,000 and reach $17,062 for repeat offenses, on top of criminal referral to local law enforcement.⁹ You can still check an unloaded firearm in a locked, hard-sided container declared to the airline before check-in. Keep in mind that the state airport restriction in Penal Code 26230 covers the entire terminal property, so carrying anywhere in the airport, not just past security, violates state law.

National Parks in California

Federal law lets you possess a firearm in a national park as long as you follow the laws of the state the park sits in.¹⁰ Because California allows concealed carry with a valid permit, you can legally carry in Yosemite, Joshua Tree, and other national parks in the state.

Federal buildings within those parks are a different story. Visitor centers, ranger stations, and other federally operated structures remain subject to 18 U.S.C. § 930 and are marked with signs at their entrances. Discharging a firearm inside a national park unit is also prohibited.

Tribal Lands

California has 105 federally recognized tribes, and tribal sovereignty means your state CCW generally carries no weight on reservation land. Each tribe sets its own policy, and most California tribes either prohibit firearms or restrict them heavily. A few, including the Colorado River Indian Tribes, allow concealed carry with a permit.

If you are found with a firearm on tribal land without authorization, expect immediate confiscation and a required appearance in tribal court. Call the tribal government before traveling through a reservation. If you cannot confirm the policy, keep the firearm unloaded in a locked container in your trunk before you enter.

Amtrak

Amtrak has a nationwide firearms policy independent of state law. Firearms are not allowed in carry-on luggage. To transport one, you must check it in a locked, hard-sided container, declare it by calling Amtrak at least 24 hours before departure, and check it at the station at least 30 minutes before the train leaves. The firearm has to be unloaded, with ammunition in its original packaging or a container designed for it. Not every route or station offers checked baggage, so confirm before booking.¹¹

A Note on Law Enforcement Officers

Qualified active and retired officers have broader carry rights under the Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act, 18 U.S.C. § 926B.¹² LEOSA does not override state restrictions on carry at state or local government property, does not override a private owner’s right to prohibit weapons, and does not override 18 U.S.C. § 930 in federal facilities. A LEOSA-qualified officer in California is still barred from courthouses, government buildings, and other sensitive places.

What Happens If You Carry Somewhere You Shouldn’t

Carrying a concealed firearm in a state sensitive place under Penal Code 26230 is generally a misdemeanor. Aggravating factors, including a prior conviction for the same offense, carrying the firearm loaded, or being otherwise prohibited from possessing firearms, can push the charge to a felony. A conviction can also cost you your CCW permit, ending your carry privileges entirely.

Federal penalties run on their own track. Possession in a regular federal facility can bring up to one year in prison under 18 U.S.C. § 930, and up to two years in a federal court facility.⁵ A TSA checkpoint violation triggers a civil fine that can run into five figures plus criminal referral. These federal consequences sit on top of any state charges, so one mistake at the wrong location can mean prosecution in two systems at once.

1
Justia. May v. Bonta, No. 23-4356 (9th Cir. 2024)
2
California Department of Justice. Information Bulletin 2025-DLE-06 – Additional Restrictions on CCW License Holders Carrying Concealed Firearms in Certain Sensitive Places
3
California Legislative Information. California Code Penal Code 26230
4
Legal Information Institute. California Code of Regulations Title 11 Section 4440 – Signs Allowing Firearms on Private Property
5
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 930 – Possession of Firearms and Dangerous Weapons in Federal Facilities
6
eCFR. 39 CFR 232.1 – Conduct on Postal Property
7
eCFR. 38 CFR 1.218 – Security and Law Enforcement at VA Facilities
8
GovInfo. 49 CFR 1540.111 – Carriage of Weapons, Explosives, and Incendiaries by Individuals
9
Transportation Security Administration. Civil Enforcement
10
eCFR. 36 CFR 2.4 – Weapons, Traps and Nets
11
Amtrak. Firearms in Checked Baggage
12
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 926B – Carrying of Concealed Firearms by Qualified Law Enforcement Officers