How to Get a Concealed Carry Permit for All States
Carrying concealed almost everywhere you go (legally) is something that all Americans should practice. While it's easy enough to get a concealed carry permit in our home states, depending on where you live, your neighboring state may not recognize your concealed carry permit as valid and this means that even if you work or frequently visit the state because of its proximity to your home state, carrying a concealed firearm without a legal permit could get you into trouble. As of March of 2023, Florida just became the 26th state to establish a “constitutional carry” or permitless carry law into its books meaning that citizens of that state will no longer need to obtain a concealed carry permit to remain legal. However, despite a majority of the states in the USA now being permitless carry states, many will still require a valid CCW permit for out-of-state persons. Today we’ll give you guys a brief overview of how to accomplish this feat for a majority of the states within the USA so that no matter where you go, there will be a better chance you won’t have to leave your CCW at home.
Start with Your Home State
There is currently no single state permit that would allow you to carry in all 50 US states and just to get your expectations set straight, as far as I know, there is currently no way to get any combinations of concealed carry permits that would allow you to carry in all 50 dates anyway. The only exception to this rule granted to law enforcement officers is called the LEOSA (Law Enforcement Officers Security Act). This law grants active-duty LEOs a permit to legally carry a firearm in all states. Unfortunately (and unfairly, I might add) this is the same rule that is not granted even to law-abiding citizens.
That being said the best way to go about finding the right permits to get you the most coverage would be to start with your home state’s concealed carry license reciprocity. There are lots of tools online that can help you do this but the one I frequent most is from USA Carry as they have a handy tool that allows you to not only see which other states honor your concealed carry permit but also allow you see which permits from other states are honored by your home state or another state you’re planning on traveling to.
Optimize for the most Coverage
If you’re using the tool I mentioned above from USA Carry, you can pretty easily determine which permit you should get next which is almost always going to require some traveling. For example, in my home state of Oregon, my concealed carry permit only allows me to legally carry my home state but is only recognized by one other neighboring state - Idaho.
The next logical choice for me would be to get an Idaho Enhanced Non-Resident permit which would then increase my concealed carry coverage from just 23 states with an Oregon CCW, to 34 states which includes neighboring Nevada and Washington but still leaves out the State of California which much like Oregon, Illinois, Hawaii, New York, and New Jersey, doesn’t honor any other states Concealed carry permits.
When it comes to the recognition of certain other state concealed carry permits, a lot of states will only recognize resident permits and not non-resident permits. This makes states like Colorado only viable for people who can gain a concealed carry permit either in the state of Colorado or one of the 34 other states it has agreed to recognize CCW Resident permits from.
Talk to your Representatives
Although it seems like an insurmountable task to get the entire nation on board with the concept of constitutional carry, I think that the country overall is making significant progress in this regard. Vermont was technically the first state to allow for permitless or Constitutional Carry as its State Constitution forbids the regulation of carrying firearms either opened or concealed. Alaska adopted constitutional carry laws in 2003 and since then 24 other states have adopted similar laws which don't necessitate the need for a concealed carry license (at least for residents of that state).
Laws like this don’t get passed without significant backing by both politicians and law-abiding citizens who are not only able but willing to contact their state reps to have them vote in favor of these types of laws. I would strongly encourage all of you to participate in some way shape or form in 2nd amendment politics in your home state so that you can influence the firearms laws and regulations in your state. Beyond that, the best we can do for now is become licensed in our home states, and then seek out the states that will grant carry permits to non-residents so that you can keep your family, friends, and yourself safe across this great nation.
