Source: https://www.shooting.org/laws/georgia
Timestamp: 2020-08-09 02:34:20
Document Index: 293212950

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 16', '§ 1', '§ 4', '§ 16', '§ 3', '§ 16', '§ 5', '§ 16', '§ 16', '§ 8', '§ 42', '§ 3']

Georgia Gun Laws and GA Concealed Carry CCW – Shooting.org
The State of Georgia does not mandate its residents who are willing to purchase firearms. However, a permit to carry is necessary in the case of handguns. Any individual under the age of 18 will not be eligible to carry a handgun. It is also illegal to sell guns to individuals under the age of 18; appropriate permits need to be acquired by the individual. The Georgia state Firearms license is valid across 30 states in the US.
Georgia is a small state that is quite lenient with the existing gun-carrying laws. Moreover, while the State supports concealed gun-carrying, open carry is also allowed in some instances.
Here are the current rules and regulations concerning gun-carrying in Georgia.
The State supports the Shall-Issue gun-carrying jurisdictions. For a civilian, the minimum gun-carrying age is 21 years, whereas, for someone in the military, it is 18 years. The Probate court of Georgia handles the resident-specific permits. However, if a person is looking to keep a firearm within the residential premises, no permission is necessary.
The supported cases or regions include carrying guns during hunting, unloaded firearms, and carrying guns in the place of entrepreneurship, provided the owner is doing the same. While we have discussed the age-specific requirements for getting a gun-carrying permit, the person must have US residence backing his or her application. Moreover, if a person is looking to renew his or her license, the existing weapon license shouldn’t have been revoked in the past three years. The individual must also abide by the requirements of federal law.
Georgia CCW Handgun Requirements
HANDGUN REQUIREMENTS:
The individuals willing to carry a handgun must abide by the below criteria:
The applicant must be a minimum of 21 years of age to get a permit or possess a handgun.
Must not be convicted of any type of felony in the recent 5 years
Must not be a convict of a misdemeanor act of crime in the past five years.
Must not have carried any unlawful weapons in the past three years.
Must not be a convict of any kind of charges that is related to drug abuse.
Only residents of the state are permitted to apply for a permit.
CCW HANDGUN APPLICATION
To carry a CCW firearm, an individual must apply for a permit by following the below guidelines:
The first step is to submit an application form, by providing basic information that is valid.
The individual must visit their county probate court and submit a Weapons Carry License application.
Next, the application may have to pay the required application fee following which the background verification will take place.
All in-service officers can apply for the permit by submitting the proof of service.
Other resident applicants will have to submit any one of those proof of residence (Georgia Driving License or identification card) that shows their local address
In not a US citizen the applicant will have to submit proof of your U.S. legal residency
Upon submitting the application form, fingerprint and background verification needs to be completed.
After successful verification permit is issued to the applicant which is valid for 5 years
Handgun Renewal Process
Gun renewals in the state of Georgia must be done once in five years. This process is much similar to the new application process. But in the renewal process, there is no need for fingerprint verification if the application is submitted either 90 days prior to expiration or 30 days after expiration of the current permit.
An applicant may also get a temporary permit, while the renewal process is in-progress.
A license fee of USD 75 must be paid for license processing and fingerprint verification. The cost is subject to change based on the county.
Georgia CCW Basics
As per Georgia Gun laws "There is nothing" that indicates an individual to inform the officials when approached for an enquiry regarding the possession of a firearm. But it is a must to carry the firearm permit along with you all times if you are carrying the firearm with you. It is a right to possess a firearm with an appropriate permit.
When a “No Firearm” sign is displayed, it does not have the force of law, but when it is over any property which purposefully indicates that it is a state law and it is an offence to carry firearms
Georgia gun laws permit any individual with a valid permit to carry the firearm in the vehicle. If it is a long gun, it is a must to unload the gun and keep them visible in the vehicle, while in case of short guns, they must be unloaded and enclosed inside a case.
As per Georgia gun laws, any individual possessing a "GEORGIA WEAPON LICENSE" can legally carry weapons and firearms openly in hand, vehicle or to the place of work.
Georgia Gun Forms & Supporting Documentation
Issuing Authority WCL Information
WCL Application
Issuing Authority FAQs
2nd Authority FAQs
State Reciprocity (DPS)
State Reciprocity (AG)
A state permit is not required to possess a shotgun, rifle, or handgun.
It is illegal to furnish a handgun to any person under the age of 18 and is illegal to possess a handgun if under 18, as well. Minors may possess a handgun if furnished by a parent or legal guardian while attending a hunter education or firearms safety course, while engaged in practice or target shooting at an established shooting range that is authorized in the jurisdiction where it is located, while engaged in practice or organized competition or practicing for a performance by a group organized under 26 U.S.C. 501 (c) (3); legal fishing and hunting with permission from the landowner, and carried if loaded, only in the open, fully exposed, traveling to and from the above activities if not loaded; or on real property that is under the control of the minor’s parent, legal guardian or grandparent, with the permission from the minor’s parent or legal guardian to possess the handgun. These exceptions are not applicable if the minor has been convicted of a forcible crime or or has been adjudicated delinquent for an offense which would constitute a forcible crime.
It is illegal to transport, receive, or possess any firearm if convicted of a felony.
Until an instant criminal history background check has been completed by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, no gun dealer may sell or deliver any handgun to another person unless they are a licensed importer, licensed manufacturer, licensed dealer or licensed collector. Required information for the background check must include, one photo identification, name, birth date, gender, race, social security or other identification number of the transferee or buyer. A fee of $5.00 must be collected for the cost of each background check. Antique firearms, or any replicas of firearms or curios as defined by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, are exempt and permit holders licensed to carry a pistol are exempt from the instant background check.
It is illegal to carry a concealable firearm or handgun whether openly or concealed, on or about one’s person without a license to carry.
1. To carry a firearm, in a person’s residence or place of business, either openly or concealed.
2. To transport an unloaded firearm, in a case that is separated from the ammunition, and the possessor may legally obtain a license to carry.
3. To transport a firearm that is loaded in a private motor vehicle, provided it is fully exposed to view, or is stored in the glove compartment of the vehicle, console, or similar compartment.
4. To carry a firearm while engaged in sport shooting, hunting, or fishing while possessing the required permits for these activities and the written permission from the land owner on which the activity is conducted, provided a handgun is carried in an open manner.
A license to carry allows a handgun to be carried on or about the person either openly or in certain concealed positions, limited to: a shoulder holster, a waist belt holster, any other holster, hip grip or similar carrying apparatus whereby the handgun would be concealed by the clothing of a person, a handbag, briefcase, purse, other closed container, or in any location in a motor vehicle. “Carrying on the person in a concealed manner other than as provided herein shall be a violation.”
The license to carry is valid for five years and is obtained by application under oath to the judge of the probate court of the county of domicile of the applicant. A $20.00 fee is payable upon application. Georgia law specifically provides that the application form “shall not require non-pertinent nor irrelevant data” from the applicant “such as serial numbers or other identification capable of being used as a de facto registration of firearms owned by the applicant.”
A license will not be issued to:
1. Any person under the age of 21.
2. Any person who is a felon, is a fugitive from justice, or has pending charges of a forcible misdemeanor or weapons violations against him/her.
3. Any convicted felon who has not been granted a pardon by an agency or person empowered to do so, including the President, or the States Board of Pardons and Paroles.
4. Any person who has been convicted of a forcible misdemeanor and who is currently still under supervision or has not been free of supervision for a period of at least five years.
5. Any person who has been previously convicted of a weapons carrying violation, and has not been free of supervision for the past three years.
6. Any person who has undergone inpatient treatment in a mental hospital or a drug or alcohol treatment facility in the past five years from the date of application.
7. Any person who has been convicted of a drug offense involving a controlled substance or of another dangerous drug-related offense.
An applicant must first submit an application that will be reviewed by a judge. After receiving the application, the applicant must be fingerprinted by a designated law enforcement agency that may charge a fee of $5.00. The law enforcement agency will conduct a background criminal check at both the federal and state levels and report any negative findings to the judge within 30 days. If there is no derogatory information that bears on the applicant’s eligibility, a report will not be required. If the judge determines that an applicant has met the qualifications necessary to obtain a license, and is of “good moral character” and no derogatory information is reported to the contrary, a license shall be issued within 10 days of the judge receiving the report. The judge will exercise discretion over granting the license to any person who has been hospitalized for mental illness or has been in an alcohol or drug treatment program within the past five years of the application, based on recommendations from the superintendent of the hospital or treatment program. The applicant will be charged a $3.00 fee to cover costs associated with obtaining a report.
Georgia offers reciprocity for the purposes of carrying, to any person who is not a resident of the state but possesses a permit to carry in any other state that recognizes Georgia handgun laws and operates within these same constraints.
A sport shooting range, whether public or private will not be considered a nuisance if the range has been in operation for a period of one year or more, and conditions surrounding the range have changed. Any expansion of the range or expansion of the types of firearms used at the range does not change or establish a new date for the commencement of operations.
Georgia Concealed Carry Reciprocity
Georgia's Reciprocity States
It is shall be deemed unlawful to: point a firearm at any other person; shoot any firearm within a distance of 50 yards of a highway or street that is public; discharge a firearm without a property owner’s permission on his/her property, while hunting; possess a firearm while engaged in the commission of a crime, use any gun in a way that endangers another human being; discharge a firearm if impaired due to alcohol or drugs.
It is illegal to possess or carry a firearm within 1000 feet of a school, school bus, or other school sponsored transportation, or at any function sponsored by the school, unless a school official has authorized such in writing. This does not apply to: any sport shooting event that is organized, any training course involving firearms, any person picking up a student that is licensed to carry a firearm, any firearm that is lawfully stored in a vehicle by a person other than a student, while traveling through a school zone, or any firearm that is stored in a compartment that is locked in a motor vehicle, or in a locked firearms rack in a vehicle, driven by an adult over the age of 21 for the purpose of transporting a student to or from school. Any person living within 1000 feet of the school or visiting a person who resides within 1000 feet of the school, or is doing business that is lawful within this distance, is not subject to the restrictions associated with school boundaries.
The sale, transport, possession, purchase, licensure or registration of firearms may not be regulated in any manner by the county, or any municipal corporation, zoning ordinance, resolution or enactment. This shall also apply to any components of firearms. No county or municipal corporation, by zoning or by ordinance, resolution, or other enactment, shall regulate in any manner gun shows, the possession, ownership, transport, carrying, transfer, sale, purchase, licensing, or registration of firearms, components of firearms, firearms dealers, or dealers in firearms components.
The state reserves the authority to file suit against any manufacturer of firearms or ammunition or any trade association or dealer, on behalf of any agency, or governmental unit, pursuant to the Act of the General Assembly for damages, or relief resulting from the design, manufacture, marketing, or sale of firearms or ammunition to the public. The above paragraph is not meant to prohibit a local government or political subdivision thereof from bringing legal action against a firearms manufacturer or maker of ammunition for breach of contract or warranty on any firearms or ammunition purchased by the local government or political subdivision.
An employer, whether private or public, including the state and its political subdivisions may not prohibit an employee or refuse to hire a prospective employee for storing a firearm in his/her private locked vehicle in a compartment locked and out of sight, such as a glove compartment, trunk, or other enclosed compartment, in the company parking lot, as long as appropriate firearms licenses are possessed. There are exceptions to this if a certified law enforcement officer deems it necessary to search a vehicle, with a valid search warrant, on company premises, based on probable cause, or if a vehicle is leased or owned by the employer, or in a situation where there is reason to believe that there is a necessity to access an employee vehicle that is locked to prevent an immediate threat to any person’s life, health, or safety, when a licensed, private security officer is given permission by the employee to search his/her private vehicle and has probable cause to believe that there may be property owned by the company, taken illegally and stored in the vehicle. The above rule does not apply in areas where an employer provides employees with a secure parking lot, not for use by the public through the use of a gate, security station, or security officers, any facility used for confinement, such as, a prison, jail, detention facility, correctional institution, diversion center, or penal institution. The following locations are also exempt from the above rule: facilities where electric generators are housed, U.S. Department of Defense contractors are on the premises where it is connected or contiguous with any U.S. military base or installation or within one mile of any airport; where an employee is prohibited from carrying a firearm on the grounds of the employer due to a disciplinary decision, whether completed or pending, parking lots connected with facilities that transmit natural gas, liquid petroleum, water supply and storage, and law enforcement vital to the state of Georgia as determined in writing by the Georgia Department of Homeland Security and any area that is used for parking on a temporary basis.
Georgia Off Limit Statue
§ 16-11-126 - Federal Law
(g) Notwithstanding Code Sections 12-3-10, 27-3-1.1, 27-3-6, and 16-12-122 through 16-12-127, any person with a valid weapons carry license may carry a weapon in all parks, historic sites, or recreational areas, as such term is defined in Code Section 12-3-10, including all publicly owned buildings located in such parks, historic sites, and recreational areas, in wildlife management areas, and on public transportation;
provided, however, that a person shall not carry a handgun into a place where it is prohibited by federal law.
History - Ga. L. 2017, p. 8, § 1/HB 406; Ga. L. 2017, p. 555, § 4/HB 292.
§ 16-11-127 - Off Limit Areas
(c) A license holder or person recognized under subsection (e) of Code Section 16-11-126 shall be authorized to carry a weapon as provided in Code Section 16-11-135 and in every location in this state not listed in subsection (b) or prohibited by subsection (e) of this Code section; provided, however, that private property owners or persons in legal control of private property through a lease, rental agreement, licensing agreement, contract, or any other agreement to control access to such private property shall have the right to exclude or eject a person who is in possession of a weapon or long gun on their private property, in accordance with paragraph (3) of subsection (b) of Code Section 16-7-21, except as provided in Code Section 16-11-135. A violation of subsection (b) of this Code section shall not create or give rise to a civil action for damages
(2) To a license holder who approaches security or management personnel upon arrival at a location described in subsection (b) of this Code section and notifies such security or management personnel of the presence of the weapon or long gun and explicitly follows the security or management personnel's direction for removing, securing, storing, or temporarily surrendering such weapon or long gun; and (3) To a weapon or long gun possessed by a license holder which is under the possessor's control in a motor vehicle or is in a locked compartment of a motor vehicle or one which is in a locked container in or a locked firearms rack which is on a motor vehicle and such vehicle is parked in a parking facility.
(e) (1) A license holder shall be authorized to carry a weapon in a government building when the government building is open for business and where ingress into such building is not restricted or screened by security personnel. A license holder who enters or attempts to enter a government building carrying a weapon where ingress is restricted or screened by security personnel shall be guilty of a misdemeanor if at least one member of such security personnel is certified as a peace officer pursuant to Chapter 8 of Title 35; provided, however, that a license holder who immediately exits such building or immediately leaves such location upon notification of his or her failure to clear security due to the carrying of a weapon shall not be guilty of violating this subsection or paragraph
(1) of subsection (b) of this Code section. A person who is not a license holder and who attempts to
enter a government building carrying a weapon shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
(2) Any license holder who violates subsection (b) of this Code section in a place of worship shall
not be arrested but shall be fined not more than $100.00. Any person who is not a license holder who
violates subsection (b) of this Code section in a place of worship shall be punished as for a
(f) Nothing in this Code section shall in any way operate or be construed to affect, repeal, or limit the
exemptions provided for under Code Section 16-11-130.
History - Ga. L. 2015, p. 805, § 3/HB 492.
§ 16-11-127.1. - Carrying Weapons within School Safety Zones, at School Functions, or on a Bus or other Transportation Furnished by a School
(6) A person who has been authorized in writing by a duly authorized official of a public or private elementary or secondary school or a public or private technical school, vocational school, college, Section 16-11-130.1 to have in such person's possession or use within a school safety zone, at a school function, or on a bus or other transportation furnished by a school a weapon which would otherwise be prohibited by this Code section. Such authorization shall specify the weapon or weapons which have been authorized and the time period during which the authorization is valid;
(7) A person who is licensed in accordance with Code Section 16-11-129 or issued a permit pursuant to Code Section 43-38-10, when such person carries or picks up a student within a school safety zone, at a school function, or on a bus or other transportation furnished by a school or a person who is licensed in accordance with Code Section 16-11-129 or issued a permit pursuant to Code Section 43-38-10 when he or she has any firearm legally kept within a vehicle when such vehicle is parked within a school safety zone or is in transit through a designated school safety zone;
which is in a locked compartment of a motor vehicle or one which is in a locked container in or a locked
firearms rack which is on a motor vehicle which is being used by an adult over 21 years of age to bring to
or pick up a student within a school safety zone, at a school function, or on a bus or other transportation
furnished by a school, or when such vehicle is used to transport someone to an activity being conducted
within a school safety zone which has been authorized by a duly authorized official or local board of
education as provided by paragraph (6) of this subsection; provided, however, that this exception shall
not apply to a student attending a public or private elementary or secondary school;
(19) Any person who is 18 years of age or older or currently enrolled in classes on the campus in question and carrying, possessing, or having under such person's control an electroshock weapon while in or on any building or real property owned by or leased to such public technical school, vocational school, college or university or other public institution of postsecondary education; provided, however, that, if such person makes use of such electroshock weapon, such use shall be in defense of self or others. The exemption under this paragraph shall apply only to such person in regard to such electroshock weapon. As used in this paragraph, the term 'electroshock weapon' means any commercially available device that is powered by electrical charging units and designed exclusively to be capable of incapacitating a person by electrical charge, including, but not limited to, a stun gun or taser as defined in subsection (a)of Code Section 16-11-106;
History - Ga. L. 2017, p. 555, § 5/HB 292.
§ 16-11-127.1. - Carry on Campus
(i) Not apply to buildings or property used for athletic sporting events or student housing, including, but
not limited to, fraternity and sorority houses;
(vi) Only apply to the carrying of handguns which a licensee is licensed to carry pursuant to subsection
(e) of Code Section 16-11-126 and pursuant to Code Section 16-11-129; and
(i) “Concealed” means carried in such a fashion that does not actively solicit the attention of others and is not prominently, openly, and intentionally displayed except for purposes of defense of self or others. Such term shall include, but not be limited to, carrying on one's person while such handgun is substantially, but not necessarily completely, covered by an article of clothing which is worn by such person, carrying within a bag of a nondescript nature which is being carried about by such person, or carrying in any other fashion as to not be clearly discernible by the passive observation of others. (ii) “Preschool or childcare space” means any room or continuous collection of rooms or any enclosed outdoor facilities which are separated from other spaces by an electronic mechanism or human-staffed point of controlled access and designated for the provision of preschool or childcare services, including, but not limited to, preschool or childcare services licensed or regulated under Article 1 of Chapter 1A of Title 20.
(2) The real property was being used for other purposes besides school purposes at the time of the
§ 16-11-130.2. - Airports
(a) No person shall enter the restricted access area of a commercial service airport, in or beyond the airportsecurity screening checkpoint, knowingly possessing or knowingly having under his or her control a weapon or long gun. Such area shall not include an airport drive, general parking area, walkway, or shops and areas of the terminal that are outside the screening checkpoint and that are normally open to unscreened passengers or visitors to the airport. Any restricted access area shall be clearly indicated by prominent signs indicating that weapons are prohibited in such area.
(b) A person who is not a license holder and who violates this Code section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. A license holder who violates this Code section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor; provided, however, that a license holder who is notified at the screening checkpoint for the restricted access area that he or she is in possession of a weapon or long gun and who immediately leaves the restricted access area following such notification and completion of federally required transportation security screening procedures
shall not be guilty of violating this Code section.
History - Ga. L. 2017, p. 555, § 8/HB 292.
§ 42-4-13 - Jail/Prison Guard Line
(d)(2) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (3) of this subsection, any person who violates subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) of this subsection shall be guilty of a felony and, upon conviction thereof, shall be imprisoned for not less than one nor more than five years. Any person who violates subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) of this subsection shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.. (j) Perimeter guard lines shall be established at every jail by the jailer thereof. Such guard lines shall be clearly marked by signs on which shall be plainly stamped or written: 'Guard line of __________.' Signs shall also be placed at all entrances and exits for vehicles and pedestrians at the jail and at such intervals along the guard lines as will reasonably place all persons approaching the guard lines on notice of the location of the jail.
History - Ga. L. 2017, p. 673, § 3-1/SB 149.
Georgia Gun Laws & Regulations