◆ IDAHO · CARRY LAW
Idaho.
Information, not legal advice. Confirm with the state before you carry.
Kept in this browser only. Never sent to us.
◆ THE SHORT ANSWEREvery tile below is one of the answers further down this page, with its citation.
Concealed, no permit
Yes
Open, no permit
Yes
In a vehicle, no permit
Yes
Getting a permit
Yes, shall-issue
Nothing in Idaho that most visitors get caught by, but read the answers below before you rely on that.
◆ CARRYING HERE
What Idaho requires
The state's permit is the Concealed Weapons License, issued by your county sheriff.
Carrying without a permit3
Can I carry concealed here without a permit?
Permitless or "constitutional" carry. "Limited" means some adults qualify and others do not. Read the qualifier.
Yes
Yes, from 18, anywhere in the state. Including inside city limits. You must be a US citizen or serving in the armed forces, and not disqualified from a license.
Can I carry openly here without a permit?
Yes
Yes, from 18. Idaho regulates concealed carry only. Openly carried, a weapon is outside the offense entirely.
Can I keep a loaded handgun in my car without a permit?
Yes
Yes, from 18, on the same terms as on foot.
Permits and age3
If I want this state's permit, will they issue one?
Shall-issue means the state must issue to any qualified applicant. May-issue leaves it to an official's discretion.
Yes, shall-issue
The sheriff SHALL issue. There are two licenses. The standard one and an “enhanced” version other states are more likely to recognize.
Can I get this state's permit if I live somewhere else?
Yes
Yes, though a visitor rarely needs one. Idaho’s permitless rule covers any US citizen 18 or older, resident or not.
How old do I have to be to carry here?
The floor for the least restrictive lawful route. Where permitless and permit ages differ, the qualifier says so.
18
18, for concealed and open alike.
If an officer stops you1
Do I have to tell an officer I am armed?
"Required" means you must volunteer it on contact. "On request" means only when asked.
Not required
No statute requires you to announce it. Answer honestly if you are asked.
No duty-to-inform provision in Idaho Code § 18-3302Read at the Idaho Legislature ↗Checked 10 days ago
How we checked there is no such law
Read § 18-3302 on 2026-09-06. The concealed-weapons section, which runs to more than twenty subsections and is where such a duty would sit. No notification or display-on-demand requirement appears in it.Buying and owning2
Do I need a state-issued card just to own or buy a firearm here?
Illinois' FOID is the main example. Distinct from a carry permit.
Not required
No permit or license to buy, and no state waiting period. A dealer sale runs the federal background check.
No purchase-permit provision in Idaho Code tit. 18, ch. 33Read at the Idaho Legislature ↗Checked 10 days ago
How we checked there is no such law
Read chapter 33’s section list on 2026-09-06. It licenses CARRYING and, at § 18-3315, expressly permits non-residents to buy rifles and shotguns in Idaho. A provision that presumes no acquisition permit exists.Is there a limit on magazine capacity here?
No limit
Idaho sets no cap on magazine capacity.
No magazine capacity provision in Idaho Code tit. 18, ch. 33Read at the Idaho Legislature ↗Checked 10 days ago
How we checked there is no such law
Read chapter 33’s section list and §§ 18-3302 and 18-3302J on 2026-09-06. Nothing addresses magazine capacity, and § 18-3302J preempts the entire field from local regulation, so a city cap could not fill the gap.How the state governs guns2
Can a city here write its own gun rules on top of the state's?
Full preemption means state law is the only law. Partial means some cities may go further. Check locally.
No, state law is the only law
The legislature wholly occupies the field. No county, city, agency or board may regulate firearms except as a state statute expressly allows.
Does this state have a red-flag law?
An extreme risk protection order lets a court order firearms surrendered temporarily.
No, none in this state
Idaho has no extreme-risk protection order.
No extreme-risk order in Idaho lawRead at the Idaho Legislature ↗Checked 10 days ago
How we checked there is no such law
Read chapter 33’s section list on 2026-09-06, forty-plus sections on firearms, explosives and deadly weapons, with no petition-based risk order among them. Idaho’s preemption section § 18-3302J also forecloses a local one.◆ RECIPROCITY
Permits Idaho honors
If you are visiting Idaho, this is whether your permit counts here.
Pick a state for the full answer with its citation, or find it in the grid below.
Honored54
◆ RECIPROCITY, THE OTHER WAY
Where Idaho permits are honored
If you live in Idaho, this is where your permit travels.
Pick a state for the full answer with its citation, or find it in the grid below.
Honored30
Honored, with a condition5
Not honored17
Not settled2
◆ NFA ITEMS
Suppressors and NFA legality
Federal registration is required everywhere these are legal. A state can prohibit them regardless, and several do.
Can I possess a suppressor here?
Federal NFA registration is required everywhere it is legal. State law can prohibit it regardless.
Legal
Lawful with the federal paperwork. Idaho has no suppressor ban of its own.
No suppressor prohibition in Idaho Code tit. 18, ch. 33Read at the Idaho Legislature ↗Checked 10 days ago
Can I possess a short-barreled rifle here?
Legal
Lawful with the federal paperwork.
No short-barrel prohibition in Idaho Code tit. 18, ch. 33Read at the Idaho Legislature ↗Checked 10 days ago
Can I possess a short-barreled shotgun here?
Legal
Lawful with the federal paperwork.
No short-barrel prohibition in Idaho Code tit. 18, ch. 33Read at the Idaho Legislature ↗Checked 10 days ago
Can I possess a machine gun here?
Federally, civilian possession is limited to pre-1986 registered transferables.
Legal
Lawful with the federal paperwork. Idaho adds no machine gun ban of its own.
No machine gun prohibition in Idaho Code tit. 18, ch. 33Read at the Idaho Legislature ↗Checked 10 days ago
How we checked there is no such law
Read chapter 33’s section list on 2026-09-06. The chapter covering firearms, explosives and other deadly weapons, and found no machine gun, automatic weapon or short-barrel prohibition among its sections.Can I possess an AOW here?
Legal
Lawful with the federal paperwork. Idaho does not legislate on these categories at all.
◆ SOURCES
Where this comes from
This is information, not legal advice. Gun law changes often and the penalty for getting it wrong is criminal. Confirm every answer with the state before you carry there.
- The authority
- your county sheriff ↗
- ATF’s index
- Idaho firearm statutes ↗ (PDF)