◆ KANSAS · CARRY LAW
Kansas.
Information, not legal advice. Confirm with the state before you carry.
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◆ 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 Kansas that most visitors get caught by, but read the answers below before you rely on that.
◆ CARRYING HERE
What Kansas requires
The state's permit is the Concealed Carry License, issued by the Kansas Attorney General.
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 21. Carrying concealed is only an offense below that age, and the licensing act says in terms that having licenses available does not prohibit carrying without one.
Can I carry openly here without a permit?
Yes
Yes, from 21, and Kansas says so expressly. The licensing act covers carrying “whether carried openly or concealed, or loaded or unloaded”.
Can I keep a loaded handgun in my car without a permit?
Yes
Yes, from 21, 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 Attorney General issues, and Kansas also offers a provisional license at 18. Worth having even though you do not need it here. It is what other states recognize.
Can I get this state's permit if I live somewhere else?
No
No. Kansas licenses its own residents. A visitor of 21 or over does not need one anyway.
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.
21
21 without a license. Kansas issues a provisional license at 18, so 18-to-20-year-olds have a route. It just is not the permitless one.
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 read here requires you to announce it. Answer honestly if you are asked.
No duty-to-inform provision found in Kan. Stat. § 21-6302Read at the Kansas Revisor of Statutes ↗Checked 9 days ago
How we checked there is no such law
Read § 21-6302 in full on 2026-09-06. The criminal carrying section, and § 75-7c03 through a secondary publisher. Neither contains a notification requirement.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.
No purchase-permit provision in Kan. Stat. § 21-6302Read at the Kansas Revisor of Statutes ↗Checked 9 days ago
How we checked there is no such law
Read § 21-6302 on 2026-09-06. Kansas licenses CARRYING and the section creates no permit to acquire.Is there a limit on magazine capacity here?
No limit
Kansas sets no cap on magazine capacity.
No magazine capacity provision in Kan. Stat. § 21-6302Read at the Kansas Revisor of Statutes ↗Checked 9 days ago
How we checked there is no such law
Read § 21-6302 in full on 2026-09-06. The criminal carrying section, which lists bludgeons, sandclubs, metal knuckles, throwing stars and tear gas devices, with nothing about magazines.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
Cities and counties may not regulate firearms. Kansas preempts the field.
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
Kansas has no extreme-risk protection order.
No extreme-risk order in Kansas lawRead at the Kansas Revisor of Statutes ↗Checked 9 days ago
How we checked there is no such law
Searched for a Kansas extreme-risk or red-flag order on 2026-09-06. Kansas protection-from-abuse and protection-from-stalking orders can reach firearms through federal prohibited-person rules, and no petition-based extreme-risk order exists alongside them.◆ RECIPROCITY
Permits Kansas honors
If you are visiting Kansas, 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 Kansas permits are honored
If you live in Kansas, 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 condition3
Not honored19
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.
No prohibition found in Kan. Stat. § 21-6302Read at the Kansas Revisor of Statutes ↗Checked 9 days ago
Can I possess a short-barreled rifle here?
Legal
Lawful with the federal paperwork.
No prohibition found in Kan. Stat. § 21-6302Read at the Kansas Revisor of Statutes ↗Checked 9 days ago
Can I possess a short-barreled shotgun here?
Legal
Lawful with the federal paperwork.
No prohibition found in Kan. Stat. § 21-6302Read at the Kansas Revisor of Statutes ↗Checked 9 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.
No prohibition found in Kan. Stat. § 21-6302Read at the Kansas Revisor of Statutes ↗Checked 9 days ago
Can I possess an AOW here?
Legal
Lawful with the federal paperwork.
No prohibition found in Kan. Stat. § 21-6302Read at the Kansas Revisor of Statutes ↗Checked 9 days ago
◆ 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
- the Kansas Attorney General ↗
- ATF’s index
- Kansas firearm statutes ↗ (PDF)