◆ MASSACHUSETTS · CARRY LAW
Massachusetts.
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
No
Open, no permit
No
In a vehicle, no permit
No
Getting a permit
Yes, shall-issue
- Magazine capacity is capped here.
- A permit is required to buy a firearm, not just to carry one.
- This state has an extreme-risk protective order law.
◆ CARRYING HERE
What Massachusetts requires
The state's permit is the License to Carry Firearms, issued by your local licensing authority.
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.
No
You need a license to carry. Without one, possessing a firearm outside your home or business is the offense. Loaded or not.
Can I carry openly here without a permit?
No
No. The offense is possession without a license, so how you carry it makes no difference.
Can I keep a loaded handgun in my car without a permit?
No
No. The statute names a vehicle expressly. Having a firearm under your control in a car without a license is the same offense.
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
Shall-issue with a real catch: the authority must issue UNLESS it finds you unsuitable, and a first application requires a personal interview. Unsuitability is a judgment, not a checklist.
Can I get this state's permit if I live somewhere else?
Yes
Yes. A temporary non-resident license from the colonel of state police. It is the only route for a visitor, because Massachusetts recognizes no other state’s license.
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.
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. Carry the license and answer honestly if you are asked.
No duty-to-inform provision in Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, § 131Read at the Massachusetts Legislature ↗Checked 9 days ago
How we checked there is no such law
Read ch. 140 § 131 and ch. 269 § 10 on 2026-09-05. The licensing section and the carrying offense. Neither contains a notification or display-on-demand 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.
Required
Yes. You cannot buy a firearm at all without a license to carry or a firearm identification card. The same document that lets you carry is the one that lets you buy.
Is there a limit on magazine capacity here?
Only in some cases
10 rounds, and unlike most states POSSESSION itself is banned, not just buying and selling. A magazine that is merely yours can be the offense.
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.
Sometimes, check the city
Weak. Massachusetts has no general preemption statute, and municipalities regulate firearms locally. Licensing itself is run by your local authority. Check the city or town.
No general firearms preemption in Mass. Gen. LawsRead at the Massachusetts Legislature ↗Checked 9 days ago
How we checked there is no such law
Read ch. 140 § 131 on 2026-09-05, which vests licensing in “the licensing authority”. A local chief of police. Rather than in a state agency. A state that devolves the license itself to the municipality has not preempted the field.Does this state have a red-flag law?
An extreme risk protection order lets a court order firearms surrendered temporarily.
Yes, this state has one
Yes. Since 2018 a family or household member or a licensing authority may petition to suspend a person’s license and remove their firearms.
In force since August 17, 2018.
◆ RECIPROCITY
Permits Massachusetts honors
If you are visiting Massachusetts, this is whether your permit counts here.
Pick a state for the full answer with its citation, or find it in the grid below.
Not honored54
◆ RECIPROCITY, THE OTHER WAY
Where Massachusetts permits are honored
If you live in Massachusetts, this is where your permit travels.
Pick a state for the full answer with its citation, or find it in the grid below.
Honored31
Honored, with a condition1
Not honored21
Not settled1
◆ 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.
Prohibited
Prohibited. Massachusetts is one of the few states where a suppressor is unlawful for a private owner whatever the federal paperwork says.
Can I possess a short-barreled rifle here?
Legal
Lawful with the federal paperwork, but Massachusetts treats it as a HANDGUN. A rifle under 16 inches is not a “rifle” here, so it needs a License to Carry rather than an FID.
Can I possess a short-barreled shotgun here?
Prohibited
Prohibited. Federal registration does not make it lawful here.
Can I possess a machine gun here?
Federally, civilian possession is limited to pre-1986 registered transferables.
Prohibited
Prohibited for ordinary owners. Massachusetts issues a separate machine gun license, and only to firearms instructors and bona fide collectors. Federal registration alone does nothing.
Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, § 131(o); ch. 269, § 10(c)Read at the Massachusetts Legislature ↗Checked 9 days ago
Can I possess an AOW here?
Restricted
Treat as prohibited until you have checked. Massachusetts defines a “covert firearm” in terms that name pens, canes and wallets. The AOW category almost exactly, and a definition added in 2024 was not added for nothing.
Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, § 121 (“covert firearm”)Read at the Massachusetts Legislature ↗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
- your local licensing authority ↗
- ATF’s index
- Massachusetts firearm statutes ↗ (PDF)