In Florida, carrying a concealed firearm no longer requires a license. Since July 1, 2023, any adult who meets the state’s concealed-carry eligibility criteria can carry a concealed handgun in most public places without applying for a permit. The eligibility rules did not change; only the requirement to hold the paper license did. Carrying while ineligible remains a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison, so who qualifies matters just as much as it did before.
Who Can Carry Without a License
Under Florida Statutes 790.01, you may carry a concealed firearm if you either hold a Concealed Weapon or Firearm License (CWFL) or satisfy the eligibility requirements for one.1Justia Law. Florida Statutes 790.01 – Carrying of Concealed Weapons or Concealed Firearms You do not have to apply. If you could qualify, you can carry.
The criteria come from the licensing standards in Florida Statutes 790.06(2):2Justia Law. Florida Statutes 790.06 – License to Carry Concealed Weapon or Firearm
- You must be at least 21. Active-duty military and honorably discharged veterans may carry at 18.
- You must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident alien.
- You cannot have a felony conviction anywhere, unless your civil rights and firearm authority have been restored.
- You cannot have a controlled-substance conviction within the past three years.
- You cannot have chronic alcohol or drug use that impairs your normal faculties.
- You cannot be subject to an active injunction for domestic violence or repeat violence.
- You cannot have been adjudicated incapacitated or involuntarily committed to a mental institution without a later restoration of rights.
- You cannot be prohibited from possessing a firearm under any other state or federal law.
If you carry under this rule rather than with a license, you must have valid identification on you and show it to law enforcement upon request.3Florida Senate. House Bill 543 (2023) The same location restrictions that apply to license holders apply to you. In a prosecution, the state has to prove both that you lacked a license and that you were ineligible for one.1Justia Law. Florida Statutes 790.01 – Carrying of Concealed Weapons or Concealed Firearms
Where You Cannot Carry
Permitless carry and a CWFL share the same off-limits list. Violating it is a second-degree misdemeanor.2Justia Law. Florida Statutes 790.06 – License to Carry Concealed Weapon or Firearm Florida Statutes 790.06(12) prohibits concealed firearms in:
- Police stations, sheriff’s offices, and highway patrol stations
- Courthouses, jails, and prisons (a judge may authorize carry in his or her own courtroom)
- Meetings of a county commission, school board, city council, special district, or the state Legislature
- Polling places
- Elementary and secondary school buildings, administration buildings, and career centers
- College and university facilities (though defensive stun guns are allowed for students, employees, and faculty)
- School, college, or professional athletic events not related to firearms
- The portion of any establishment licensed to serve alcohol that is primarily devoted to on-premises drinking
- Airport passenger terminals and sterile areas (an encased firearm may be brought in to check as luggage)
- Any location where federal law prohibits firearms
Private property owners can also prohibit firearms on their premises. If an owner or manager asks you to leave because you are armed and you refuse, you could face trespassing charges. Florida law does prevent employers from banning firearms locked out of sight inside employees’ vehicles in workplace parking lots.
Federal Buildings Are Off-Limits Even Where State Law Would Allow Carry
Federal law adds a layer that applies everywhere. Under 18 U.S.C. § 930, possessing a firearm in any building owned or leased by the federal government where federal employees regularly work is a federal crime punishable by up to one year in prison, or up to two years in a federal courthouse.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 930 – Possession of Firearms and Dangerous Weapons in Federal Facilities Post offices and their parking lots, VA hospitals, Social Security offices, federal courthouses, and military bases all fall under this rule.
Penalties for Carrying While Ineligible
If you carry a concealed firearm without a license and without meeting the eligibility criteria, you commit a third-degree felony. The maximum sentence is five years in prison, five years of probation, and a $5,000 fine.1Justia Law. Florida Statutes 790.01 – Carrying of Concealed Weapons or Concealed Firearms A concealed weapon other than a firearm, such as a knife or club, carried by an ineligible person is a first-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine.
A felony conviction for unlawful concealed carry cascades. The conviction itself makes you permanently ineligible to possess firearms under both state and federal law unless your rights are later restored, and it affects employment, housing, and credit.
Carrying in a prohibited location, whether you have a license or not, is a second-degree misdemeanor punishable by up to 60 days in jail and a $500 fine.2Justia Law. Florida Statutes 790.06 – License to Carry Concealed Weapon or Firearm
Felon in Possession
Anyone convicted of a felony in any jurisdiction is barred from owning or possessing a firearm, ammunition, or electric weapon in Florida. A violation is a second-degree felony carrying up to 15 years in prison, or a first-degree felony punishable by up to life if a gang enhancement applies.5Justia Law. Florida Statutes 790.23 – Felons and Delinquents; Possession of Firearms, Ammunition, or Electric Weapons or Devices Unlawful The prohibition lifts only if civil rights and firearm authority are restored or the record is expunged. Restoration requires a separate proceeding through the Florida Office of Executive Clemency.
Carrying During Another Felony
Florida’s 10-20-Life law imposes mandatory minimum prison sentences when a firearm is involved in certain serious felonies, including murder, robbery, burglary, aggravated battery, kidnapping, carjacking, drug trafficking, and others.6Florida Senate. Florida Statutes 775.087 – Possession or Use of Weapon; Aggravated Battery; Felony Reclassification; Minimum Sentence Possessing a firearm during a listed felony triggers a 10-year minimum; discharging one triggers 20 years; causing death or great bodily harm triggers 25 years to life. Judges have almost no discretion below these floors.
Carrying a Firearm in a Vehicle
Florida provides a separate vehicle-carry pathway that reaches people who do not qualify for concealed carry. Under Florida Statutes 790.25(4), anyone 18 or older who lawfully possesses a handgun may keep it inside a private vehicle so long as it is “securely encased” or otherwise not readily accessible for immediate use.7Florida Senate. 2025 Florida Statutes Chapter 790
“Securely encased” is defined broadly. Any of the following qualifies:
- A glove compartment, whether locked or not
- A snapped holster
- A gun case, whether locked or not
- A zippered gun case
- A closed box or container that requires a lid or cover to be opened
A gun tucked under the seat or sitting in an open console does not meet the standard. If you are eligible for concealed carry, you may carry a loaded firearm on your person inside the vehicle without any storage requirement. The securely-encased rule matters most for 18-to-20-year-olds and for anyone who does not meet the concealed-carry eligibility criteria.
Self-Defense and Improper Display
Carrying a firearm does not expand your authority to use it. Under Florida’s Stand Your Ground law, you may use deadly force if you reasonably believe it is necessary to prevent imminent death, great bodily harm, or a forcible felony, provided you are not engaged in criminal activity and are in a place you have a right to be.8Justia Law. Florida Statutes 776.012 – Use or Threatened Use of Force in Defense of Person The threat must be imminent and your response proportional whether you are armed or not.
Displaying a firearm in a rude, careless, angry, or threatening way when it is not necessary self-defense is a first-degree misdemeanor under Florida Statutes 790.10, carrying up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine.9Florida Senate. Florida Statutes 790.10 – Improper Exhibition of Dangerous Weapons or Firearms This is the charge that catches road-rage displays and arguments where someone pulls a gun to intimidate rather than to defend.
Why a CWFL Still Has Value
Permitless carry protects you only inside Florida. A CWFL extends recognition to the 37 states that honor Florida licenses through reciprocity.10Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Concealed Weapon License Reciprocity Reciprocity is not a blanket exemption from that state’s laws; some impose magazine limits or require you to notify police you are armed during any encounter.
A license also lets you skip the three-day waiting period on Florida firearm purchases, and it gives you documented proof of a background check to hand an officer during a stop. The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) issues the license; Florida is a shall-issue state, so applicants who meet every statutory requirement must be approved.2Justia Law. Florida Statutes 790.06 – License to Carry Concealed Weapon or Firearm
Traveling With Your Firearm
Nonresidents visiting Florida may carry concealed if they hold a valid concealed carry license from their home state or if they meet the same eligibility criteria that apply to Florida residents under permitless carry.11Florida Senate. Florida Statutes 790.015 – Nonresidents; Reciprocity They are subject to every Florida location restriction.
Driving through states that would otherwise prohibit your firearm is covered by a limited federal safe-harbor. Under 18 U.S.C. § 926A, you may transport a firearm between two states where you can legally possess it as long as the gun is unloaded and neither the firearm nor ammunition is readily accessible from the passenger compartment. In vehicles without a separate trunk, both must be in a locked container other than the glove compartment or console.12Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 926A – Interstate Transportation of Firearms The protection covers transit only; an overnight stop or extended stay in a state that prohibits your firearm ends it.
Flying is stricter. TSA allows firearms in checked luggage only. You must declare each firearm at the ticket counter, pack it unloaded in a locked hard-sided case, and keep ammunition separate from the chamber and any inserted magazine.13Transportation Security Administration. Transporting Firearms and Ammunition Carrying a firearm into the sterile area of an airport is a federal offense.
If a Police Officer Stops You
Florida does not require you to volunteer that you are carrying. If an officer asks, though, you must answer truthfully. Lying during an investigation can lead to separate charges. And if you are carrying without a license, the permitless carry law requires you to have identification on you and present it when asked.
As a practical matter, telling an officer early and calmly that you are armed lowers the temperature of the encounter. Keep your hands visible, do not reach toward the firearm, and follow the officer’s instructions about how to proceed.