Colorado CCW Renewal: Background Check, Costs, and Denials

A Colorado CCW renewal has to be filed with the sheriff who issued your permit, and you can submit the paperwork up to 120 days before your current permit expires. The sheriff has up to 90 days to decide, and Colorado does not issue temporary permits or extensions while an application is pending. If your permit lapses before the new one is in your hand, you cannot legally carry concealed, even if your renewal is sitting on someone’s desk.¹

Permits are valid for five years. Filing about four months out gives the background check time to clear and leaves room for the occasional administrative snag.

If You’ve Already Missed the Expiration Date

An expired permit gives you no legal cover. Carrying a concealed handgun without a valid permit is a Class 1 misdemeanor, punishable by up to 364 days in jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.²³ Stop carrying until the new permit is issued.

If your permit expired less than six months ago, you can still renew rather than reapply. Expect a $15 late fee on top of the standard cost.⁴ Once you cross the six-month mark, renewal is off the table. You start over as a new applicant, which means fingerprints, a handgun safety course, and the full initial process.⁵ A long gap can also draw extra scrutiny, especially if the lapse overlapped with any legal trouble.

What the Background Check Looks At

Renewal is not automatic. The sheriff’s office runs your record through the Colorado Bureau of Investigation and the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System, and you have to still meet the same eligibility standards you met the first time: at least 21 years old and a legal Colorado resident, verified with a Colorado driver’s license or state ID. Active-duty military stationed in Colorado on permanent orders, and their immediate family living here, count as residents for permit purposes.⁶

The disqualifiers that most often show up between one permit cycle and the next are federal categories: a felony conviction, a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence, an active restraining order issued after a hearing, current unlawful drug use, a mental health commitment or adjudication of incompetence at age 16 or older, a dishonorable discharge, or fugitive status or a pending indictment for a crime carrying more than a year of imprisonment.⁷ If any of these have entered your record since your last permit was issued, the check will surface them. Gathering court documents in advance is more useful than hoping the issue won’t come up.

The renewal form asks you to disclose changes in your legal status since the last application, including arrests, restraining orders, and mental health proceedings. False information on the form is second-degree perjury, a Class 2 misdemeanor.⁸

What to Bring and What It Costs

Each county sheriff’s office uses its own form. Some post it online or run an electronic portal; others require in-person pickup and filing. Along with the completed, signed form, plan to bring:

A valid Colorado driver’s license or state ID as proof of identity and residency.
Your current or recently expired permit, even if it’s inside the six-month late window.
Supplemental proof of residency if you’ve moved recently. A utility bill, lease, or voter registration card usually satisfies the request.

Colorado law does not require additional firearms training for a renewal, but some counties ask for proof of continued proficiency. Confirm with your sheriff’s office before you show up.

Fees vary by county. The statutory cap on permit application fees is $100, and renewal fees generally run below the initial application. If the sheriff requires new fingerprints, the CBI charges a separate fee of $38.50 to $39.50 for the combined state and federal check.⁹ Add $15 if you’re inside the late-renewal window.⁴ Payment methods differ; many offices refuse personal checks, and all fees are non-refundable, so make sure you actually qualify before paying.

After You File

Once the application is in, the sheriff runs the background check and reviews your file, with up to 90 days to issue a decision by statute.¹ Many counties finish faster, but backlogs and any flags from CBI or the FBI can slow things down. If nothing has moved in several weeks, call to confirm the file is complete. A missing form or an outdated photo is a common reason renewals stall.

When the application clears, the sheriff issues a new permit valid for another five years. Some counties mail it; others require pickup.

If the Renewal Is Denied

A denial usually means the background check turned up something disqualifying, such as a new conviction, an active restraining order, or a mental health adjudication that wasn’t in the system before. The sheriff has to give you a written explanation and inform you of the right to seek judicial review under C.R.S. 18-12-207.⁶ You can also ask the sheriff for a second review and add documentation to the record before taking the matter to court.

Address Changes and Lost Permits

Two maintenance rules can invalidate an otherwise good permit. If you move, you have to notify the issuing sheriff within 30 days. Failing to do so is a civil infraction.¹⁰ If your address has changed since your last permit, update it with the sheriff before you file the renewal.

If your permit is lost, stolen, or destroyed, report it to the issuing sheriff within three business days. The permit becomes automatically invalid the moment it’s gone. Getting a replacement takes $15 and a notarized statement explaining what happened, and you have no valid permit to carry until the duplicate is in hand.¹⁰

Where Your Renewed Permit Still Won’t Cover You

A valid Colorado permit does not override federal firearms restrictions or every state rule. It doesn’t authorize you to carry in federal buildings such as federal courthouses and post offices, on the grounds of or inside a public K-12 school (though you may keep a handgun locked in a closed compartment of your vehicle on school property), or inside a public building with permanent security screening at every entrance. Private property owners can also prohibit firearms on their premises as a matter of trespass law.

Because Colorado requires a background check before issuing the permit, holding one qualifies you for the federal Gun-Free School Zones Act exception, allowing possession within 1,000 feet of a school zone while traveling, as long as you aren’t on school grounds.⁷

Traveling to Other States

Colorado has reciprocity agreements with 34 states as of the most recent CBI update, meaning those states honor your Colorado permit and Colorado honors theirs. Colorado does not recognize permits from states that don’t recognize its own, so a Colorado permit is not valid in states including California, Illinois, New York, and Washington, among others.¹¹ Agreements shift, and some states impose extra conditions on visiting permit holders, so verify the current list with the destination state before you travel. An expired Colorado permit is honored nowhere.

1
Larimer County. Concealed Handgun Permits
2
Justia. Colorado Code 18-12-105 – Unlawfully Carrying a Concealed Weapon – Unlawful Possession of Weapons
3
Justia. Colorado Revised Statutes Section 18-1.3-501 – Misdemeanors Classified – Penalties
4
La Plata County Sheriff’s Office. Concealed Handgun Permit
5
City and County of Denver. Concealed Handgun Permits
6
Colorado Bureau of Investigation. C.R.S. 18-12-203
7
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 922 – Unlawful Acts
8
Justia. Colorado Revised Statutes Section 18-8-503 – Perjury in the Second Degree
9
Colorado Bureau of Investigation. Fees and Forms Information
10
Justia. Colorado Code 18-12-210 – Maintenance of Permit – Address Change – Invalidity of Permit
11
Colorado Bureau of Investigation. Concealed Handgun Permit (CHP) Reciprocity