Colorado gun laws now cover nearly every step of ownership: you must be 21 to buy, wait three days to take possession, run private transfers through a licensed dealer, keep magazines to 15 rounds or fewer, store firearms securely around children, and starting August 1, 2026, avoid buying most semiautomatic rifles, shotguns, and gas-operated handguns that use detachable magazines unless you have completed a state-approved training course. The rules below walk through what applies to buyers, owners, and carriers under current Colorado law.
Who Can Buy a Gun in Colorado
The minimum age to purchase any firearm is 21. Senate Bill 23-169 eliminated the older split that let 18-year-olds buy long guns.1Colorado General Assembly. SB23-169 Increasing Minimum Age to Purchase Firearms A buyer under 21 who tries to purchase, and a dealer who completes the sale, both face Class 2 misdemeanor charges carrying up to 120 days in jail and a $750 fine.2Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Title 18 Section 18-1.3-501 – Misdemeanor Penalties Active-duty military and peace officers are exempt.
Every retail sale runs through a background check, and House Bill 23-1219 layered on a three-day waiting period. The clock starts when the Colorado Bureau of Investigation initiates the check, and the buyer cannot take possession until three days have passed or the check clears, whichever is later. Same-day pickup no longer exists. A dealer who delivers early faces a civil fine of $500 for a first violation and up to $5,000 after that, plus potential loss of the state business license.3Colorado General Assembly. HB23-1219 Waiting Period to Deliver a Firearm
Private transfers are also covered. If you sell or give a firearm to someone who is not an immediate family member, the transfer has to go through a federally licensed dealer, who runs the background check through CBI.4Colorado Bureau of Investigation. Firearms FAQs Immediate family is defined narrowly: spouses, parents, children, siblings, grandparents, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, first cousins, aunts, and uncles. In-laws do not qualify. Violating CRS 18-12-112 is a Class 2 misdemeanor and triggers a two-year prohibition on possessing any firearm, reported to both the state and the national background check system.5Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Title 18 Section 18-12-112 – Transfers, Penalty Handing a gun to a friend without going through a dealer is where casual sellers get into serious trouble.
What Firearms and Magazines Are Restricted
The largest change is Senate Bill 25-003, signed in April 2025. Starting August 1, 2026, it becomes illegal to manufacture, sell, transfer, or purchase a “specified semiautomatic firearm,” defined as a semiautomatic rifle or shotgun with a detachable magazine or a gas-operated semiautomatic handgun with a detachable magazine.6Colorado General Assembly. SB25-003 Semiautomatic Firearms and Rapid-Fire Devices A first violation is a Class 2 misdemeanor; a second or subsequent violation is a Class 6 felony. Dealers who violate the ban also lose their state firearms dealer permit.
Two features of the law matter for owners. First, it does not require surrender of firearms you already own, and you can still transfer a specified semiautomatic to an out-of-state buyer or a federally licensed dealer. Second, the training exemption keeps the door open for future purchases: you can still buy one of these firearms if you have completed an extended firearms safety course within the past five years, or a combination of hunter education and a basic firearms safety course within the same window.6Colorado General Assembly. SB25-003 Semiautomatic Firearms and Rapid-Fire Devices What looks like a flat ban functions more like a training requirement for civilians willing to complete the coursework.
Magazine capacity has been capped at 15 rounds since July 2013. Selling, transferring, or possessing a magazine that holds more than 15 rounds is prohibited, though magazines owned before that date are grandfathered if the owner has kept continuous possession.7Colorado Bureau of Investigation. CRS 18-12-302 Large-Capacity Magazines Prohibited If the state charges a violation, the prosecution has the burden of proving you did not own it before the cutoff. SB 25-003 raised the penalty for unlawful possession or sale from a Class 2 to a Class 1 misdemeanor, now up to 364 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.6Colorado General Assembly. SB25-003 Semiautomatic Firearms and Rapid-Fire Devices Possessing a large-capacity magazine during a felony or crime of violence is a Class 6 felony. The same bill reclassified rapid-fire devices as dangerous weapons.
Unserialized firearms are separately banned. Senate Bill 23-279 makes it illegal to possess a firearm, frame, or receiver that does not bear a serial number from a federally licensed manufacturer, targeting kit-built and 3D-printed guns.8Colorado General Assembly. SB23-279 Unserialized Firearms and Firearm Components Anyone who owned a homemade unserialized firearm when the law took effect had until January 1, 2024, to have it serialized by a licensed dealer. That deadline has passed. A first offense is now a Class 1 misdemeanor; a second or subsequent offense is a Class 5 felony with a presumptive prison range of one to three years plus two years of mandatory parole.9Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Title 18 Section 18-1.3-401 – Felonies, Classification and Penalties The law also bars unlicensed individuals from manufacturing firearms, frames, or receivers, which effectively closes the door on hobbyist builds without a federal firearms license.
Where You Can Carry a Firearm
Concealed Carry Permits
County sheriffs issue concealed handgun permits. House Bill 24-1174 rewrote the training requirements as of July 1, 2025. Applicants must complete an in-person course of at least eight hours, including live-fire exercises and a written competency exam, within one year before applying.10Colorado General Assembly. HB24-1174 Concealed Carry Permits and Training The curriculum covers safe handling and storage, state and federal firearms law, use-of-force principles, and techniques for interacting with law enforcement. A current peace officer certification satisfies the competency requirement.
Applicants are disqualified if they were convicted of certain misdemeanors within five years before applying.10Colorado General Assembly. HB24-1174 Concealed Carry Permits and Training Federal prohibited-person categories also apply under 18 U.S.C. ยง 922(g): felony convictions, domestic violence restraining orders, dishonorable discharge, and mental-health adjudications all bar possession.11Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Identify Prohibited Persons
Colorado has reciprocity with 34 states, including Texas, Florida, Arizona, and Utah, but it only honors an out-of-state permit if the holder is a resident of the issuing state, carries a matching state-issued ID, and is at least 21.12Colorado Bureau of Investigation. Concealed Handgun Permit Reciprocity Nonresident permits are not recognized, so a Utah nonresident permit held by an Oregon resident, for example, will not work in Colorado.
Open Carry and Local Rules
Colorado has no statewide ban on open carry, but it lets counties and municipalities regulate it locally.13Department of Public Safety. Colorado Gun Laws Denver, for example, prohibits open carry within city limits. Check the local municipal code before openly carrying anywhere in the state. State law under CRS 18-12-111 preempts most local firearms regulation, but the exceptions allow local governments to regulate firearms in government-owned buildings, restrict discharge within city limits, and regulate firearms at public athletic events, which is how bans like Denver’s survive.
Sensitive Spaces Where Carry Is Banned
Senate Bill 24-131 created a statewide list of places where you cannot carry a firearm, permit or not, open or concealed, loaded or unloaded. The ban covers the buildings and their adjacent parking areas.
- State legislative buildings, including chambers, galleries, member offices, and any building hosting a legislative hearing.
- Local government buildings, specifically the chambers and offices of a local governing body and its chief executive, unless the local government has opted to allow carry.14Colorado General Assembly. Senate Bill 24-131 Signed
- Courthouses and any building or portion used for court proceedings.
- Public and private schools from elementary through college, universities, seminaries, and licensed child care facilities.
- Polling locations, central count facilities, and the area within 100 feet of a ballot drop box or building housing those operations during active election administration.15Colorado General Assembly. SB24-131 Prohibiting Carrying Firearms in Sensitive Spaces
Carrying into any of these locations is a Class 1 misdemeanor, punishable by up to 364 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.14Colorado General Assembly. Senate Bill 24-131 Signed Law enforcement, security personnel, and military members acting officially are exempt. The local government carve-out cuts one direction: unless a city or county has explicitly opted to allow carry in its buildings, the state ban applies by default.
Safe Storage at Home
Under CRS 18-12-114, you must store firearms responsibly whenever juveniles or prohibited persons live in or visit the home. Responsible storage means keeping the firearm on your person or within immediate reach, locking it in a gun safe or secure container, attaching a locking device, or using a personalized firearm with its safety features activated.16Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Title 18 Section 18-12-114 – Secure Storage, Penalty In every case, the juvenile or prohibited person cannot have access to the key, combination, or unlocking mechanism.
Failing to store securely when you know or should know that a juvenile can access the firearm, or that a prohibited resident lives in the home, is a Class 2 misdemeanor with up to 120 days in jail and a $750 fine.16Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Title 18 Section 18-12-114 – Secure Storage, Penalty An affirmative defense applies if a juvenile used the firearm in lawful self-defense or to protect livestock. If children or anyone barred from possessing firearms lives with you, the guns need to be locked up or on your body.
When You Can Use a Firearm in Self-Defense
Colorado’s “Make My Day” law, CRS 18-1-704.5, protects occupants who use deadly force against an intruder in their home. If someone makes an unlawful entry into your dwelling, you reasonably believe they have committed or intend to commit a crime inside beyond the trespass itself, and you reasonably believe they might use any physical force against an occupant, deadly force is justified.17Justia Law. Colorado Revised Statutes Title 18 Section 18-1-704.5 – Use of Deadly Physical Force Against an Intruder The threshold for the intruder’s threatened force is “any physical force, no matter how slight.” An occupant who acts within these bounds has immunity from both criminal prosecution and civil liability.
Outside the home, the general self-defense statute allows physical force when you reasonably believe it is necessary to defend yourself or a third person from unlawful force. Deadly force is justified only when a lesser response would be inadequate and the threat involves serious bodily harm, burglary, kidnapping, robbery, or sexual assault. Colorado does not impose an explicit duty to retreat, but the force used must still be proportional to the threat.
When Guns Can Be Taken Away
Colorado’s Extreme Risk Protection Order law lets a court temporarily remove firearms from someone who poses an immediate danger. Senate Bill 23-170 expanded who can petition beyond law enforcement and family members to include licensed educators, healthcare providers, mental health professionals, and district attorneys.18Colorado General Assembly. SB23-170 Extreme Risk Protection Order Petitions A judge who finds sufficient evidence can issue a temporary ERPO that lasts until the full hearing, which must be scheduled within 14 days.19Colorado Bureau of Investigation. CRS 13-14.5-103 Extreme Risk Protection Orders The subject must surrender all firearms and any concealed carry permit to law enforcement in the meantime. If the court then finds by clear and convincing evidence that the person poses a significant risk, it issues a 364-day order. The subject has the right to counsel and can petition to vacate the order if circumstances change. Refusing to surrender can lead to contempt charges, and law enforcement can execute a search warrant to recover the weapons.
A separate process applies in domestic violence cases. Under HB 21-1255, a person subject to a domestic violence protection order must file an affidavit within seven business days listing the number, make, model, and location of every firearm they possess. The court holds a compliance hearing eight to twelve business days later to verify the affidavit. The respondent can surrender firearms to law enforcement, a licensed dealer, or a private party, but cannot transfer them to anyone in the same household. A private party holding a firearm under this arrangement cannot return it until CBI runs a background check authorizing the return.20Colorado General Assembly. HB21-1255 Protection Order Issued Against Domestic Abuser Federal law separately bars anyone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence from possessing firearms.11Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Identify Prohibited Persons
Credit Card Merchant Code for Gun Sales
Senate Bill 24-066 requires payment card networks and processors operating in Colorado to use a firearms-specific merchant category code for businesses that primarily sell guns and ammunition.21Colorado General Assembly. SB24-066 Firearms Merchant Category Code The code lets financial institutions see that a charge originated at a firearms retailer, but it does not reveal what specific items were purchased. The law prohibits using this data to build an informal gun registry; its stated purpose is financial transparency and aiding law enforcement investigations conducted under court order. Retailers should confirm their merchant accounts are properly classified, and financial institutions that fail to adopt the code face potential civil penalties or operational restrictions in the state.