Minnesota gun laws
A plain-language guide to Minnesota gun law: buying, carrying, transporting, and owning firearms, and who can’t. Each topic links to our full answer.
General information, not legal advice. Laws and court rulings change. For your situation, talk with a Minnesota firearms attorney.
Jump to: Buying · Carrying · What you can own · Who can’t own a gun
Buying
Buying a firearm in Minnesota
Permit to Purchase
To buy a pistol or a “semiautomatic military-style assault weapon” you need a Permit to Purchase from your local police chief or sheriff, or a Minnesota Permit to Carry. The permit is free, good for one year, and the agency has 30 days to approve or deny it.
Private sales and background checks
Since August 1, 2023, a private sale of a pistol or semiautomatic military-style assault weapon needs a background check through a licensed dealer, or the seller must see the buyer’s permit and both must complete a record of the transfer, which is kept for 10 years.
18- to 20-year-olds
Minnesota law treats 18- to 20-year-olds as adults: they can own handguns, buy them in private sales, and, after our win in Worth v. Jacobson, get a Permit to Carry. Federal law still bars licensed dealers from selling them handguns until 21.
Carrying
Carrying a firearm in Minnesota
Permit to Carry
Carrying a pistol in public requires a Minnesota Permit to Carry, issued by your county sheriff. You need firearms training from a certified instructor within the past year, and the permit also works as a Permit to Purchase. Adults 18 and older qualify: our Worth v. Jacobson case struck down the old age-21 limit.
Carrying without a permit
Minnesota does not have constitutional (permitless) carry. You don’t need a permit at home, at your business, on your own land, while hunting or target shooting, or to transport an unloaded pistol in a closed case, but carrying in public without one is a crime.
Reciprocity
Many states honor a Minnesota permit, and Minnesota honors permits from a shorter list of states. The Department of Public Safety reviews the lists each year, so check before you travel.
Open carry
Minnesota doesn’t require you to conceal, so open carry is legal with a valid Permit to Carry, outside prohibited places.
Rifles and shotguns
A Minnesota Permit to Carry also lets you carry a long gun in public. In a vehicle, a rifle or shotgun must generally be unloaded and cased or in a closed trunk, with limited exceptions for ranges and hunting outside the metro.
Carrying long guns · Transporting long guns
The State Capitol
A valid Minnesota Permit to Carry is all you need to carry at the State Capitol Complex. No separate notice is required.
Courthouses
To carry in a courthouse complex you need a Permit to Carry and written notice to the county sheriff; some courts have issued orders banning firearms.
Where you can’t carry
Carry is barred or limited in a short list of places, including K-12 schools and child care centers (except parking lots), correctional facilities, federal facilities, and private businesses that post or personally tell you guns are prohibited. Cities and counties can’t make their own carry bans.
Owning
What you can own
Suppressors and short-barreled rifles
Minnesota allows suppressors and short-barreled rifles for people who possess them lawfully under federal law. Since October 9, 2026, ATF has not enforced NFA registration for them nationwide, but Minnesota law hasn’t caught up. Read NFA changes in 2026 before you buy, build, or transfer one.
Suppressors · Short-barreled rifles and shotguns
Short-barreled shotguns and machine guns
Minnesota bans short-barreled shotguns, machine guns, trigger activators, and conversion kits under Minn. Stat. § 609.67, with narrow exceptions. Federal changes don’t affect that ban.
Short-barreled rifles and shotguns
Binary triggers
A court struck down Minnesota’s binary trigger ban in our lawsuit in August 2025, and the Court of Appeals affirmed in May 2026. The State did not appeal further, so the ruling is final: binary triggers are legal in Minnesota.
Bump stocks and forced reset triggers
Bump stocks have been banned in Minnesota since 2023 as “trigger activators,” a felony. We believe a Minnesota court would likely find forced reset triggers (FRTs) banned under the same definition.
Bump stocks · Forced reset triggers
Homemade firearms
In State v. Vagle, the Minnesota Supreme Court held that state law doesn’t require serial numbers on privately made firearms or firearms made before 1968.
Eligibility
Who can’t own a gun
Prohibited persons
State and federal law bar some people from possessing firearms, including people convicted of a crime of violence and people committed by a court for certain mental health or substance treatment. Some bans are permanent and some expire.
Getting your rights back
If your rights were taken away permanently, the only way to restore them is to petition a Minnesota district court. Talk with an attorney before you file.
Red flag orders
Since January 1, 2024, family members, household members, and law enforcement can ask a court for an Extreme Risk Protection Order. Temporary orders can issue without a hearing, and final orders can last up to a year.
Cannabis
Hemp-derived edibles sold legally under Minnesota’s 2022 law don’t affect your gun rights. You can’t carry while intoxicated by any substance.
Get help
Still have a question?
Browse every question we answer in the legal FAQ. If you need advice about your own situation, talk with a Minnesota firearms attorney. Questions about your Caucus membership are on our membership page.
Browse
Laws, cases, and resources
Quick reference
A simple overview of the key Minnesota statutes on possessing and using firearms and legal force.
Minnesota laws
The statutes that regulate owning, buying, possessing, storing, and carrying firearms in Minnesota.
Case law
The federal and Minnesota appellate cases that have shaped firearms law in Minnesota.
Binary trigger ban
What Minnesota’s binary trigger ban covers, and our lawsuit against it.
Self-defense and domestic violence
Empowerment through self-defense: resources for survivors of domestic violence.
Federal
Federal firearms laws
Federal law sets broad prohibitions and restrictions on owning, buying, possessing, and transporting firearms nationwide. It also restricts automatic firearms (machine guns), suppressors, and short-barreled rifles and shotguns.
Education
Need a speaker?
Education is at the core of what we do. Throughout the year we hold seminars and programs for members and community groups on gun safety, political advocacy, and related topics. Looking for a speaker on gun rights or gun safety? We will work to find someone who fits.
Minnesota’s gun owners are not backing down.
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