Gun laws in New Hampshire

• N.H. Const. Part I, Art. 2-a: “All persons have the right to keep and bear arms in defense of themselves, their families, their property and the state.”

• You can carry a loaded gun on you or in the car, open or hidden, without a permit, if you’re allowed to own a gun. That’s constitutional carry. See RSA 159:6 and the State Police FAQ (license became voluntary on February 22, 2017).
• A license is optional. If you get one: at least 5 years, $10 resident / $100 nonresident, issued within 14 days. Hunting, target shooting, or self-defense is a proper purpose (RSA 159:6 I).
• Reciprocity: other states may still want to see an NH carry license. NH itself does not require one if you can legally possess a gun.

• If you’ve been convicted of a felony against a person or property, a drug felony under RSA 318-B, or a similar drug felony in another state or federal court, you can’t own or possess a pistol, revolver, other firearm, or the listed deadly weapons. That’s a class B felony. Filling out a purchase form as that person is also a class B felony. RSA 159:3.
• After any mix of 3 or more felonies (this state or another) for homicide, assault, sexual assault, arson, burglary, robbery, extortion, child sexual abuse images, or controlled drug laws, you can’t own or possess any firearm. Felony, mandatory minimum 10 years. RSA 159:3-a.
• You can’t sell, deliver, or transfer a pistol, revolver, or any other firearm to someone convicted of a felony in any jurisdiction. Class B felony. RSA 159:7.
• A licensed dealer (FFL) still runs a federal background check (NICS). Federal dealer rules still apply.
• No NH waiting period found. No NH firearm registry found.
• Selling, bartering, hiring, lending, or giving a pistol or revolver to a minor is a misdemeanor, with listed exceptions (parents, grandparents, guardians; supervised training with parent or guardian permission; licensed hunters accompanying a minor taking wildlife; lawful shooting events). The statute says “minor.” It does not set 18 vs 21 in this section. RSA 159:12.

• You can carry a loaded or unloaded gun in a vehicle without a permit if you’re allowed to own a gun. No “must be unloaded in the trunk” rule found in RSA 159. That’s everyday carry. RSA 159:6 III.
• Hunting has a separate loaded-long-gun rule (next section).
• Starting January 1, 2025: an employer that gets public funds can’t ban an employee who can legally possess a gun from storing a firearm or ammo in a locked vehicle on the employer’s property if it isn’t visible, and can’t make the employee disclose that. It does not let you carry where carrying is already illegal. RSA 159:27.

• Self-defense is RSA 627 (below). Hunting is Fish & Game / RSA 207. Different rules.
• You can’t have a cocked crossbow, or a loaded rifle, shotgun, muzzleloader, or air rifle, in or on a moving motor vehicle, OHRV, snowmobile, or aircraft (livestock/crop exception). That does not ban a loaded pistol or revolver in a vehicle under RSA 159:6 III. RSA 207:7.
• Season dates and hunting hours are Fish & Game. See NH Fish and Game.

• Don’t shoot a firearm (or a .22 or larger hunting air rifle, or a bow or crossbow) within 300 feet of a permanently occupied dwelling without permission of the owner or occupant of that dwelling, or of the owner of the land you’re on. RSA 207:3-a.
• In the built-up part of a town or city, firing a cannon, gun, pistol, air rifle, or other firearm is a violation unless you have written permission from the chief of police or the governing body. “Built-up part” includes any nonresidential commercial building plus 300 feet (without the owner’s permission); designated parks, playgrounds, or outdoor public gathering places; and any cluster of 6 or more dwellings each within 300 feet of another, plus 300 feet around that cluster. RSA 644:13.
• Don’t shoot a firearm, bow, air rifle, or crossbow from within 15 feet of the traveled part of a class I through V highway, or across one. Don’t shoot from or across listed limited-access highways (I-93, I-89, I-95, and others named in the statute) or their rights of way. RSA 207:3-c.

• No NH law found that bans magazines by how many rounds they hold, or bans rifles by feature. Federal law still applies.

• Some guns need extra federal paperwork (NFA): short-barrel rifles (SBRs) and silencers (suppressors). NH doesn’t add its own ban on top. Federal registration and prohibited-person rules still apply.

• This is not unlimited. RSA 627:4 is about what you reasonably believe, and you can’t be the one who started it.
• Deadly force (627:4 II) when you reasonably believe the other person: is about to use unlawful deadly force; is likely to use any unlawful force against someone present while committing or attempting burglary; is committing or about to commit kidnapping or a forcible sex offense; or is likely to use any unlawful force in a felony against you inside your house or the yard around the house.
• Showing a firearm (or other means of self-defense) to warn away a threat that a reasonable person would consider likely to cause serious bodily injury or death is not a criminal act (II-a).
• You don’t have to retreat if you’re in your house, the yard around the house, or anywhere you have a right to be, and you weren’t the initial aggressor (III(a)).
• Defense of premises (RSA 627:7): you can use non-deadly force to stop a criminal trespass. Deadly force only as in RSA 627:4, or when you reasonably believe you need it to stop the trespasser from trying to commit arson.

• No RSA 159 statute found that requires you to volunteer that you are armed. Still obey a lawful order.

• Courthouse: no gun, loaded or not, open or hidden, licensed or not, in a courtroom or area used by a court. Class B felony. You can leave it with courthouse security at the entrance. If there was no notice posted at each public entrance, that’s an affirmative defense. RSA 159:19.
• Schools: RSA 193:13 IV is about students. A pupil who brings or possesses a firearm in a safe school zone (RSA 193-D) without written authorization from the superintendent (or designee) gets a 12-month expulsion. No NH adult-carry-on-campus ban found in that section.
• The federal Gun-Free School Zones Act (18 U.S.C. § 922(q)) still applies. The usual federal exception is a state-issued carry license (NH’s optional pistol/revolver license). If you carry without a license, don’t assume you can carry in a school zone.
• Federal buildings and the secure part of an airport are federal rules.

• RSA 650-C:1 is not a general lock-up law. It is about a child under 16.
• It’s a violation (fine up to $1,000) if you store or leave a loaded firearm where you control the premises, you know or reasonably should know a child under 16 is likely to get it without a parent or guardian’s permission, and the child does get it and (a) uses it in a reckless or threatening manner, (b) uses it in a misdemeanor or felony, or (c) negligently or recklessly discharges it.
• Listed exceptions include a locked box, gun safe, or trigger lock (or a place a reasonable person would believe secure); carried on you or nearby; the child completed certified safety instruction or a certified hunter safety course; no reasonable expectation a child is likely to be present; illegal taking; lawful self-defense by the child.
• Secure storage is still a good idea. Federal rules for licensed dealers are separate.

• Towns can’t write their own gun ordinances, with small listed exceptions. RSA 159:26: the state has authority over sale, purchase, ownership, use, possession, transportation, licensing, registration, transfer, taxation, or other matters about firearms, components, ammunition, supplies, or knives (consistent with federal law).
• Except as specifically provided by statute, no town or city ordinance may regulate those subjects. Exceptions: zoning of firearms or knives businesses the same way as other businesses, and hunting rules under RSA 207:59.
• Unauthorized local rules are void.

NH is permitless. The optional license is for travel. On August 19, 2026, State Police listed 29 states that have said they will honor a New Hampshire resident pistol/revolver license. They tell you to confirm with the other state before you go. Their page says they don’t warrant the list.

• Alabama, Alaska, Arizona*, Arkansas, Colorado*, Florida*, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia*, Wyoming.
• * Arizona, Colorado, Florida, and West Virginia: the license holder has to be 21 or older (State Police footnote).
• A nonresident NH license is only valid in New Hampshire or in a state that recognizes a New Hampshire nonresident license. State Police does not list those states on that page.
• The license does not override the other state’s laws.

• Prohibited persons under RSA 159:3 and 159:3-a.
• Sale or transfer to a felon (RSA 159:7). Sale of a pistol or revolver to a minor (RSA 159:12).
• Courthouse / courtroom carry (RSA 159:19).
• Federal prohibited persons. Federal NFA items if unregistered.
• Student firearms in a safe school zone (RSA 193:13 IV / 193-D). Federal school-zone rules (18 U.S.C. § 922(q)). Federal buildings and airport sterile areas.

The statutes and the State Police FAQ.

• RSA Chapter 159 — pistols and revolvers (official General Court text).
• RSA 159:6 — license to carry; paragraph III is unlicensed carry and vehicle transport.
• NH State Police — pistol and revolver licensing (reciprocity list).
• NH State Police — permits and licensing FAQ
• RSA 159:3 — convicted felons. 159:3-a — armed career criminals. 159:7 — sales to felons. 159:12 — sale to minors. 159:19 — courthouse. 159:26 — preemption. 159:27 — stored firearms in vehicles.
• RSA 627:4 — physical force in defense of a person. 627:7 — defense of premises.
• RSA 207:7 — loaded rifle/shotgun in a moving vehicle (hunting). 207:3-a — 300 feet of a dwelling. 207:3-c — highways. 644:13 — compact area.
• RSA 650-C:1 — negligent storage of firearms.
• RSA 193:13 — pupil suspension/expulsion. RSA 193-D — safe school zones.
• N.H. Constitution, Part I, Bill of Rights — Art. 2-a.
• NH Fish and Game
• ATF — National Firearms Act — federal, not RSA 159.