State Gun Laws

Under Virginia law, it is illegal for a person to have or buy a firearm if s/he:

1. was acquitted of a crime by reason of insanity and committed to the custody of the Commissioner of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services;¹
2. was declared legally incompetent or mentally incapacitated by a court;²
3. as an adult or as a minor who is age 14 or older, s/he was:
   • involuntarily admitted to a facility;
   • ordered to mandatory outpatient treatment;
   • the subject of a temporary detention order and subsequently agreed to voluntary admission; or
   • found incompetent to stand trial and likely to remain so for the foreseeable future;³
4. has an emergency, preliminary, or final protective order issued against him/her due to:
   • family abuse;
   • an act of violence, force or threat;
   • a protective order issued as part of a divorce;
   • an order issued due to abuse/neglect of a child; or
   • a similar restraining order as any of the above that was issued by another state;
5. has a substantial risk order against him/her or a similar order issued by another state;⁴
6. has been convicted of a felony;
7. was adjudicated “delinquent” as a juvenile at age 14 or older for one of the following crimes:
   
   1. murder;
   2. kidnapping;
   3. robbery by the threat or presentation of firearms;
   4. rape; or
   5. any other felony but only if the person is currently under the age of 29;⁵
8. is not a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident;⁶
9. is under 18 unless certain exceptions are met; Note: The law specifically prohibits possessing a handgun and assault firearm, not all firearms;⁷ or
10. was convicted of two misdemeanor drug offenses within a three-year period. Note: The law specifically prohibits possessing a handgun, not all firearms. And, if five years pass from the date of the second conviction without a new conviction for another drug offense, then this restriction no longer applies.⁸

In addition, even if the laws, explained above, do not prohibit a person from having a firearm, there are additional restrictions when it comes to carrying a concealed handgun. A person is not eligible for a permit to carry a concealed handgun if:

• was convicted of two or more misdemeanors within the past five years and one of the misdemeanors was a Class 1 misdemeanor (Note: Even if none of them were Class 1 misdemeanors, a judge can still decide to deny the permit);⁹
• is addicted to, or is an unlawful user or distributor of, marijuana, synthetic cannabinoids (i.e., K2, Spice, etc.), or any controlled substance;
• within the past three years, was convicted of driving while intoxicated, public drunkenness, or a substantially similar offense under the laws of any other state;¹⁰
• is a fugitive from justice;
• was discharged from the Armed Forces under dishonorable conditions;¹¹
• is someone who the judge determines is likely to use a weapon unlawfully or negligently to endanger others (based on specific acts s/he committed). Note: The sheriff, chief of police, or attorney for the Commonwealth would have to submit to the court a sworn, written statement indicating that, in his/her opinion and based upon personal knowledge of specific acts committed, the person is likely to use a weapon unlawfully or negligently to endanger others;¹²
• was convicted of, or has a charge pending for, any assault, assault and battery, sexual battery, discharging of a firearm, or brandishing of a firearm within the past three years;¹³
• was convicted of, or has a charge pending for, stalking;¹⁴
• has received mental health treatment or substance abuse treatment in a residential setting within the past five years;¹⁵
• was convicted of assault and battery of a family or household member for an offense that occurred on or after July 1, 2021 – in this case, s/he cannot get a permit for three years following the conviction;
• is enrolled into the Voluntary Do Not Sell Firearms List;¹⁶ or
• within the past three years, was found guilty of any criminal drug offense (listed in Article 1 of the law, beginning with section 18.2-247) or of a criminal offense of illegal possession or distribution of marijuana, synthetic cannabinoids, or any controlled substance in another state; (Note: This includes a first-time offender who was sentenced to probation and, upon fulfilling the terms of probation, had the conviction discharged and the proceedings dismissed).¹⁷

¹ Va. Code § 18.2-308.1:1(A)
² Va. Code § 18.2-308.1:2(A)
³ Va. Code § 18.2-308.1:3(A)
⁴ Va. Code § 18.2-308.1:4
⁵ Va. Code § 18.2-308.2(A)
⁶ Va. Code § 18.2-308.2:01(A)
⁷ Va. Code § 18.2-308.7
⁸ Va. Code § 18.2-308.1:5
⁹ Va. Code § 18.2-308.09(7)
¹⁰ Va. Code § 18.2-308.09(8), (9)
¹¹ Va. Code § 18.2-308.09(11), (12)
¹² Va. Code § 18.2-308.09(13)
¹³ Va. Code § 18.2-308.09(14), (17)
¹⁴ Va. Code § 18.2-308.09(15), (17)
¹⁵ Va. Code § 18.2-308.09(18)
¹⁶ Va. Code § 18.2-308.09(1)
¹⁷ Va. Code § 18.2-308.09(19), (20)