Vermont features lenient and gun-friendly laws. The unrestricted policy displayed in this state is commendable and permissive. Moreover, any individual who is above 16 years of age can carry a gun, either open or concealed. However, the federal law keeps the age limit at 18. A good thing about Vermont gun-carrying law is that no one distinguishes between Vermont residents and non-residents when it comes to issuing gun licenses.
Last but not least, gun laws in Vermont are uniquely flexible and in sync with the requirements of the applicants. Vermont gun laws are very flexible and extremely lenient. In the next few sections, we shall talk about the existing gun laws and regulations in Vermont, followed by the concealed laws, reciprocity rules, and more.
New gun laws in Vermont came to effect in 2018. These state a fair bit about magazine restrictions, licensed gun purchases after the age of 21, and lawful confiscation if the federal offices consider the person as a threat.
Vermont CCW Process
Minimum Requirements:
- The gun carrier/permit holder must be at least 16 years of age to procure a CCW handgun in Vermont.
- If the carrier is less than 16 years of age, a permission letter from a parent or guardian must be produced.
- Applicants must have a clean record free from felony convictions or any other dishonorable charges while applying for a license.
- Both residents and non-residents are allowed to procure a CCW Handgun without a permit
- Vermont state does not necessitate its residents to get a permit to carry a gun.
HANDGUN APPLICATION PROCESS
Vermont state does not provide or issue Permit/Licenses to carry a CCW Concealed Handgun.
RENEWAL PROCESS
Vermont state does not provide or issue Permit/Licenses to carry a CCW Concealed Handgun.
LICENSE FEE
Vermont state does not provide or issue Permit/Licenses to carry a CCW Concealed Handgun.
Vermont CCW Basics
Must Notify Officer
NO – Must Inform Officer only when contacted
As per Vermont Gun laws "There is nothing" that indicates an individual to inform the officials when approached for an enquiry regarding the possession of a firearm. But it is a must to carry the firearm permit along with you all times if you are carrying the firearm with you. It is a right to possess a firearm with an appropriate permit.
No Weapon Signs Enforced
YES
Vermont gun laws enforce “No Weapons” signs and associated penalties when trespassed. There are charges and penalties if you try to enter any private property or places with "No Weapon" sign with a loaded or unloaded firearm.
Vehicle Carry
YES – Without a Permit
Vermont gun laws permit any individual with or without carrying the permit along with the firearm in the vehicle. If it is a long gun, it is a must to unload the gun and keep them visible in the vehicle, while in case of short guns; they must be unloaded and enclosed inside a case.
Open Carry
YES
As per Vermont gun laws, any individual possessing a permit and above the age of 18 can legally carry weapons and firearms openly in hand, vehicle or to the place of work.
Vermont Gun Forms & Supporting Documentation
Purchase and Possession
PURCHASE
A permit is not required to purchase a handgun, rifle, or shotgun.
Firearms dealers must keep a legal record of all handgun purchases and used handgun sales. The date of the transaction, identification marks on the firearm, manufacturer’s name, caliber, serial number, model, purchaser and seller’s name, address, birthplace, hair and eye color, height, weight, age and occupation must be recorded. The information must be accompanied by a signature from both the buyer and the seller and be retained for six years in a book after the last entry date, and be accessible to law enforcement officials at all reasonable times. Selling a zip gun or offering to sell a zip gun is illegal.
POSSESSION
A permit is not required to purchase a handgun, rifle, or shotgun.
Any child under the age of 16 may not possess or control a handgun without permission from his/her parent or legal guardian.
A zip gun is illegal in the state of Vermont. A zip gun is generally classified as a crude firearm.
Carrying a Firearm
It is legal in the state of Vermont to carry a firearm either concealed or openly as long as the carrier does not intend to inflict harm or injury on another person. It is illegal to carry a firearm into any state institution or on grounds leased or owned by such institution.
It is illegal to carry a firearm onto any school property, into any school building, or onto any school bus. The use of firearms may be authorized by the board of directors for purposes of instruction, where facilities are available. It is illegal to possess or carry a loaded shotgun or rifle on or in a motor vehicle within the right of way to a highway accessible by the public. All law enforcement officials and hunters who have a severe physical disability or are paraplegic and possess a permit issued by the state’s fish and game commissioner.
It is illegal to carry a firearm within a courthouse unless previously authorized by the court.
Unless given permission by the Warden or superintendent of a state institution, it is illegal to carry a deadly weapon on the premises of that state institution.
Antiques & Replicas
Vermont does not post laws regarding antique firearms and replicas. The attorney General does however believe that handguns defined as antiques or replicas under the Gun Control Act of 1968; do not warrant the recording of sales if they do not fire ammunition that is conventional.
Machine Guns
It is legal in the state of Vermont to possess, purchase, or sell a machine gun if it is legally registered and the owner/firearm is in compliance with all federal laws and regulations.
Range Protection
VT. STAT. ANN. tit. 10 §5227 (2011)
The operator or owner of shooting range and any person who legally uses that range, who is compliant with any noise regulations that pertain to shooting ranges, and of any state or local land use permit that may be legally required.
VT. STAT. ANN. tit. 10 §5227 (2011)
§ 5227. Sport shooting ranges; state and municipal authority
(a) “Sport shooting range” or “range” will refer to any area created for the operation and use of rifles, archery, pistols, shotguns, trap, skeet, black powder, or any other like shooting sport.
(b) The operator or owner of a shooting range for sport, or any user who reasonably complies with noise use regulation. Any user who is in compliance with any municipal or state land use permit required by law is not liable for damages resulting from noise or noise pollution, not including any part or portion of law that is contrary.
(c) If there is no state or municipal land use permit required, then operator and owner of the range and any person in legal use of the range is not liable for any damages resulting from noise or noise pollution.
(d) This section will not prohibit or limit any authority of a municipality or state to enforce any part of a legally required permit.
(e)(1) If any owner, operator, or user is not covered in the subsection set forth (b) or (c) of this section, this subsection shall apply. Only an owner of property, which abuts the range, can bring any claim of nuisance against the shooting range. The shooting range will have have a rebuttable presumption that the range is not considered a nuisance if it meets the following conditions:
(A) The range was created before the purchase of the property owned by the person bringing the nuisance claim; and
(B) The frequency of the alleged nuisance activity or the shooting at the range location has not increased a significant amount since the property owner bringing the nuisance claim has purchased his/her property.
(2) The assumption that the shooting range is not of any nuisance may be refuted only by a property owner who owns property that abuts the range and can show that the activity interferences with the use and enjoyment of his/her property.
(f) Before use of a sport shooting range after dark for training purposes by any federal, state, county, or municipal law enforcement agency, the shooting range will not notify homeowners and businesses with property that abuts the range that have requested notice before said use.
(g) If any subsection of this section is deemed to be invalid, this does not affect the validity of this section that can be valid without the subsection, and because of this, the subsections of this section can be severed.
Vermont Concealed Carry Reciprocity
Vermont's Reciprocity States
States that honor a vermont Id card or drivers license
RESIDENT
Alaska, Arizona, Kansas, Maine, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, West Virginia
As Vermont does not issue concealed carry permits but these states will allow you to carry with just a Vermont drivers license or ID card while visiting.
Vermont honors permits from these states
Vermont allows any person who is legally allowed a firearm to carry in the state without a permit.
Miscellaneous
The ownership, possession, carrying, transfer, registration or licensing of firearms or ammunition is preempted by state law. It is illegal to remove a wild animal from a motorized vehicle or within ten feet of a public highway.
Vermont Off Limit Statues
Title 13: Chpt. 85: § 4004. - Possession of dangerous or deadly weapon in a school bus or school building or on school property
(a) No person shall knowingly possess a firearm or a dangerous or deadly weapon while within a school building or on a school bus. A person who violates this section shall, for the first offense, be imprisoned for not more than one year or fined not more than $1,000.00, or both, and for a second or subsequent offense shall be imprisoned for not more than three years or fined not more than $5,000.00, or both.
(b) No person shall knowingly possess a firearm or a dangerous or deadly weapon on any school property with the intent to injure another person. A person who violates this section shall, for the first offense, be imprisoned for not more than three years or fined not more than $1,000.00, or both, and for a second or subsequent offense shall be imprisoned for not more than five years or fined not more than $5,000.00, or both.
(c) This section shall not apply to:
(1) A law enforcement officer while engaged in law enforcement duties.
(2) Possession and use of firearms or dangerous or deadly weapons if the board of school directors, or the superintendent or principal if delegated authority to do so by the board, authorizes possession or use for specific occasions or for instructional or other specific purposes.
(d) As used in this section:
(1) "School property" means any property owned by a school, including motor vehicles.
(2) "Owned by the school" means owned, leased, controlled or subcontracted by the school.
(3) "Dangerous or deadly weapon" shall have the same meaning as in section 4016 of this title.
(4) "Firearm" shall have the same meaning as in section 4016 of this title.
(5) "Law enforcement officer" shall have the same meaning as in section 4016 of this title.
(e) The provisions of this section shall not limit or restrict any prosecution for any other offense, including simple assault or aggravated assault.
2017, No. 135 (Adj. Sess.), § 3, eff
Title 13: Chpt. 85: § 4016. - Weapons in Court
(a) As used in this section:
(1) "Courthouse" means a building or any portion of a building designated by the supreme court of Vermont as a courthouse.
(2) "Dangerous or deadly weapon" means any firearm, or other weapon, device, instrument, material or substance, whether animate or inanimate, which in the manner it is used or is intended to be used is known to be capable of producing death or serious bodily injury.
(3) "Firearm" means any weapon, whether loaded or unloaded, which will expel a projectile by the action of an explosive and includes any weapon commonly referred to as a pistol, revolver, rifle, gun, machine gun or shotgun.
(4) "Law enforcement officer" means a person certified by the Vermont criminal justice training council as having satisfactorily completed the approved training programs required to meet the minimum training standards applicable to that person pursuant to 20 V.S.A. § 2358.
(5) "Secured building" means a building with controlled points of public access, metal screening devices at each point of public access, and locked compartments, accessible only to security personnel, for storage of checked firearms.
(b) A person who, while within a courthouse and without authorization from the court,
(1) carries or has in his or her possession a firearm; or
(2) knowingly carries or has in his or her possession a dangerous or deadly weapon, other than a firearm, shall be imprisoned not more than one year or fined not more than $500.00, or both.
(c) Notice of the provisions of subsection (b) of this section shall be posted conspicuously at each public entrance to each courthouse.
(d) No dangerous or deadly weapon shall be allowed in a courthouse that has been certified by the court administrator to be a secured building.
(Added 1993, No. 45, § 1, eff. June 2, 1993.)
Admin Rule 10 050 003. - Rules Governing State Facilities Under the Jurisdiction of the Department of Buildings and General Services 5.0 Firearms, Explosives and Other Dangerous Weapons
Firearms, explosives, dangerous weapons or the components to fabricate such devices whether in open or concealed possession are prohibited in State Buildings. Vermont Criminal Justice Training Council (VCJTC) certified law enforcement officers, as defined in 20 V.S.A. § 2358 and Capitol Police Officers who have successfully completed the firearms safety program provided by VCJTC are exempt from this provision, unless otherwise provided by law. Instructors and participants in educational or training classes conducted by the Agency of Natural Resources or the Department of Fish and Wildlife may be exempt from this provision upon the Commissioner's receipt and acknowledgment of written notification of such classes from the Agency of Natural Resources or the Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Admin Rule 12 010 019. - Regulation #944 - a Regulation Controlling Hunting and Trespassing on the Mud Creek Controlled Hunting Area in Al-burg
1. Public use of the Mud Creek Controlled Hunting Area (CHA) shall be permitted or restricted as follows: (a) No person shall posses a firearm, muzzleloader, trap, bow and arrow, crossbow or spear while within the boundaries of the Mud Creek CHA except under authority of a permit issued by the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department. Permits issued for hunting or trapping shall be carried by those persons at all times while on the CHA and shall be exhibited to any Fish and Wildlife Department employee upon request.
State Park Rules and Regulations Fires and Firearms
I.b 2. No firecrackers or other explosive devices, firearms, air rifles or pistols, gas weapons, slingshots, crossbows, bow and arrows except by special permit shall be discharged in any developed recreation area during the park operating season. No firearm shall be discharged within 500 feet of any occupied building or structure in any park or recreation area. (Rule only covers the discharge and not carrying of a firearm)
Title 10 Chpt. 119 § 5204. - Poaching; Private Preserves
(a) A person who, without the written consent of the owner or person having the exclusive right to take fish or wild animals, takes fish, game, or other animals or carries or possesses a firearm, bow and arrow, or wild animal trap in private preserve as posted under section 5201 of this title or mutilates or defaces the notice called for in subsection 5201(b) of this title shall be fined not less than $25.00 nor more than $100.00.
1969, No. 16, § 3, eff. March 11, 1969.
Title 10 Chpt. 119 § 5226. Bomoseen State Game Refuge
(a) A person shall not hunt, trap, take or kill wild animals on the Bomoseen state game refuge.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 5215 of this title, the boundaries of the refuge shall be conspicuously marked by paint and/or notices so as to give reasonable notice. The notices shall read "State Game Refuge: Hunting, Trapping or Shooting Prohibited."
(c) A person who enters this refuge to hunt, trap, take or kill wild animals or carries or possesses a firearm, bow and arrow or animal trap or who mutilates or defaces the notices marking the boundaries of the refuge shall be fined not less than $25.00 nor more than $100.00.
(d) This section shall not restrict the possession or use of firearms by a game warden or other law enforcement officer in the performance of his or her duties.
(Added 1985, No. 209 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. June 2, 1986.)
Title 29 Chpt. 5 § 152. - Duties of Commissioner
(a) The commissioner of buildings and general services, in addition to the duties expressly set forth elsewhere by law, shall have the authority to:
(14) Adopt rules to govern access to and conduct upon the grounds of and within the structures and buildings that fall within his or her jurisdiction. Specifically, and without limitation of the foregoing, the Commissioner is empowered to adopt rules governing access to property; littering; alcoholic beverages and narcotics; soliciting, debt collection and campaigning; photographs for advertising or commercial purposes; pets and animals; and firearms and explosives while in State buildings under his or her jurisdiction or upon
the grounds of these buildings, and in or upon property leased to the State and under the jurisdiction of the Commissioner.
Adj. Sess.), § 29, eff. May 21, 2018.