Concealed Carry in Tennessee

Yes. A person may carry a handgun, openly or concealed, without a permit if the person is at least 21 years of age, or at least 18 years of age and an honorably discharged or retired veteran, an honorably discharged reserve or National Guard member who completed basic training, or a current active-duty, reserve or National Guard member who completed basic training. The person must lawfully possess the handgun and be in a place where the person is lawfully present, so people barred from possessing firearms are excluded. Permitless carry covers handguns only.

Tennessee issues two handgun carry permits through the Department of Safety, and both are shall-issue (the department 'shall issue a permit' to a qualified applicant). (1) Enhanced handgun carry permit: allows open or concealed carry; requires a course with both classroom hours and firing-range hours (certain waivers apply, such as military small-arms qualification); fee $100; valid 8 years; a lifetime enhanced permit is also available (fee $200 in the mirror text, plus the application fee) and does not expire. Since Public Chapter 356 (HB 1332, effective May 8, 2025), the minimum age for the enhanced permit is 18 (previously 21, with military exceptions). (2) Concealed handgun carry permit: concealed carry only; requires a firearms safety course of not less than 90 minutes, which may be taken online, completed within one year before applying; fee $65 (renewal $50); valid 8 years. Applicants must be Tennessee residents.

Tennessee honors all other states' permits: a facially valid handgun permit, firearms permit, weapons permit or license issued by another state is valid in Tennessee according to its terms and is treated as a Tennessee handgun permit. This covers handguns only.

Main places: (1) public or private school buildings, buses, campuses and grounds (carrying a weapon with intent to go armed is a Class E felony; possessing a firearm is a Class B misdemeanor), with an exception for a nonstudent adult whose firearm stays in a private vehicle and is not handled; (2) any building where judicial proceedings are in progress (Class E felony); (3) property where the owner or operator posts the statutory 'NO FIREARMS ALLOWED' sign (Class B misdemeanor, fine only of $500); (4) possessing a firearm in a public establishment serving alcohol for on-premises consumption while consuming alcohol, and possessing a handgun while under the influence of alcohol or a controlled substance.

A person who may carry without a permit (21 or older, or 18 or older with qualifying military service, lawfully possessing the handgun and lawfully present) may carry a handgun, openly or concealed, including in a vehicle, under the general permitless-carry exception. In a public or private parking area, a permit holder or a person lawfully carrying a handgun may transport and store a firearm or ammunition in a vehicle parked where it is permitted to be; it must be kept from ordinary observation while the person is in the vehicle, and when the person is not in the vehicle it must also be locked in the trunk, glove box or interior, or a container securely affixed to the vehicle.