Can you carry a handgun in Texas without a licence?
Most adults can. Since HB 1927 took effect on 1 September 2021, a person 21 or older who is not barred from possessing a firearm may carry a handgun in a holster without a licence. What remains an offense under Tex. Penal Code §46.02 is carrying while under 21, while intoxicated, while prohibited from possessing a firearm, after certain recent convictions, or displaying a handgun in public outside a holster.
- Permitless carry did not change who is eligible to possess a gun, only whether a licence is needed to carry one.
- Carrying while prohibited is a second degree felony with a 5 year minimum if the bar comes from a felony conviction.
- A licence still has real value: reciprocity in other states, and it removes some of these questions at a traffic stop.
- Section 46.03 still bans handguns in schools, courts, polling places, secure airport areas and other listed locations.
- If a gun is used or exhibited during an assault, the charge becomes aggravated assault, a second degree felony.
Texas law changed in 2021 and a great deal of what is written online still describes the old rules. This page sets out what the statutes say now. Peter M. Barrett has been licensed in Texas since 1994, has tried more than 150 jury trials, and is a Past President of the Dallas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (2005). See our Dallas violent crime defense page.
What HB 1927 changed, and what it did not
The bill removed the licence requirement for carrying a handgun for eligible adults. It repealed the old subsection of §46.02 that made unlicensed carry an offense on its own. It did not create a right to carry for people who could not possess a gun before, and it did not touch the federal rules in 18 U.S.C. §922(g).
A Texas Licence to Carry still exists and is still worth holding. It gives reciprocity in states that recognise it, it allows carry in some places a permitless carrier cannot go, and it changes what a plain view handgun in a vehicle means under §46.02(a-1).
What is still an offense under section 46.02
- Under 21. Carrying a handgun on or about the person while younger than 21, away from your own premises and not in or directly en route to your own vehicle or watercraft (§46.02(a)(2)(A)).
- A recent conviction. The same conduct by a person convicted within the past five years of assault causing bodily injury, deadly conduct, terroristic threat, or disorderly conduct with a firearm (§46.02(a)(2)(B)).
- In a vehicle, in plain view. Carrying a handgun in your own vehicle in plain view, unless you are 21 or older or licensed and the handgun is in a holster (§46.02(a-1)(1)).
- In a vehicle while in criminal activity. Carrying in a vehicle while engaged in criminal activity beyond a Class C traffic offense, or while barred from possessing a firearm (§46.02(a-1)(2)).
- Displaying it. Carrying a handgun and intentionally displaying it in plain view of another person in a public place. It is an exception if the handgun was visible but carried in a holster (§46.02(a-5)).
- While intoxicated. Carrying a handgun while intoxicated, away from your own property or your own vehicle (§46.02(a-6)).
- While prohibited. Carrying a handgun away from your premises or vehicle while barred from possessing a firearm under §46.04 (§46.02(a-7)).
Most offenses under this section are Class A misdemeanors. The last one is different, and it is the part that catches people. Under §46.02(e), carrying while prohibited is a second degree felony with a minimum term of 5 years if the bar comes from §46.04(a), which is a felony conviction, and a third degree felony if it comes from §46.04(b) or (c). Those ranges are explained in our guide to Texas misdemeanors and felonies.
Who cannot possess a firearm in Texas
Section 46.04 sets the state rule:
- After a felony conviction. Possession is an offense until the fifth anniversary of release from confinement or from community supervision, parole or mandatory supervision, whichever is later. After that period, possession anywhere other than the place where the person lives remains an offense. It is a third degree felony.
- After a family violence misdemeanor. A person convicted of a Class A misdemeanor assault under §22.01 involving a family or household member commits an offense by possessing a firearm before the fifth anniversary of release from confinement or community supervision. This is a Class A misdemeanor, not a felony.
- Under a protective order. A person subject to a qualifying protective order commits an offense by possessing a firearm after notice of the order and before it expires. Class A misdemeanor.
The article that used to sit here said a person with a Class A family violence conviction caught with a firearm "will now be charged with a 3rd-degree felony instead of another Class A misdemeanor." That is not what the statute says. Under §46.04(e), possession in that situation remains a Class A misdemeanor. The third degree felony is for possession after a felony conviction. What the 2021 session did add is the separate offense in §46.02(a-7) for carrying in public while prohibited, and that one is a felony.
Federal law is stricter and has no five year window. A person can be past the Texas period and still be committing a federal offense under §922(g)(1).
Where a handgun is still banned
Section 46.03 lists places where carrying is an offense regardless of any licence. They include schools and school buses, the grounds of a polling place on election day, a court or an office used by a court, a racetrack, the secure area of an airport, and within 1,000 feet of a designated execution site on certain days. Section 46.035 adds more for licence holders, including a business that derives 51 percent or more of its income from on premises alcohol sales, a hospital or nursing facility that has given notice, an amusement park, and a correctional facility.
Private property owners can also exclude firearms by giving the notice the statute describes, and carrying past that notice is its own offense.
When a gun is present during an assault
Texas does not have categories called verbal or simple assault. There are two statutes.
Assault, §22.01. Intentionally, knowingly or recklessly causing bodily injury to another; intentionally or knowingly threatening another with imminent bodily injury; or intentionally or knowingly causing physical contact the other person will regard as offensive or provocative. Causing bodily injury is a Class A misdemeanor, rising to a third degree felony against certain people such as a public servant, a family member in specified circumstances, or an emergency worker. Threats and offensive contact are usually Class C misdemeanors.
Aggravated assault, §22.02. The same conduct where the person causes serious bodily injury, or uses or exhibits a deadly weapon during the assault. It is a second degree felony, rising to a first degree felony in listed situations, including where a deadly weapon is used and serious bodily injury is caused to a family or household member, or where the offense is committed against a public servant.
Note the word "exhibits". The gun does not have to be fired, and it does not have to be pointed. Displaying it during an assault is enough to move a misdemeanor into a second degree felony. More on the ranges in penalties for assault in Texas and aggravated assault in Dallas.
Self defense remains available, and Texas law allows a person to use force, and in defined circumstances deadly force, to protect themselves. Whether the facts support it is a question for the jury, and it is decided on what a reasonable person would have believed at that moment.
Common questions
Do I still need a licence to carry in Texas?
Not to carry a holstered handgun in most public places if you are 21 or older and not barred from possessing a firearm. A Licence to Carry still matters for reciprocity in other states and for some locations, and it changes the plain view rule for a handgun in a vehicle.
Can I carry a gun in my car in Texas?
Yes, within limits. Under section 46.02(a-1) it is an offense to carry a handgun in your own vehicle in plain view unless you are 21 or older or licensed and the handgun is in a holster, and it is an offense to carry in a vehicle while engaged in criminal activity beyond a Class C traffic offense or while barred from possessing a firearm.
What happens if a person with a felony record is caught carrying?
There are two offenses. Possession under section 46.04(a) is a third degree felony. Carrying a handgun in public while prohibited under section 46.02(a-7) is a second degree felony with a minimum term of 5 years. Federal charges under 18 U.S.C. section 922(g) can follow the same gun.
Is showing a gun during an argument a crime in Texas?
It can be two of them. Intentionally displaying a handgun in plain view in a public place is an offense under section 46.02(a-5) unless it is holstered. If the display happens during an assault, section 22.02 makes it aggravated assault, a second degree felony, because the weapon was exhibited.
Can I carry a handgun into a bar in Texas?
No. A business that derives 51 percent or more of its income from the on premises sale of alcohol posts the required sign, and carrying there is an offense. Carrying a handgun while intoxicated is separately an offense under section 46.02(a-6).
The law this article describes, at the source. Every figure above can be checked against it.
This article is general legal information about Texas and federal law, not legal advice about your case. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Laws change, so confirm the current rule with a licensed criminal defense attorney about your specific facts. Request a free, confidential case review.