Apply For A License To Carry

Pursuant to MGL. Ch. 140, § 131, applicants must be at least 21 years old. The nonrenewable processing fee is $100.00 dollars, payable by cash or money order. Credit cards and checks are not accepted. Renewal fee will be waived for applicants 70 years of age and older. Applicants must reside or have a place of business in the City of Boston. Applicants must submit a copy of the following applicable documents:

• New applicants must provide a Firearm Safety Certificate or Hunting Safety Course Certificate issued by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. No Safety Certificate required for active military personnel.
• Birth Certificate, valid US Passport or Certificate of Citizenship
• Mass. Drivers License or Mass ID card with an address in the City of Boston
• Business certificate or corporation documents with an address in the City of Boston, if applicable
• Expiring LTC card, if renewing
• Permanent Resident Alien Card, if applicable
• Naturalization Papers, if applicable

All answers to questions on the submitted License to Carry Application must be truthful.  Failure to answer any question on the submitted License to Carry Application in a truthful manner will result in an automatic denial of a License to Carry.

Applicants will be required to qualify at the Boston Police Department Firearms Range at Moon Island within two weeks of the date of the application.

An LTC is valid for not more than six years and will expire on the licensee’s birthday.

Statutory disqualifications include:

• Felony conviction
• Misdemeanor conviction punishable by imprisonment for more than two years
• Misdemeanor conviction involving domestic violence as defined by 18. U.S.C 921(a)(33)
• Conviction of a violent crime as defined in MGL Chapter 140, Section 121
• Violation of any law regulating the use, possession, ownership, transfer, purchase, sale, lease, rental or transportation of weapons or ammunition
• Violation of any law regulating the use, possession, or sale of controlled substances as defined in Section 1 of MGL Chapter 94C
• Commitment to any hospital or institution for mental illness
• Currently the subject of a MGL 209A order
• Currently the subject of an outstanding arrest warrant
• Commitment for drug addiction or habitual drunkenness

Pursuant to MGL. Ch. 140 § 131, the licensing authority will make a determination of suitability on all LTC applicants and active licensees. If the licensing authority determines an applicant or licensee could create a risk to public safety, the licensing authority will deny the issuance of a new LTC or suspend / revoke an active LTC.

Change of Address

Licensee shall notify, in writing, the issuing licensing authority, the Chief of Police into whose jurisdiction the licensee moves and the Firearm Record Bureau of any change of address. Notification shall be made within thirty days by certified mail. Failure to notify shall be cause for suspension or revocation.

Applicant Notification and Record Challenge

Officials at the governmental institutions and other entities authorized to submit fingerprints and receive FBI identification records under this authority must notify the individuals fingerprinted that the fingerprints will be used to check the criminal history records of the FBI. The officials making the determination of suitability for licensing or employment shall provide the applicants the opportunity to complete, or challenge the accuracy of, the information contained in the FBI identification record. These officials also must advise the applicants that procedures for obtaining a change, correction, or updating of an FBI identification record are set forth in Title 28, C.F.R., 16.34. Officials making such determinations should not deny the license or employment based on information in the record until the applicant has been afforded a reasonable time to correct or complete the record, or has declined to do so.