Citation(s) from the GunPolicy.org literature library
Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. 2024 ‘Concealed Carry in Michigan.’ Guns in Public. San Francisco, CA: Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. 22 December
Relevant contents
Concealed Weapons Permitting in Michigan
Michigan generally prohibits any person from carrying a handgun concealed on or about his or her person without a concealed handgun license, other than at his or her own residence, on his or her own land, or at his or her place of business.
Michigan is a "shall" issue state, meaning that the "concealed weapon licensing board" (CWLB) must issue a concealed handgun license if the applicant meets certain qualifications. Michigan requires the county sheriff to conduct a background check through the state law enforcement information network and report his or her finding to the CWLB. If the applicant resides in a city, village, or township that has a police department, the CWLB must contact that department to determine if they have any information relevant to whether the applicant is eligible under state law to receive a license to carry a concealed handgun.
The CWLB shall issue a license if the applicant:
- Is 21 years of age or older;
- Is a citizen of the United States or an alien lawfully admitted into the United States;
- Is a resident of Michigan, and has resided in Michigan for at least six months;
- Has completed a safety training course that is available to the general public, and is presented by a law enforcement agency, junior or community college, college, or public or private institution or organization or firearms training school (see the Firearm Safety Training subsection, below);
- Is not the subject of specified court orders;
- Is not prohibited from possessing, using, transporting, selling, purchasing, carrying, shipping, receiving or distributing a firearm;
- Has never been convicted of a felony, and a felony charge is not pending against the applicant;
- Has not been dishonorably discharged from the United States armed forces;
- Has not been convicted of a misdemeanor violation in the last eight years relating to specified crimes, including but not limited to: serious vehicle offenses; displaying sexually explicit materials to minors; assault or domestic assault; fourth degree child abuse; accosting, enticing, or soliciting a child for immoral purposes; vulnerable adult abuse; solicitation to commit a felony; certain weapons crimes; or stalking;
- Has not been convicted of any of a list of misdemeanors in the last three years;
- Has not been found "guilty but mentally ill" of any crime and has not offered a plea of not guilty of, or been acquitted of, any crime by reason of insanity;
- Has never been subject to an order of involuntary commitment in an inpatient or outpatient setting due to mental illness;
- Does not have a diagnosed mental illness at the time the application is made regardless of whether he or she is receiving treatment for that illness;
- Is not under a court order of legal incapacity; and
- Would not pose a danger to self or others as a result of issuance of a license (a determination to be based on clear and convincing evidence of civil infractions, crimes, personal protection orders, injunctions, police reports or other evidence of the actions of, or statements of, the applicant that bear directly on his or her ability to carry a concealed handgun).
Firearm Safety Training
Michigan requires that any applicant for a concealed handgun license, prior to issuance of the license, complete a safety training course that is available to the general public, and is presented by a law enforcement agency, junior or community college, college, or public or private institution or organization or firearms training school.
The course must include at least eight hours of instruction, including five hours of instruction on:
- The safe storage, use, and handling of a handgun including, but not limited to, safe storage, use, and handling to protect child safety;
- Ammunition knowledge, and the fundamentals of handgun shooting;
- Handgun shooting positions;
- Firearms and the law, including civil liability issues and the use of deadly force. This portion shall be taught by an attorney or an individual trained in the use of deadly force;
- Avoiding criminal attack and controlling a violent confrontation; and
- All laws that apply to carrying a concealed handgun in this state.
The course also must include at least three hours of instruction on a firing range, firing at least 30 rounds of ammunition.
The program must provide a certificate of completion that states the program complies with the requirements of state law and that the individual successfully completed the course, signed by the course instructor. The instructor also must be certified by Michigan or a national organization to teach the safety training course.
Duration & Renewal
A license to carry a concealed handgun is valid until the licensee's date of birth that falls not less than four nor more than five years after the license is issued. A license may be renewed in generally the same manner required to obtain the original license, except that the safety training education requirements are waived if the applicant certifies that he or she has completed at least three hours of review of the required training and has had at least one hour of firing range time in the six months immediately preceding the renewal application.
Disclosure or Use of Information
An applicant's legal name, date of birth, address, medical records, and certain types of personal identifying information are considered confidential, and are not subject to disclosure under Michigan's Freedom of Information Act. This information may only be disclosed for purposes of the concealed handgun licensing act or for law enforcement purposes.
The CWLB must retain a copy of each concealed handgun license application as an official record until one year after the expiration of the license.
The Michigan Department of State Police (DSP) is required to maintain a computerized database of individuals who apply for a license to carry a concealed handgun. If an individual who was denied a license to carry a concealed handgun is subsequently issued a license, the DSP shall delete the previous reasons for the denial from the database. Notwithstanding the annual report (detailed below), information in the database is confidential, is not subject to disclosure under the Michigan Freedom of Information Act, and shall not be disclosed to any person except for purposes of the state firearms licensing and possession act or for law enforcement purposes.
DSP must file an annual report with both houses of the state legislature setting forth the following information for each county CWLB:
- The number of concealed handgun applications received;
- The number of concealed handgun licenses issued, denied and revoked (and the categories for denial and revocation);
- The number of applications pending at the time the report is made;
- The mean and median amount of time, and the longest and shortest amount of time, used by the FBI to supply the required fingerprint comparison report;
- The number of charges of state civil infractions under this act or charges of criminal violations, categorized by offense, filed against individuals licensed to carry a concealed handgun that resulted in a finding of responsibility or a criminal conviction. The report must indicate the number of crimes in each category of criminal offense that involved the brandishing or use of a handgun, the number that involved the carrying of a handgun by the license holder during the commission of the crime, and the number in which no handgun was carried by the license holder during the commission of the crime;
- The number of pending criminal charges, categorized by offense, against individuals licensed to carry a concealed handgun;
- The number of criminal cases dismissed, categorized by offense, against individuals licensed to carry a concealed handgun;
- The number of cases filed against individuals licensed to carry a concealed handgun for criminal violations that resulted in a finding of not responsible or not guilty, categorized by offense;
- The number of suicides by individuals licensed to carry a concealed handgun; and
- The actual costs incurred per permit for each county.
Reciprocity
A concealed handgun license issued to a resident of another state is recognized in Michigan…
[Editor's note: The Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence regularly updates its webpages with new data as US gun regulation evolves state by state. For the most up-to-date information on US gun laws, please refer to the Giffords URL below]