Obtaining a New Jersey Non-Resident Concealed Carry Permit can seem daunting for anyone that hasn’t gone through the process before. While the process seems daunting, we'd like to assure you it’s obtainable, especially if you have your New York state CCW.
While this post outlines in detail how to obtain your Non-resident New Jersey CCW, if you’d like personalized help, and someone to do the vast majority of the work for you, you can hire us here:
There are two ways New Yorkers can apply:
1. Through the State Police or;
2. If they have a second residence in New Jersey, with that town’s PD.
Option 1 will be your typical route. Therefore, most New York residents will need to apply through the New Jersey State Police with the closest non-toll road location geographically to them. For New York City, this means NJSP Totowa.
Do note that no matter where you apply: you DO NOT and SHOULD NOT go in person to any agency.
The entire application process is done online. The only time you will need to leave your home will be for fingerprinting and to do the use of force class and shooting qualification.
The process to apply begins with obtaining information on the agency that is closest to you, which is called the ORI (Originating Agency Identifier) number. The ORI number can be found in the list here.
If you are unsure that you have the correct ORI number, please contact the specific agency that you believe is correct, and wait for instructions.
Once you have figured out the ORI number, you should apply for a New Jersey Firearms ID card.
Why?
Because this will be your fastest way to obtain an SBI Number.
Your SBI number is what is needed to do the NJ CCW application, but the FID is not an actual prerequisite for NJ CCW eligibility.
You can apply for your NJ FID through the link here.
An SBI number can be obtained in one of two ways:
1. either through a previous arrest or;
2. through fingerprinting for an NJ firearms permit.
On the FID application, you’ll answer various yes/no questions about your previous addresses, criminal record, and mental health.
After going through your FID application and answering everything as honestly and as accurately as possible, NJ will be checking to see if you’ve ever been confined to a mental health institution (inpatient or outpatient). For more specifics regarding mental health screening, please see N.J.S.A. 2C:58-3 and/or consult with an attorney.
You will also need to include four references.
They can be any two people in the world as long as they are reputable and though the law does not require a minimum length of time to have known them, it’s highly recommended to use people you trust and have known for at least 3 year.
Once you submit your application, your references will be emailed a a yes/no questionnaire.. It’s imperative your references complete the survey as fast as possible, as your application will not begin processing until all steps (payment, fingerprints, and reference questionnaires) have been submitted.
You also need to upload a 2’’x 2’’ photo with your application. A selfie against a blank wall is fine as long as it is a passport style. If you want to reformat the picture on a computer, make the image 192 x 192 pixels.
A great free app on iPhone is available here that automatically creates passport photos using your camera.
After you pay and submit the FID application, you will receive an order number and a link to Identogo’s website. Use the link to schedule an appointment to get fingerprinted for New Jersey Firearms purposes. Note that the fingerprinting does not need to be done in New Jersey, but does come with an additional out of state fee of $39.95
It takes roughly two weeks for the company to give your fingerprints to New Jersey State Police. Two weeks after you have been fingerprinted, you should call your designated station for your SBI number.
New Jersey routinely requests that a NY mental health form is submitted as well. Though not REQUIRED under statute, NJ law does allow them to inquire. However, due to NY laws regarding medical privacy, your consent is needed to obtain that info. A link to a reddit post containing the explanation and the forms needed to be emailed to your NJ agency is attached here: reddit and form.
In short, you will need to email that form to your NJ agency after you fill it out. Make sure it is a valid signature that is NOT TYPED. This takes up to about 45 days, as Albany requires NJ to fax it. Do this ASAP.
The New Jersey Non-Resident CCW required qualification with your handgun in a shooting exercise, which we provide to our Foundation, as well as various companies across NJ and NY.
You can find our CCW course here if you would like a private class.
Once you have passed your course and assuming you have your SBI, you can now apply for the NJ PTC here.
The online application is nearly the same as the FID application with a few minor differences. Besides being more expensive, you need four references instead of two references. Additionally, these references cannot be related to you by blood (ex. Father) or by law (ex. Wife) and you must have known them for at least 3 years.
The good news is that you can still use anyone in the entire United States. Also, you do not need to get re-fingerprinted as you did this when filling out your FID application and obtaining your SBI number.
Make sure that you keep all documents and papers given to you by your CCW instructor. You can and should upload them with your application. Proof of qualification, proof of use of force training completed, and proof of your instructors certificates are the 3-4 documents you should be attaching.
You will also need to download and do the NJ mental health form as well. Screenshots of the entire process are attached in this reddit post here.
By law NJ has up to 120 days to approve or deny you. For more specifics, please see N.J.S.A. 2C:58-4 and/or consult with an attorney.
It’s important to know that you need to have possession of the permit to be able to legally carry a handgun in NJ. The permit, when it’s approved, will be emailed to you. Make sure you download it and make copies of it.
During the application process, it will ask for the handguns you want to have on the permit. Remember: you must qualify with a handgun you own. One qualification course covers all handguns you put on the permit. Note that non-residents are not required by New Jersey law to register handguns with the state.
The cost for the carry permit is $200.
This does not include the cost of the qualification courses (that you have to recertify every two years as well), nor does it include the administrative charges that will be added on the NJSP CCW website.
We hope that you have found this post to be of use and please let us know if its information was useful and if it helped you with your process.
Please note, we are not lawyers. Any of the information provided in this post is not legal advice and we are not responsible for any adverse results that you may encounter.
Your unique situation may create specific situations where although you theoretically qualify, you may still be denied a concealed carry permit. Nothing here is guaranteed. Please consult with an attorney prior to submitting a concealed carry permit application where you feel you may be denied for any reason.
