U.S. territory · VI
U.S. Virgin Islands gun laws
Here's a plain-language look at the U.S. Virgin Islands' own firearm laws, topic by topic. Federal law applies here too, so it's worth reading the federal page alongside this one. City and county rules aren't covered, and some places have stricter ones.
At a glance: Permit needed to carry concealed · magazine limit (15 rounds)
Permit to purchase#
- Handguns
- Yes. You need a Virgin Islands Firearms License from the Police Commissioner and a registration certificate for each firearm (23 V.I.C. 453, 454, 459, as reenacted by Act No. 9113 in 2026).
- Long guns
- The same license and registration certificate are required (23 V.I.C. 453(f)).
Registration#
- Yes. Every firearm needs a registration certificate from the Commissioner ($50 per application, which can cover several guns), and details go into the territory's firearms register (23 V.I.C. 453(c), 459, 473). Anyone bringing a firearm or ammunition into the territory must declare it on arrival (23 V.I.C. 470).
Carrying a handgun#
- Permitless carry
- No.
- Concealed carry permit
- Shall-issue since June 24, 2026. The Police Commissioner must issue a Virgin Islands Firearms License to applicants who are 21 or older, U.S. citizens or lawful resident aliens, meet the background requirements and have completed an approved firearms safety course within the past 10 years, and must decide within 30 days of a complete application (23 V.I.C. 454, 456, as reenacted by Act No. 9113). To carry a gun you also need a registration certificate for it (453(h)).
- Open carry
- No. Carrying any firearm openly in public is prohibited, and long guns can't be carried at all (23 V.I.C. 453(i)).
- Reciprocity
- None identified; visitors must declare firearms at the port of entry (23 V.I.C. 470).
“Assault weapon” rules#
- No 'assault weapon' ban by that name. Act No. 9113 (2026) bans automatic weapons, short-barreled rifles and shotguns, ghost guns, and centerfire rifles that can fire the .50 BMG cartridge (23 V.I.C. 453(e)). The act's title mentions 'assault rifles', but the enacted text doesn't define or ban them.
Magazine limits#
- 15 rounds. Magazines holding more than 15 rounds are banned (23 V.I.C. 451(q), 493); for license holders a first or second offense brings a civil fine. A licensed gun made before the act to hold more than 15 rounds may be kept and registered, but can only be sold to a federal dealer or outside the territory (452(e)).
Waiting period#
- No fixed waiting period, but a dealer can't hand over a gun until you show a Firearms License and a registration certificate for it (23 V.I.C. 453(f), 466(a)). The Commissioner has 30 days to act on each complete application (456(d), 459(d)).
Background checks and private sales#
- Yes. Private transfers must be reported to the Commissioner beforehand, and the Commissioner decides whether the buyer is eligible for a license (23 V.I.C. 461(c)).
Red flag (ERPO) law#
Unverified: We haven't confirmed this against the statute yet. Check the official source. See the note below.- No court-ordered red flag law in the firearms chapter as rewritten in 2026. The Commissioner must suspend a license when there's evidence the holder no longer qualifies or 'presents a danger to the community', and the holder must surrender their guns within 48 hours (23 V.I.C. 458(a), (e)).
Unverified: The 2026 firearms law has no court-ordered red flag process; we haven't confirmed that no other USVI law creates one. We haven't confirmed this against the statute yet, so check the official source.
Suppressors, SBRs and SBSs#
- Suppressors
- Prohibited (23 V.I.C. 492), even with ATF registration. Licensed gun ranges may keep them on site for license holders to use at the range. The federal NFA change doesn't affect this.
- Short-barreled rifles and shotguns
- Prohibited. Short-barreled rifles and shotguns are banned (23 V.I.C. 451(u)-(v), 453(e)).
About the October 2026 federal NFA change
On October 9, 2026, ATF said it will stop enforcing the NFA's approval and registration requirements for suppressors, short-barreled rifles and shotguns, and AOWs. The U.S. Virgin Islands' own restrictions on suppressors and short-barreled rifles and shotguns still apply. ATF's federal non-enforcement policy doesn't change territorial law.
Ammunition#
- Restricted. Dealers may sell ammunition only in person and only in the caliber or gauge of a firearm on the buyer's registration certificate (23 V.I.C. 466(b)). Ammunition dealers must be licensed (23 V.I.C. 461(a)).
Minimum ages#
- Handgun purchase
- 21. You need a Virgin Islands Firearms License to buy any firearm, and the license age is 21 (23 V.I.C. 453(f), 454(a)(1)).
- Long gun purchase
- 21 (the same license is needed for every firearm).
Shipping and buying online#
- Firearms and ammunition must go to a USVI-licensed dealer in firearms and/or ammunition (who must also hold an FFL for firearms). Each importation must be reported to the Commissioner (23 V.I.C. 461(b)), and importing without a license or without reporting carries severe penalties (467a). USPS won't carry ammunition, and UPS limited-quantity ground service doesn't reach the USVI, so ammunition moves as hazmat freight to a licensed dealer. This territory is treated as a 'State' under the federal Gun Control Act (18 U.S.C. 921(a)(2)); see the federal Territories section.
Buying a firearm online means it ships to a licensed dealer, who completes the transfer. Find one near you in the Dealer Finder. Retailers make the final call on what they'll ship, so always check their policy too.
Pending legislation and litigation#
Bills, ballot measures, rules and court cases that could change the rules in the U.S. Virgin Islands. We check this list every week; last scan . See everything we're tracking.
No open items right now. Here's what was settled recently.
Recently resolved (1)
United States v. Bost and Williams v. Attorney General (the federal felon ban, 922(g)(1))
Nos. 24-1719 and 24-1091 · U.S. Court of Appeals, 3rd Circuit (en banc)
Status:
The full Third Circuit, which covers Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and the U.S. Virgin Islands, decided two challenges to 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(1). That's the federal ban on having a gun after a conviction for a crime punishable by more than a year in prison. In Bost, the court upheld the ban for a man convicted of terroristic threats, because a conviction involving a threat of violence shows a risk of misusing guns. In Williams, it held that the lifetime ban couldn't be applied to a man whose disqualifying conviction was a repeat drunk-driving offense, because the government didn't show a historical tradition of permanently disarming people for that kind of conduct.
What it changed: In the Third Circuit, a person whose only disqualifying record is a nonviolent offense like Williams's may be able to challenge the ban as applied to them. It isn't automatic: the felon ban still applies, each person's record matters, and the ban still stands for people with violent convictions like Bost's.
Outcome: Decided Oct. 13, 2026: the ban was upheld as applied to Bost (terroristic threats) and held unconstitutional as applied to Williams (a repeat DUI).
Status history (2)
- :
- :
Sources and official links#
- 23 V.I.C. 461 (dealer license; import reporting; private transfers) · Officialhttps://law.justia.com/codes/virgin-islands/title-23/chapter-5/461/
- 23 V.I.C. 454 (pre-2026 text, replaced by Act No. 9113) · Officialhttps://law.justia.com/codes/virgin-islands/title-23/chapter-5/454/
- 23 V.I.C. 456 (pre-2026 text, replaced by Act No. 9113) · Officialhttps://law.justia.com/codes/virgin-islands/title-23/chapter-5/456/
- 23 V.I.C. 470 (declaration of firearms brought in) · Officialhttps://law.justia.com/codes/virgin-islands/2019/title-23/chapter-5/470/
- ATF - U.S. Virgin Islands firearms statutes compilation · Officialhttps://www.atf.gov/firearms/docs/guide/us-virgin-islands-firearms-statutes-and-codes/download
- Act No. 9113 (Bill 36-0144), signed June 24, 2026 (scanned act) · Officialhttps://billtracking.legvi.org/bill_detail/37185/
- Governor's release on signing Bill 36-0144 · Officialhttps://www.vi.gov/governor-bryan-approves-measures-modernizing-firearm-laws-and-supporting-education-recreation-and-public-employees/
- VIPD - firearms licensing requirements under Act No. 9113 · Officialhttps://vipd.vi.gov/news/virgin-islands-police-department-reminds-residents-of-firearms-licensing-requirements/
U.S. Virgin Islands entry last reviewed . Official territorial sites can move or change; if a link stops working, search the agency's site for the same title.
Notes that apply everywhere
Federal NFA change (suppressors, SBRs, SBSs, AOWs)
Congress set the federal NFA making and transfer tax to $0 for suppressors, short-barreled rifles (SBRs), short-barreled shotguns (SBSs) and 'any other weapons' effective January 1, 2026 (One Big Beautiful Bill Act, 2025). After a federal district court ruling (Silencer Shop Foundation v. ATF, N.D. Tex., Aug. 5, 2026), ATF published an open letter from Director Robert Cekada, a press release, a fact sheet and an FAQ saying that as of October 9, 2026 it will not enforce the NFA's approval, registration, tax-stamp and related requirements for those four items, for everyone. Machine guns and destructive devices remain fully regulated. The Gun Control Act still applies, including dealer background checks, the prohibited-person rules, and an approved Form 20 to take an SBR or SBS across state lines, and dealers still may not sell in violation of state or local law. ATF says this does not override state or local law. A state that bans these items still bans them. Many state laws make these items legal only if they are 'registered' or 'lawful under federal law', and how those state laws apply to unregistered items is currently unclear. ATF also warns that enforcement could resume if the law, the ruling or DOJ policy changes. Keep this note in mind whenever you read a state's suppressor, SBR or SBS entry.
U.S. Supreme Court 'assault weapon' cases
The Supreme Court granted review (June 30, 2026) in Viramontes v. Cook County (No. 25-238, a Cook County, IL ordinance) and Grant v. Higgins (No. 25-566, Connecticut). The question is whether the Second Amendment protects possession of AR-15-platform rifles. The cases are scheduled for oral argument on December 2, 2026 (not yet argued as of October 15, 2026), and a decision is expected by mid-2027. Magazine-limit petitions (for example Duncan v. Bonta from CA and NAGR v. Lamont from CT) and New Jersey's petition (No. 26-452) were pending as of mid-October 2026. Every state 'assault weapon' and magazine entry could change as a result.
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Wolford v. Lopez (U.S. Supreme Court, June 25, 2026)
The Court struck down Hawaii's rule that licensed carriers may not carry on private property open to the public without the owner's express permission. Similar 'default no-carry on private property' rules in some other states (for example CA, NY, NJ and MD) may be affected. This guide hasn't verified how each state has responded.
Federal minimum ages
Under federal law, licensed dealers may sell handguns only to buyers 21 and older, and long guns only to buyers 18 and older. Federal courts have split on whether the 18-20 handgun-sale restriction is constitutional, and this guide doesn't try to resolve that litigation. State rules on how old minors must be to possess guns aren't fully covered here.
Local ordinances
Many cities and counties (for example Chicago and Cook County, IL; Denver and Boulder, CO; Philadelphia, PA; and New York City) have rules stricter than state law. This guide covers state-level law only.
All states, DC and territories · Federal law
Disclaimer
The firearm law information in Firearms Almanac's Laws & Regulations guide (federal, state and territory) is provided for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice. It is not a substitute for advice from a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction. Firearm laws change frequently, differ by city and county, and are often affected by court decisions that can take effect with little notice. We try to keep this guide accurate and cite official sources, but we make no guarantee that any entry is complete, current, or correct, and we are not responsible for actions taken based on it. Before buying, selling, carrying, transporting, or shipping any firearm, ammunition, magazine, or accessory, check the current law with the official federal, state or territory source linked on each page and, where appropriate, a qualified attorney. Retailers listed on this site set their own shipping and sales policies and are responsible for complying with the law. Each entry shows the date it was last checked. See also our site Disclaimer.