Tennessee Permit: Enhanced vs. Concealed Carry Training and Costs

If you’re deciding between Tennessee’s Enhanced Handgun Carry Permit and Concealed Handgun Carry Permit, the enhanced permit is the stronger choice for most people: it lets you carry openly or concealed, is honored by more states, and reaches locations the concealed-only permit does not. The concealed permit costs less and has a lighter training requirement, which makes it a reasonable pick if you only ever plan to carry concealed inside Tennessee. Both permits last eight years, both require fingerprinting and a background check, and both sit alongside a third option, the Lifetime Enhanced Handgun Carry Permit, which never expires.¹

Tennessee also allows permitless carry for adults who are 21 or older, legally allowed to possess a firearm, and lawfully present where they are carrying. People still apply for permits because reciprocity, purchase convenience, and carry rights in specific locations are only available with a permit.

What Each Permit Lets You Do

The core difference is carry mode and location access.

The Enhanced Handgun Carry Permit allows both open and concealed carry of any handgun you legally own. It carries the widest reciprocity with other states, and it permits carry in some locations the concealed permit does not, including school and university property under a separate statute governing carry on those premises.¹²

The Concealed Handgun Carry Permit requires the handgun to remain concealed at all times. Holders may not carry at any public or private school or university.¹

If you ever plan to carry openly, travel with your firearm to another state, or want maximum flexibility in where you can lawfully carry, the enhanced permit is the only option that covers all three.

Training Requirements Are Where the Two Diverge Most

Enhanced Permit Training

The enhanced permit requires an eight-hour handgun safety course from a Tennessee-certified instructor, completed no more than one year before you apply. It includes both classroom instruction and live-fire range qualification. Classroom topics cover Tennessee carry laws, the effects of alcohol and drugs on firearm handling, and safe storage.³ Civilians cannot complete this course online.

Military applicants get some flexibility. Documented handgun training of at least four hours from any branch exempts you from both the classroom and range portions. If your DD-214 shows small arms qualification or combat pistol training but does not specifically list four hours of handgun training, you skip the range portion but still take the classroom session.⁴ Similar exemptions apply to current or recent law enforcement officers, armed security guards, and corrections officers who completed firearms training within five years of applying.

Concealed Permit Training

The concealed permit accepts a broader range of courses. Any firearms safety course, including online or video-based instruction, satisfies the requirement so long as it was taught by an instructor certified by the state or a recognized firearms training organization and meets the Department of Safety’s standards.⁵ The training must be completed within one year of your application. The military and law enforcement exemptions available for the enhanced permit also satisfy the concealed permit’s training requirement.

Cost, Plus the Lifetime Option

Application fees are non-refundable and due when you submit:

Enhanced Handgun Carry Permit: $100 ($65 for active-duty military or honorably discharged veterans)
Concealed Handgun Carry Permit: $65
Lifetime Enhanced Permit: $300 ($265 for military, $200 to upgrade from an existing eight-year permit)

These fees cover processing, the background investigation, and the permit card.¹

The Lifetime Enhanced Handgun Carry Permit carries the same open-and-concealed privileges as the standard enhanced permit but never expires. There is no lifetime option for the concealed-only permit. The trade-off is that Tennessee runs a name-based background check on lifetime holders every five years, and a disqualifying event flagged during one of those checks can revoke the permit. Eligibility and training requirements match the standard enhanced permit.¹

Eligibility (Same for Both Permits)

You must be at least 21 years old, a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident, and a Tennessee resident. The age drops to 18 if you are currently serving on active duty, serving in a reserve component or national guard unit after completing basic training, or are an honorably discharged veteran.³

You will confirm under oath that none of the following disqualifiers apply:

Any felony conviction, with a narrow exception for certain antitrust or business-regulation offenses.³
An active order of protection involving an intimate partner or their child, which bars firearm possession under state and federal law.⁶
A misdemeanor domestic violence conviction as defined under federal law.
Two or more DUI convictions within the past ten years, or a single DUI within the past five years.
Judicial commitment to a mental institution, appointment of a conservator based on a mental condition, or a finding within the past seven years that you pose a substantial likelihood of serious harm because of mental illness.
Unlawful use of, or addiction to, a controlled substance.⁶

Federal law adds other prohibited categories, including fugitives from justice, anyone dishonorably discharged from the military, anyone who has renounced U.S. citizenship, and anyone under indictment for a crime punishable by more than one year of imprisonment. Any of these prevent firearm possession regardless of state law.⁶

How to Apply

Applications start online through the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security’s driver services portal, under the Handgun Permits tab.⁷ You enter your personal information, confirm eligibility under oath, and reference your training certificate.

You will also need certified proof of U.S. citizenship or lawful permanent residency. Accepted documents include an official U.S. birth certificate, a valid U.S. passport, or an unexpired Permanent Resident Card (Form I-551).⁸ Photocopies are not accepted; bring original or certified documents.⁹

Save your confirmation number after paying. You will need it to schedule fingerprinting.

Fingerprints and Background Check

Fingerprinting is mandatory for first-time applicants.¹⁰ After you submit your application and pay, you will get instructions to schedule the appointment. Bring a valid government-issued photo ID and your confirmation number.

Your prints run through state and federal criminal databases. The local sheriff’s office also has 30 days from receiving your application to share any information relevant to your eligibility. Clean records move faster; anything that needs additional review can add weeks. Approved permits arrive by mail at the address on file.

Where Neither Permit Lets You Carry

A permit is not blanket permission to carry everywhere in Tennessee.

Private property owners and businesses can prohibit firearms by posting a sign at each entrance. Government facilities can post as well, but generally cannot bar permit holders unless the building screens everyone entering with metal detectors and security personnel at every public entrance.¹¹

That screening exception does not save you at these locations, where firearms are prohibited regardless:

Courthouses, at all times, whether court is in session or not
Law enforcement buildings
Schools and universities (concealed permit holders cannot carry on school property at all; enhanced permit holders have limited rights under Tennessee Code 39-17-1311)²
Libraries
Licensed mental health, childcare, and healthcare facilities
Head Start program facilities

Public parks, greenways, campgrounds, and nature trails operated by the state or a local government follow separate rules under Tennessee Code 39-17-1311 and are generally open to permit carry.¹¹

Federal property runs on its own rules regardless of your state permit. Post offices, federal courthouses, VA hospitals, and military installations prohibit firearms, with separate federal penalties for violations.

Traveling With Your Permit

Reciprocity is one of the strongest reasons to choose the enhanced permit over the concealed permit. Tennessee honors any valid handgun permit issued by another state, and many states return the favor, but the enhanced permit is recognized by significantly more states than the concealed permit.¹² The Department of Safety publishes a state-by-state reciprocity list on its website. Check it before every trip, because reciprocity agreements change.

When driving through a state that does not recognize your permit, federal law offers limited transit protection. Under 18 U.S.C. § 926A, you may transport a firearm through any state if you can legally possess it at both your starting point and destination, the firearm is unloaded, and neither the gun nor ammunition is readily accessible from the passenger compartment. If your vehicle has no trunk, both must be in a locked container other than the glove compartment or center console.¹³ This protection covers transit only. If you stop and stay in a state where your permit is not valid, you lose it.

Flying is stricter. TSA allows firearms in checked baggage only. The handgun must be unloaded, locked in a hard-sided container, and declared to the airline at the ticket counter. A magazine loaded with ammunition but removed from the firearm still counts as loaded.¹⁴ You also have to comply with the firearm laws at your destination, not just Tennessee’s.

Renewing Your Permit

Eight-year permits can be renewed up to six months before expiration and as late as eight years after they expire.⁷ Renewal goes through the same online portal as the original application. If the renewal option does not appear when you log in, you are either not yet eligible or need to visit a driver services center in person for a new photo.

One easy-to-miss obligation: if you move, notify the Department of Safety of your new address within 60 days. An outdated address can create problems at renewal and during any law enforcement stop that pulls up your record.

If Your Application Is Denied

If the Department of Safety denies your application, you will receive written notice explaining the legal basis. Denials often stem from records that are incomplete, outdated, or misassociated with the applicant. Arrest records without a final disposition, for example, will trigger an automatic denial even if the charges were dismissed.

For denials from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation’s background check system, you can request the specific reason and file a formal appeal with the TBI’s Tennessee Instant Check System (TICS) Unit within 30 days. TBI must attempt to respond within five business days. The burden is on you to provide documentation, such as court orders, disposition records, or proof that your civil rights have been restored.

For denials tied to federal records, you can challenge the decision through the FBI’s NICS Section, either electronically or by mail.¹⁵ Request the reason for the denial before filing a formal challenge, because you cannot effectively dispute a record you have not identified.

1
Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security. Handgun Permit Types
2
Justia Law. Tennessee Code 39-17-1311 – Carrying Weapons on Certain Property
3
Justia Law. Tennessee Code 39-17-1351 – Enhanced Handgun Carry Permit
4
Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security. Training Requirement Options for Enhanced Handgun Carry Permit
5
Justia Law. Tennessee Code 39-17-1366 – Concealed Handgun Carry Permit
6
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Identify Prohibited Persons
7
Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security. Handgun Permit Online Services
8
Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security. Eligibility Requirements
9
Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security. How To Apply
10
Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security. Frequently Asked Questions
11
Justia Law. Tennessee Code 39-17-1359 – Posted Notice
12
Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security. Reciprocity
13
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 926A – Interstate Transportation of Firearms
14
Transportation Security Administration. Transporting Firearms and Ammunition
15
Federal Bureau of Investigation. Requesting Reason for and/or Challenging a NICS-Related Denial