Age requirements for firearms in Idaho seem straightforward until you actually try to map them out — dealer vs. private sale, possession vs. purchase, city limits vs. outside them. There's enough nuance here to trip up a 19-year-old who just moved out of the house and thinks he's good to go because he passed hunter ed.

Under Idaho Code Ann. § 18-3302(20), a county sheriff is authorized to issue a provisional license to applicants aged 18 to 21 who — except for the age requirement — would otherwise qualify for an enhanced license. A provisional license expires on the holder's 21st birthday, at which point the holder can reapply for an enhanced license using the renewal process.

Most people I've talked to at the range have no idea the provisional license exists. If you've got a kid in college who wants to carry on campus legally, permitless carry won't cover him inside the buildings — the provisional is the actual path. Worth knowing before you send them off to Boise State.

Per Idaho Code Ann. § 18-3308, it is a crime to sell or give to any minor under the age of 16 any gunpowder of any description or any shells or fixed ammunition of any kind — except shells loaded for use in shotguns and shells or cartridges for use in rifles of .22 caliber or smaller — without the written consent of the parents or guardian of the minor.

That .22 and shotgun shell carve-out is practical — it covers the two most common youth hunting and pest control situations. But the line at 16 for everything else is one I've never seen discussed at the gun store counter, and I'd bet most clerks don't think about it when a 15-year-old comes in to buy 9mm for his dad.

Outside city limits: Persons over 18 who are not otherwise disqualified from being issued a license may carry concealed without a permit. Inside city limits: Persons over 18 who are U.S. citizens or current members of the U.S. armed forces, and who are not otherwise disqualified, may carry concealed without a permit.

The 2019 expansion is still something people get wrong. I've had the "you need to be 21 to carry in Boise" conversation more than once at the shop counter. You don't — but you do need to be a citizen or active military if you're inside city limits and under 21 without a provisional.

For anyone in the 18-20 bracket reading this — have you actually looked into the provisional license, or have you just been relying on permitless carry and hoping the location rules don't apply to you?

Read the full article in The Handbook →