Firearms License

As of March 15, 2015, firearms licensees and gun owners are required by law to report all private sales, transfers, and surrenders of firearms to the Massachusetts Firearms Records Bureau via the Gun Portal. Paper FA-10 forms are no longer accepted for these transaction types.

Questions about the Gun Portal can be directed to the Firearms Records Bureau at 617-660-4782.

Firearms & Licensing

The state legislature made sweeping and extensive changes to the Commonwealth's gun laws in 1998. The laws are multi-faceted and complex, and this page is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered as any definite legal position, guarantee of issuance or binding legal interpretation by the Lowell Police. If you have a specific legal issue regarding ownership, possession or transportation as well as your eligibility (or lack thereof) for the various types of firearms you are advised to speak to a lawyer for a qualified legal opinion.

Application Requirements

To apply for a License to Carry/Firearms Identification Card, you must first fill out the online application via the MIRCS Firearms Licensing Portal (here). Please note that a copy of your firearms safety course certificate as well as proof of U.S. citizenship will have to be uploaded in the portal. After the application is completed, please visit the Firearms Licensing Bureau at 50 Arcand Drive Lowell, MA 01852 between the hours of 8am-1pm Monday-Thursday to schedule an interview. Please bring all of your paperwork (e.g. application form, Massachusetts driver's license, course certificate, birth certificate, etc.) to the interview. Please see below all forms of license to carry for further information.  

To renew a License to Carry/Firearms Identification Card, applicants must first complete an online application form via the MIRCS Firearms Licensing Portal (here) and mail the completed form to the Lowell Police Department Firearms and Licensing Bureau as well as a $100 money order. Please make money orders payable to the City of Lowell.

If you have any questions or require additional assistance, please visit our office located at 50 Arcand Drive between the hours of 8am-1pm Monday-Thursday.

Mailing Address:

Lowell Police Department

Attn: Firearms and Licensing Bureau

50 Arcand Drive Lowell, MA 01852


Additional Information: 

Business owners must now apply in their city/town of residence. Non-resident business owners must apply through the Firearms Records Bureau. 


LTC Unrestricted 


  1. New applicants/renewal must be at least 21 years of age, a resident of the City of Lowell, and a citizen or Permanent Resident Alien.
  2. All applicants for a LTC must successfully complete, with certification, a Massachusetts State Police-approved Firearms safety course.
  3. There is a $100 application fee for a Firearm ID (FID) or a LTC. Only Money Orders are accepted as payment; no cash or credits are accepted, and all fees are non-refundable. Fees may be waived for applicants over the age of 70. All payments are due at the time of your interview.
  4. Please bring the following to the interview:
    1. A completed application form (obtainable from Mass.gov)
    2. A copy of your Birth Certificate (if you are a citizen by birth), a U.S. passport, Naturalization Papers, or Permanent Resident Card, whichever is applicable
    3. Copies of the certificates you have received from applicable training course(s)
  5. Following the interview, the licensing authority of the Lowell Police Department reviews the application and a thorough criminal background investigation is conducted.

Applicants for an unrestricted LTC should also provide any additional documentation they may have that will assist the Superintendent in making a determination that issuance of an unrestricted LTC to the applicant will not pose a threat to public safety. Applicants are encouraged to submit as much such documentation as possible. Examples of such documentation include, but are not limited to:

  • Current or prior service in the military;
  • Current or prior service in law enforcement;
  • Prior receipt of an unrestricted LTC from another community or state, with no record of any violation of any term or condition of the LTC;
  • Prior receipt of a restricted LTC from Lowell or from another community or state, with no record of any violation of any term or condition of the LTC (the receipt of such from Lowell will carry greater weight than the receipt of such license from elsewhere
  • Prior receipt of a Firearms Identification Card (FID) from Lowell or from another community or state, with no record of any violation of any term or condition of the FID (the receipt of such from Lowell will carry greater weight than the receipt of such license from elsewhere); and
  • Prior receipt of a hunter safety training and/or experience hunting.

The above criteria are intended to provide LTC applicants with a reasoned expectation of the likelihood of obtaining an LTC. Where an LTC is denied, or where an applicant applies for an unrestricted LTC and is issued a restricted LTC, reasons for such decision shall be provided to the applicant. In all instances, the Superintendent of the Lowell Police Department, or his or her designee, reserves the right to exercise his or her discretion and deny an application for an LTC, or to issue a restricted or unrestricted LTC, in accordance with Massachusetts law.

ATTENTION ACTIVE LICENSE HOLDERS: Any restrictions appearing on any license holder’s present License to Carry (“LTC”)—limiting the license holder to carrying a firearm only for such activities as hunting, target shooting, employment, etc.—are no longer enforceable due to a recent Supreme Court decision. You do NOT need to update your existing license in the interim. When you reapply for an LTC in the future, you will be provided with a new LTC without any restrictions listed.