Review the Eligibility Requirements before you begin the process.  If you do not meet the requirements there are no refunds for the class or application fee paid to the state of Texas. It is also not the responsibility of Capitol Area Practical Shooting or its instructors to determine if a client is eligible to apply to for the CHL.   Please direct any questions about eligibility to the DPS Website 

The Concealed Handgun Law sets out the eligibility criteria that must be met. Applicants must be at least 21 years of age (unless active duty military) and must meet Federal qualifications to purchase a handgun.  A number of factors may make you ineligible to obtain a license, such as: felony convictions and some misdemeanor convictions, including charges that resulted in probation or deferred adjudication; pending criminal charges; chemical or alcohol dependency; certain types of psychological diagnoses protective or restraining orders, and defaults on state or city taxes, governmental fees, or child support.   . Eligibility requirements can be found in GC §411.172.

You must also submit a completed application, pay the required fees and submit all of the required supplemental forms and materials.

A person is eligible for a license to carry a concealed handgun if the person: 
  • is a legal resident of this state for the six month period preceding the date of application, 
  • is at least 21 years of age (military 18 - 21 years of age now eligible - 2005 Texas CHL Law change), 
  • has not been convicted of a felony, 
  • is not currently charged with the commission of a felony, Class A or Class B misdemeanor, or equivalent offense, or an offense under Sec. 42.01 of the penal Code (Disorderly Conduct) or equivalent offense, is not a fugitive from justice for a felony, Class A or Class B misdemeanor, or equivalent offense, 
  • is not chemically dependent (a person with two convictions within the ten year period preceding the date of application for offenses (Class B or greater) involving the use of alcohol or a controlled substance is ineligible as a chemically dependant person. Other evidence of chemical dependency may also make an individual ineligible for a CHL), 
  • is not incapable of exercising sound judgment with respect to the proper use and storage of a handgun, has not, in the five years preceding the application, been convicted of a Class A or Class B misdemeanor, or equivalent offense, or an offense under Section 42.01 of the Penal Code (Disorderly Conduct) or equivalent offense, 
  • is fully qualified under applicable federal and state law to purchase a handgun, 
  • has not been finally determined to be delinquent in making child support administered or collected by the attorney general, 
  • has not been finally determined to be delinquent in the payment of a tax or other money collected by the comptroller, state treasurer, tax collector of a policital subdivision, Alcohol Beverage Commission or any other agency or subdivision, 
  • is not currently restricted under a court protective order subject to a restraining order affecting a spousal relationship, 
  • has not, in the 10 years preceding the date of application, been adjudicated as having engaged in delinquent conduct violating a penal law in the grade of felony, 
  • has not made any material misrepresentation, or failed to disclose any material fact, in an application submitted pursuant to Section 411.174 or in a request for application submitted pursuant to Section 411.175.

You may contact the DPS helpline at  (512) 424-7293 or email them at: chl@txdps.state.tx.us