In The United States
Concealed carry is legal in most areas of the United States. A handful of states and jurisdictions restrict or ban CCW, but all states except Illinois make provision for legal concealed carry via a permit or license, or via constitutional carry. Most states have "shall-issue" statutes; that is, if a person meets the requirements to obtain a permit, the state must issue one. Some states, including California, New Jersey, New York, and Massachusetts have "may-issue" statutes; these states may (or may not) issue permits to carry if a person meets the requirements to obtain one. States with may-issue statutes typically do not issue permits unless the applicant provides a documented need for a concealed weapon, such as for retired police officers, judges, and federal agents.
Further complicating the status of concealed carry is recognition of other states' permits under the Full Faith and Credit Clause of the US Constitution. There are several popular combinations of resident and non-resident permits that allow carry in more states than the original issuing state; for example, a Utah non-resident permit allows carry in 25 states. Many states, however, do not recognize non-resident permits, especially for their own residents.
Read more about this topic: Concealed Carry
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