What’s Up Sheepdogs? Ryan here with Tampa Carry.

If you're like me, you’ve seen the internet ads claiming that you can get your Florida Concealed Carry Permit online by watching a quick video. They call it a Virginia non-resident concealed carry online class. I was curious as to how this was possible and could it really allow me to carry a firearm legally in the State of Florida?

What I found?...It is a BIG MISCONCEPTION.

When you take an online course you are applying for a Virginia Non-Resident Concealed Carry permit. Virginia is one of the only States that accepts an online training course as an acceptable training method to get a concealed carry permit.

The websites that offer an Online Concealed Carry course in VA are very vague about the type of permit you will be receiving and your ability to carry your firearm across the country. I have had several customers come take our class after learning they did not qualify to carry a concealed firearm in the State of Florida with the online training they signed up for. Even worse, it’s clearly stated that the online course is NON-REFUNDABLE.

If you take an online concealed weapons class you will be applying for a Virginia Non-Resident carry permit. According to the Florida Department of Agriculture’s website, the State of Florida does not honor Commonwealth of Virginia non-resident permits under Florida’s reciprocity provision.

See screen-shot below from the State of Florida or

Click to view their website in its entirety.

The Valid and Legal way to get your Florida Concealed Weapons Permit Online (well kind of)

So here's the catch, you MUST SHOOT a REAL firearm in the State of Florida to obtain your Florida Concealed Weapons permit. This is critical to learning firearms safety. Tampa Carry developed an Online training class that allows you to take the handgun safety classroom portion of the safety course class online and then come in to meet our certified instructor to complete the live fire portion of the class for firearms training.

When you come in for the live fire you will receive your certification completion that will allow you to apply for your Florida Concealed Carry Permit.

You can not legally get a Florida concealed weapons permit 100% online, but we give you the option to do 90% online and 10% in person to save time. The cost? just $49 and you can file your permit application and get your permit issued. You can view our Online Concealed Carry Class Here

I hope that helps clear some things about obtaining a concealed weapons permit online.

Ryan G. Thomas