How long after a domestic violence charge you can own a gun depends on what the case produces. A charge alone, without a conviction, brings only temporary pretrial restrictions that end when the case is dismissed or you’re acquitted. A misdemeanor conviction involving a spouse, cohabitant, co-parent, or similar household relationship triggers a federal lifetime ban, and the only way out is expungement, a pardon, or having the conviction set aside. A misdemeanor conviction involving a dating partner is different: under a 2022 change to federal law, that ban lifts automatically five years after conviction or release from custody, whichever comes later, if you stay out of trouble in the meantime.
While the Case Is Pending
A pending charge, on its own, does not trigger the federal lifetime prohibition. But it can still put your firearms out of reach until the case ends.
A federal judge can order you to surrender firearms as a condition of pretrial release. Under 18 U.S.C. § 3142, a court may require a defendant to “refrain from possessing a firearm, destructive device, or other dangerous weapon” when release conditions are necessary to protect public safety.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 3142 – Release or Detention of a Defendant Pending Trial State courts routinely impose similar conditions in state-level cases.
Separately, if you are under indictment for any crime punishable by more than one year in prison, federal law prohibits you from shipping, transporting, or receiving firearms or ammunition.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 That kicks in when a felony-level domestic violence charge is filed and stays in place until the case resolves.
If charges are dismissed or you are acquitted, these pretrial restrictions end and you’re free to possess firearms again, subject to any other legal bar. If the case results in a qualifying conviction, the applicable firearm ban takes effect immediately and the timeline shifts to one of the paths below.
Lifetime Ban for Spouses, Cohabitants, and Co-Parents
The Lautenberg Amendment, passed in 1996 and codified at 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9), makes it a federal crime for anyone convicted of a “misdemeanor crime of domestic violence” to possess firearms or ammunition.3Legal Information Institute. Lautenberg Amendment For most qualifying convictions, this is a lifetime prohibition. Violating it is a felony punishable by up to 15 years in federal prison.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 924 – Penalties
Two things make a misdemeanor “qualifying.” First, the offense must involve the use or attempted use of physical force, or the threatened use of a deadly weapon. It doesn’t need to be labeled “domestic violence” — an ordinary assault or battery conviction counts if it has a force element.3Legal Information Institute. Lautenberg Amendment Second, the victim must fall into a covered relationship. For the lifetime version of the ban, that means a current or former spouse, someone with whom you share a child, a cohabitant, or a parent or guardian of the victim.
The ban covers more than guns. Federal law defines “ammunition” to include cartridge cases, primers, bullets, and propellant powder designed for use in any firearm.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 921 – Definitions A box of old shotgun shells in the garage is a federal felony after a qualifying conviction, even if you no longer own a gun.
This ban sits on top of the separate federal prohibition against firearm possession by anyone convicted of a felony, meaning any crime punishable by more than one year in prison.6Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Identify Prohibited Persons If your domestic violence offense was charged as a felony, that’s a separate lifetime ban regardless of the Lautenberg Amendment.
Five Years for Dating-Partner Convictions
Before 2022, federal law only reached domestic violence convictions involving spouses, cohabitants, co-parents, and similar household relationships. Convictions for violence against a boyfriend or girlfriend fell through what was widely known as the “boyfriend loophole.” The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act closed that gap by adding “dating relationships” to the covered relationships under the gun ban.7Congress.gov. Text – 117th Congress (2021-2022) Bipartisan Safer Communities Act
The law defines a “dating relationship” as a continuing serious relationship of a romantic or intimate nature. Courts weigh three factors to decide whether a relationship qualifies: its length, its nature, and how often the individuals interacted. Casual acquaintance or ordinary social contact does not count.7Congress.gov. Text – 117th Congress (2021-2022) Bipartisan Safer Communities Act
Unlike the ban for spousal and household convictions, this one expires on its own. Gun rights are restored five years after your conviction or release from confinement, whichever comes later, as long as you have not been convicted of another qualifying offense during that period. Pick up any new conviction for an offense involving force or a deadly weapon against anyone — not just a dating partner — and the five-year clock resets and the restoration provision no longer applies.8Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. Misdemeanor Crimes of Domestic Violence Prohibitions There’s no petition to file. The prohibition simply lifts when the five clean years are up.
When a Case Doesn’t Count as a Conviction
The federal gun ban hinges on the word “convicted.” The line between a conviction and a non-conviction is less obvious than most people think, and getting it wrong can mean a federal felony.
A guilty plea clearly counts. So does a jury verdict of guilty. A plea of no contest followed by a formal adjudication of guilt also counts as a conviction in most jurisdictions. The complicated cases involve deferred adjudications and withheld judgments, where a judge accepts a guilty or no-contest plea but withholds the formal adjudication, placing the defendant on probation instead. Whether that arrangement is a “conviction” for federal firearms purposes depends on how the state defines the term. In at least some jurisdictions, a no-contest plea with adjudication withheld does not qualify as a conviction under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9), because the state does not treat it as a final judgment of guilt. Other states reach the opposite conclusion.
If you completed a diversion program, received a deferred sentence, or had adjudication withheld, do not assume you’re clear, and do not assume you’re banned. The answer turns entirely on how your state classifies that disposition and whether federal courts in your jurisdiction agree. Getting the analysis wrong in either direction is costly: possessing a gun you’re barred from having, or needlessly surrendering rights you still hold.
Protective Orders Can Ban Guns Without a Conviction
You can lose your gun rights without any criminal charge. Under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(8), a person subject to a qualifying domestic violence protective order is prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition for as long as the order remains in effect. Violating that prohibition is a federal crime punishable by up to ten years in prison.9Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Protection Orders and Federal Firearms Prohibitions
Not every protective order triggers the federal ban. The order must:
- Have been issued after a hearing where you received actual notice and had a chance to participate. Emergency ex parte orders don’t qualify until a full hearing is held.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922
- Restrain you from harassing, stalking, or threatening an intimate partner or the child of an intimate partner.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922
- Either include a court finding that you represent a credible threat to the physical safety of the protected person, or explicitly prohibit the use of physical force against them.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922
If all three conditions are met, the firearm ban applies automatically for the life of the order. When the order expires or is dissolved, the federal prohibition lifts, provided you have no separate conviction that independently bars you. The Supreme Court upheld this provision in United States v. Rahimi (2024), holding that “when an individual has been found by a court to pose a credible threat to the physical safety of another, that individual may be temporarily disarmed consistent with the Second Amendment.”10Supreme Court of the United States. United States v. Rahimi, No. 22-915
State Law on Top of Federal
Federal law sets the floor, not the ceiling. States impose their own firearm restrictions after a domestic violence incident, and you have to satisfy both to legally possess a gun.
State laws diverge from federal law in several important ways. Some define domestic relationships more broadly than the federal statute, covering siblings, aunts and uncles, or anyone who has lived in the same household regardless of romantic involvement. Others prohibit gun ownership for offenses that would not qualify federally, such as stalking or criminal harassment convictions that lack a physical-force element.
Several states impose time-limited bans of three, five, or ten years rather than a permanent one. These state bans run independently of the federal lifetime prohibition. Completing a state waiting period does not restore your right to possess firearms if the federal ban still applies.
Getting Rights Back After a Lifetime Ban
For qualifying convictions outside the dating-partner category, waiting is not enough. The prohibition doesn’t expire on a schedule. The only way to get out from under it is to remove the conviction itself.
Federal law provides that the gun ban does not apply if the conviction has been expunged, set aside, or pardoned, but only if the expungement or pardon does not expressly prohibit firearm possession.11United States Department of Justice Archives. Criminal Resource Manual 1117 – Restrictions on the Possession of Firearms by Individuals Convicted of a Misdemeanor Crime of Domestic Violence A partial expungement that seals your record for employment purposes but keeps the firearm restriction in place does not restore your federal gun rights.
An expungement is a court order that seals or erases the conviction record. Eligibility rules, waiting periods, and filing fees vary dramatically by state. Some states allow expungement of domestic violence misdemeanors after a waiting period of several years; others exclude domestic violence convictions from expungement entirely. Filing fees range from nothing to a few hundred dollars, and attorney costs add significantly on top.
A governor’s pardon can also restore gun rights. For the pardon to lift the federal ban, it must be full and unconditional, or at minimum must explicitly state that firearm rights are restored. A pardon that is silent on firearms, or that includes a restriction on gun possession, will not work. Pardons are hard to get, typically requiring years of demonstrated rehabilitation after completing your sentence.
If a Background Check Denies You After Restoration
Even after your rights have been legally restored, the NICS database may not reflect that right away. Expungements and pardons are only useful once the records actually get updated, and that process is neither automatic nor fast.
If you attempt to purchase a firearm and are denied, you can appeal through the FBI’s NICS Appeal Services Team. You’ll need your full name, mailing address, and the transaction number from the denied purchase. Court documentation of your expungement, pardon, or order restoring rights speeds the process.12FBI. Guide for Appealing Your Firearm Transfer Denial or Delay
The Appeal Services Team will provide the general reason for your denial within five business days of receiving your inquiry. If it can’t resolve the issue directly, it will refer you to the agency that maintains the underlying record so you can work to correct it at the source. Once the record is updated and the NICS Section is notified, you’ll get a decision on your appeal, and if it’s successful, documentation you can present to the dealer to complete the purchase.12FBI. Guide for Appealing Your Firearm Transfer Denial or Delay Cases are worked in the order received, and if multiple agencies need to update their records, the process can stretch over months. Keep certified copies of every court order related to your restoration. You may need to hand them over more than once.