California fires new 4-hour live-fire safety course for gun buyers, effective 2029

To buy a gun in California you must hold a firearm safety certificate. Governor Newsom signed SB 948, Chapter 465 of the 2026 statutes, which on or after January 1, 2029 requires new applicants to complete an at-least-4-hour, live-fire safety course, and on or after January 1, 2028 gives out-of-state gun owners a longer 180-day window to get the certificate. Concealed-carry permit holders and recent CC trainees are exempt.

Sources checked October 5, 2026. Educational information only, not legal advice.

What changed	The firearm safety certificate — required to buy, sell, or receive any firearm in California — gains a new at-least-4-hour, in-person, live-fire training course, and the 60-day window for out-of-state gun owners to obtain the certificate becomes 180 days.
Effective	The 4-hour training requirement begins January 1, 2029; the 180-day importer window begins January 1, 2028. Nothing changes for current certificate holders or current buyers until those dates.
Applies to	New firearm safety certificate applicants on or after January 1, 2029, and personal firearm importers on or after January 1, 2028. Concealed-carry permit holders and people who completed initial or renewal concealed-carry training within the prior three years are exempt from the new training.
Statutory basis	SB 948, Chapter 465, Statutes of 2026; amends Penal Code sections 31645, 26210, and 27560 and related provisions.

What happened

On September 26, 2026, Governor Gavin Newsom signed a package of gun safety bills that included Senate Bill 948 (as amended by Senator Jesse Arreguin), chaptered as Chapter 465, Statutes of 2026. SB 948 changes two requirements tied to the firearm safety certificate (FSC) — the written certificate that everyone in California must hold to sell, buy, or receive a firearm. Beginning on or after January 1, 2029, a new FSC applicant must complete, within the prior year, a training course no shorter than four hours that includes instruction on firearm safety and handling and live-fire shooting exercises on a range, taught and supervised by a California Department of Justice-certified instructor. Before this law, the FSC applicant only had to pass the written certificate examination; no course was required. Beginning on or after January 1, 2028, a person who brings a reportable firearm into the state from another state has the full 180 days to obtain a valid FSC (up from the prior 60-day window) and must certify under penalty of perjury that they hold a certificate or qualify for an exemption. People holding a valid California concealed-carry permit, and people who completed initial or renewal concealed-carry training within the prior three years, are exempt from the new training requirement. DOJ was also authorized to issue implementing regulations.

What it means for you

If you already hold a firearm safety certificate, that certificate does not expire and nothing in this law forces you to retrain today. The new at-least-4-hour safety course applies to new applicants only after January 1, 2029, and the longer 180-day window for out-of-state owners who move into California begins January 1, 2028. Until those dates, existing FSC and concealed-carry training rules are unchanged. If you plan to apply for a certificate after January 1, 2029, or are moving into California with a firearm, expect that an at-least-4-hour live-fire class will be part of the requirement. Because the law gives DOJ time to adopt regulations and to set class content and instructor details, the specifics are not finalized yet; those details may change, and this article should be rechecked as regulations arrive. A concealed-carry permit — which requires additional training and application steps — remains fully unaffected.