Can you still buy an AR-15 in Colorado after August 1, 2026?
Last verified against primary sources: · Updated
Yes — but only through a new pathway. From August 1, 2026, an AR-15-pattern rifle is a "specified semiautomatic firearm," so a Colorado dealer may sell one to you only if you have first obtained a firearms safety course eligibility card from your county sheriff and completed the required in-person safety course (C.R.S. § 18-12-116).
Once you clear that pathway, the ordinary purchase rules still apply on top — background check, Colorado's 3-day waiting period, age 21, and the 15-round magazine limit.
What changes on August 1, 2026
SB25-003 (signed April 10, 2025) added C.R.S. § 18-12-116, whose core prohibition begins on a date written into the statute:
On or after August 1, 2026, it is unlawful for any person to knowingly manufacture, distribute, transfer, sell, or purchase a specified semiautomatic firearm; except that a person may sell or transfer a specified semiautomatic firearm to an individual residing in another state or a federally licensed firearm dealer.
An AR-15 is a semiautomatic rifle with a detachable magazine, which puts it squarely inside the covered "specified semiautomatic firearm" definition. So after August 1, 2026, buying one requires the safety-course exception below. (Buying before that date follows the existing rules, with no card or course.)
The exception that lets you still buy: the safety-course pathway
The ban is not absolute. Subsection (3)(e) allows a sale or transfer to a person who has completed the state's new safety-course sequence:
(A) Completed a hunter education course certified by the Division of Parks and Wildlife … and, within five years before making the purchase, completed a basic firearms safety course …; (B) within five years before making the purchase, completed an extended firearms safety course …; or (C) completed an extended firearms safety course more than five years before making the purchase and completed a basic firearms safety course within five years before making the purchase.
In plain terms: if you hold a CPW-certified hunter education certificate, you need only the shorter basic course; everyone else needs the longer extended course.
The steps, in order
- Get a firearms safety course eligibility card from your county sheriff. You submit an application on a form created by Colorado Parks & Wildlife, a government photo ID, and a completed third-party name-based background check. Sheriffs "shall issue" to qualified applicants; a denial is limited to people who cannot lawfully possess a firearm, applicants the sheriff cannot positively identify, or a documented-behavior "danger to self or others" finding — and every denial is appealable to court, with the sheriff bearing the burden of proof. The card is valid five years. The state's application system went live July 20, 2026.
- Pay the fees. A $52 state course-record fee (set by the Parks & Wildlife Commission), plus a county-set sheriff processing fee that varies by county, plus whatever the sheriff-verified instructor charges for the course itself. The fee is non-refundable if the sheriff denies the application.
- Take the in-person course. With a hunter-education certificate, a basic course of at least 4 hours. Otherwise, an extended course of at least 12 hours over at least two days. No part may be taken online, the instructor must be sheriff-verified, and the course ends with an exam requiring a 90% score plus a hands-on safe-handling demonstration.
- Buy the firearm. The normal rules still apply on top: background check, 3-day waiting period, age 21, and the 15-round magazine limit.
(A) A basic firearms safety course must provide a minimum of four hours of instruction. (B) An extended firearms safety course must provide a minimum of twelve hours of instruction, which must be provided on at least two different days.
What if you do not use the pathway?
Buying or selling a covered firearm without meeting an exception is a class 2 misdemeanor, and a second or subsequent offense is a class 6 felony (§ 18-12-116(4)(b)). Note the pathway is only for buying new: if you already own an AR-15, the law does not require you to register it, surrender it, or take any course to keep it.
Court challenge, status as of July 20, 2026: SB25-003's eligibility-card scheme is being challenged in federal court (Del Toro v. Polis, D. Colo., No. 1:25-cv-02725, filed Sept. 2, 2025, Second Amendment claims). As of our last check, no injunction blocks any part of the law and August 1, 2026 remains the operative date. Court status is sourced from case-tracking services and news reporting, not court orders directly, and can change quickly — we will update this page if it does.
Common questions
Can you buy an AR-15 in Colorado after August 1, 2026?
Yes, but only after obtaining a firearms safety course eligibility card from your county sheriff and completing the required in-person safety course. Then the normal background check, 3-day wait, age-21, and 15-round magazine rules still apply.
How much does the AR-15 eligibility card and course cost?
The state course-record fee is $52, plus a sheriff processing fee that varies by county, plus whatever the sheriff-verified instructor charges for the 4-hour basic or 12-hour extended course. The $52 fee is non-refundable if the sheriff denies the application.
How long is the required safety course?
At least 4 hours (basic course) if you hold a CPW-certified hunter education certificate, otherwise at least 12 hours over at least two days (extended course). No part may be taken online, and the final exam requires a 90% score plus a hands-on demonstration.
Can I still buy an AR-15 in Colorado before August 1, 2026?
Yes. The prohibition applies "on or after August 1, 2026," so purchases before that date follow the existing rules — background check, 3-day waiting period, age 21, and the 15-round magazine limit — with no eligibility card or course required.
Do I need the course to keep an AR-15 I already own?
No. The law bans manufacturing, distributing, transferring, selling, and purchasing — not possession. There is no registration, surrender, or course requirement for a firearm you lawfully owned before August 1, 2026.