How do I legally transport a rifle or shotgun in California?

Two state laws cover a loaded long gun in a vehicle.

• Penal Code. It is a crime to carry a loaded firearm in a vehicle in a public place or on a public street in an incorporated city, or in a public place or on a public street in a prohibited area of unincorporated territory (Penal Code 25850(a)). A "prohibited area" is any place where it is unlawful to discharge a weapon (Penal Code 17030).
• Fish and Game Code. It is unlawful to possess a loaded rifle or shotgun in any vehicle or conveyance that is standing on or along, or being driven on or along, a public highway or other way open to the public (Fish and Game Code 2006(a)). This rule is not limited to cities.

The DOJ sums up the result this way: long guns "are not generally covered" by the concealed firearm law and need not be in a locked container, but "as with any firearm," they "must be unloaded while they are being transported" (DOJ, Transporting Firearms).

That DOJ page is a summary, and parts of it have not been updated. As of 2026-11-10, its handgun paragraph still describes Penal Code 25610 with the phrase "for any lawful purpose," which is not in the current text of that section (Penal Code 25610), and its long gun paragraph does not mention the unloaded carry law in Penal Code 26400 that is described below. The page is DOJ's summary. Where the page and a statute differ, the statute controls.

The two codes define the word differently.

Under the Penal Code, a firearm is loaded when there is an unexpended cartridge or shell "in, or attached in any manner to, the firearm," including in the firing chamber, magazine, or clip attached to the firearm (Penal Code 16840(b)).

Under the Fish and Game Code, a rifle or shotgun is loaded when there is a cartridge or shell in the firing chamber, "but not when the only cartridges or shells are in the magazine" (Fish and Game Code 2006(b)).

Put side by side: Penal Code 16840(b) deems a firearm loaded when a cartridge or shell is in the firearm or attached to it in any manner, including in an attached magazine or clip, and Fish and Game Code 2006(b) deems a rifle or shotgun loaded when a cartridge or shell is in the firing chamber. Neither of those two definitions refers to ammunition that is not in the firearm or attached to it (Penal Code 16840(b), Fish and Game Code 2006(b)).

Carrying an unloaded rifle or shotgun on your person outside a vehicle is a misdemeanor in an incorporated city, and in a public place or public street in a prohibited area of an unincorporated county (Penal Code 26400).

Penal Code 26405 lists the exemptions. The ones most relevant to transport:

• Locked or cased, direct travel. The firearm is in a locked container or encased, and it is being transported directly between places where the person may lawfully possess it, with only reasonably necessary deviations (subdivision (c)).
• Home, business, private property. Carrying within a residence, a place of business, or on private real property the person owns or lawfully occupies, or with that person's permission (subdivisions (a) and (b)).
• Hunting. A licensed hunter while hunting, or while going to or returning from the hunting expedition (subdivision (j)).
• Target ranges. At an established public target range while using the firearm there, and for members of shooting clubs at their ranges (subdivisions (i) and (t)).

California's school zone law covers the grounds of a K-12 school and the area within 1,000 feet (Penal Code 626.9(e)(4)). It says it "does not prohibit or limit the otherwise lawful transportation" of a firearm that is not a handgun, in accordance with state law (Penal Code 626.9(c)(2)(B)).

Federal law sets its own condition. Its school zone ban has an exception for a firearm that is "not loaded" and "in a locked container, or a locked firearms rack that is on a motor vehicle" (18 U.S.C. 922(q)(2)(B)(iii)). The federal statute lists other exceptions as well, including private property that is not part of school grounds.

A person who registered an assault weapon or a .50 BMG rifle may possess it only in the places listed in Penal Code 30945, such as the person's residence, place of business, or other property the person owns, and certain target ranges. Transport is allowed between those places, or to a licensed gun dealer for servicing or repair, if the firearm is transported as required by sections 16850 and 25610 (subdivision (g)).

The DOJ describes that standard as "unloaded and stored in a locked container when transported" (DOJ, Transporting Firearms). A glove compartment or utility compartment is not a locked container (Penal Code 16850).