Do not carry a handgun in Tennessee if you have been drinking, if you are taking a controlled substance recreationally, or if you are otherwise...
Reviewed by Will Luker, Founder of CCW Hub. USCCA Training Counselor, USCCA Certified Instructor, NRA Certified Instructor, Law Enforcement.
Do not carry a handgun in Tennessee if you have been drinking, if you are taking a controlled substance recreationally, or if you are otherwise impaired. Tennessee criminalizes possession of a handgun while under the influence under Tenn. Code Sec. 39-17-1321(a), and the rule applies whether you hold an enhanced permit, a concealed-only permit, or are carrying permitlessly under Sec. 39-17-1307(g). Your permit status does not insulate you from the offense. A separate provision at Sec. 39-17-1321(b) makes it a crime to possess a firearm in a public establishment that serves alcohol while you are consuming any alcoholic beverage there. Both offenses are Class A misdemeanors. A permit holder who violates the under-the-influence rule inside an alcohol-serving establishment also faces a mandatory three-year permit suspension under Sec. 39-17-1352.
Tennessee's "guns and alcohol" framework has two operative rules that students confuse. The first, Sec. 39-17-1321(a), governs the person (possessing a handgun while under the influence). The second, Sec. 39-17-1321(b), governs the establishment (possessing a firearm while consuming alcohol in a public establishment that serves it for on-premises consumption). They overlap but are not the same. Tennessee separately allows handgun carry in restaurants and bars that serve alcohol, provided the carrier is not drinking and the establishment has not posted notice prohibiting weapons. The carve-out lives inside Sec. 39-17-1321(b) and the posted-notice statute Sec. 39-17-1359. Walk in, eat dinner, do not drink, do not draw attention to the firearm. You are within the law.
The bottom-line summary for a Tennessee student:
The operative text of Sec. 39-17-1321, as published on the Tennessee Code mirror at Justia and on FindLaw's Tennessee Code service, has two prohibitions and a penalty subsection:
(a) Notwithstanding whether a person has a permit issued pursuant to Sec. 39-17-1315 or Sec. 39-17-1351 or Sec. 39-17-1366, it is an offense for a person to possess a handgun while under the influence of alcohol or any controlled substance or controlled substance analogue.
(b) It is an offense for a person to possess a firearm if the person is both:
(1) Within the confines of an establishment open to the public where liquor, wine or other alcoholic beverages, as defined in Sec. 57-3-101(a), or beer, as defined in Sec. 57-6-102, are served for consumption on the premises; and
(2) Consuming any alcoholic beverage listed in subdivision (b)(1).
(c)(1) A violation of this section is a Class A misdemeanor.
(c)(2) In addition to the punishment authorized by subdivision (c)(1), if the violation is of subsection (a), occurs in an establishment described in subdivision (b)(1), and the person has a handgun permit issued pursuant to Sec. 39-17-1351 or Sec. 39-17-1366, such permit shall be suspended in accordance with Sec. 39-17-1352 for a period of three (3) years.
Read the statute as three separate rules.
Rule 1 (subsection (a)). No person, permit or no permit, may possess a handgun while under the influence of alcohol, a controlled substance, or a controlled-substance analogue. The "notwithstanding" clause is express: subsection (a) overrides whatever permit you carry. Tennessee's enhanced permit under Sec. 39-17-1351, concealed-only permit under Sec. 39-17-1366, and the older lawful-activity authority at Sec. 39-17-1315 all yield to Sec. 39-17-1321(a).
Rule 2 (subsection (b)). A separate offense applies when you both (1) are inside an establishment open to the public that is licensed to serve liquor, wine, beer, or other alcoholic beverages for on-premises consumption, and (2) are actually consuming an alcoholic beverage there. Note the conjunctive "and": both elements must be present. You can be inside the establishment without drinking. You cannot drink while armed.
Rule 3 (subsection (c)). Each violation is a Class A misdemeanor under Tennessee law (up to eleven months and twenty-nine days in jail and up to a $2,500 fine, subject to grading). If you violate subsection (a) inside an alcohol-serving establishment and you hold a Tennessee enhanced or concealed handgun carry permit, your permit is automatically suspended for three years under the cross-reference to Sec. 39-17-1352. The legislature did not give the Department of Safety discretion on the three-year suspension. It is mandatory.
The statute was last amended by Public Acts 2019, Chapter 479. The current version is the 2019 amended text.
Tennessee's Sec. 39-17-1321(a) does not, in its current form, contain a numeric blood-alcohol concentration trigger. The statute uses the bare phrase "under the influence of alcohol or any controlled substance or controlled substance analogue." That phrase is a standard Tennessee impairment formulation, the same one that anchors Tennessee's DUI statute at Sec. 55-10-401.
There is a strong practical convergence between the firearms-impairment and DUI standards. The Tennessee Department of Safety's public-safety guidance on DUI states that "Individuals are presumed to be under the influence of alcohol with a Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) of .08%" under Sec. 55-10-401 and Sec. 55-10-403. That 0.08% presumption is the operative threshold in DUI prosecutions and is the baseline that prosecutors and courts apply when interpreting "under the influence" in adjacent statutes. The secondary handgunlaw.us treatment of the rule states the practical standard as zero tolerance: "The allowable BAC for a handgun carry permit holder in public possession of a loaded firearm is exactly 0.0%, zero tolerance." That is not a statutory floor. It is a practitioner-derived risk recommendation that reflects how aggressively Tennessee charges Sec. 39-17-1321(a).
The legislature is currently considering whether to write a numeric standard into Sec. 39-17-1321 itself. HB 2514 / SB 2478 of the 114th General Assembly (filed 2025-2026) proposes an amendment to subsection (a) that would read: "It is an offense for a person to possess a handgun in a public place while under the influence of alcohol or any controlled substance or controlled substance analogue. As used in this subsection (a), 'under the influence of alcohol' means the alcohol concentration in the person's blood or breath is eight-hundredths of one percent (0.08%) or more." The companion fiscal note FM2821 confirms the proposed 0.08% definition. As of this writing, that legislation has not passed. HB 2514 was "Reset on Final cal. 4 of Criminal Justice Subcommittee" (April 7, 2026); SB 2478 had "Action deferred in Senate Judiciary Committee to 2027" (March 23, 2026). Until the bill is enacted, no statutory numeric threshold governs Sec. 39-17-1321(a), and the practical standard remains the case-by-case "under the influence" inquiry borrowed from DUI law.
Practical takeaway for instructors and students: until the bill becomes law, you cannot point to a Tennessee statute that says "0.08% or above = under the influence for firearms purposes." Tennessee courts have not published a definitive numeric standard. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Safety have not issued binding guidance. The Tennessee Attorney General's Opinion 14-86 (September 18, 2014) addresses the closely related question of who is an "unlawful user" of alcohol or controlled substances for permit-issuance purposes (Sec. 39-17-1351(c)(10)) but does not set a numeric BAC threshold for the under-influence offense. Treat any measurable consumption as legal exposure.
Sec. 39-17-1321(a) does not distinguish between alcohol and controlled substances. Use of a controlled substance, or of a controlled-substance analogue, supplies the "under the influence" element of the offense exactly the same way alcohol does. Tennessee defines controlled substances by reference to its scheduling statute (Title 39, Chapter 17, Part 4) and the federal Controlled Substances Act.
Three categories cause the most operational confusion:
Marijuana and THC products. Tennessee has no recreational cannabis program, no medical-cannabis program of any significant scope, and treats marijuana possession as a criminal offense. Any THC use is consumption of a controlled substance for purposes of Sec. 39-17-1321(a). It is also disqualifying under the federal "unlawful user" prohibition at 18 U.S.C. Sec. 922(g)(3), which bars a federally licensed firearm dealer from transferring a firearm to a person who is an unlawful user of, or addicted to, any controlled substance. The 4473 federal firearms transaction record makes this prohibition operational: the buyer must answer the marijuana question under penalty of perjury, and the ATF position is that any state-legal cannabis use disqualifies the buyer at the federal level. Tennessee permit issuance under Sec. 39-17-1351(c)(10) separately requires that the applicant not be an unlawful user of, or addicted to, alcohol, controlled substances, or analogues. The Tennessee Attorney General's Opinion 14-86 construes "unlawful user" by reference to federal law and defines it as "the regular and repeated use of alcohol, a controlled substance, or a controlled-substance analogue in a manner other than as prescribed by a physician or otherwise permitted by law during a period that reasonably covers the time in which a handgun carry permit is sought."
Prescription medications used outside their prescribed scope. A Schedule II opioid, Schedule IV benzodiazepine, or any other prescription used at higher doses than prescribed, or for purposes not prescribed, is "unlawful" use. Use of someone else's prescription is unlawful use. Sec. 39-17-1321(a) reaches the impairment regardless of source.
Controlled-substance analogues. Tennessee's statute reaches "controlled substance analogues" as defined under state and federal law, capturing substances chemically similar to scheduled drugs that are intended to produce a similar effect. Synthetic cannabinoids, synthetic cathinones, and emerging psychoactive substances fall within this category.
Federal law on the impairment side is independent of Tennessee law. 18 U.S.C. Sec. 922(g)(3) makes it a federal offense for an unlawful user of any controlled substance to possess a firearm, full stop. A Tennessee resident who uses cannabis recreationally is a federal prohibited person and commits a federal crime by possessing any firearm, regardless of whether they are actively impaired at the moment. The Tennessee under-influence offense focuses on impairment while possessing. The federal status offense focuses on user status. Both can apply to the same conduct.
Tennessee separately treats the location problem. Sec. 39-17-1321(b) makes it a Class A misdemeanor to possess a firearm if you are both inside a public establishment licensed to serve alcohol for on-premises consumption and consuming any alcoholic beverage there. Both elements must be present.
Tennessee does NOT criminalize handgun carry in alcohol-serving restaurants and bars as a categorical matter. The general rule, codified in the structure of Sec. 39-17-1321 and elaborated in Sec. 39-17-1359 (posted-notice), is that:
This is the structure that the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation describes in its public guidance and that handgunlaw.us summarizes as "Yes, without a permit, unless posted and provided you don't consume any alcohol" for the question "Can you carry a concealed firearm in bars and restaurants that serve alcohol in Tennessee?" The carve-out traces back to Tennessee Senate Bill 3012 of 2010 (the "Guns in Bars" law), which authorized a non-drinking permit holder to carry a firearm in an establishment open to the public licensed as a restaurant. The same SB 3012 simultaneously authorized property owners to prohibit firearm possession by posting notice under what later became Sec. 39-17-1359.
The 2019 amendment (Public Acts 2019, Chapter 479) added the permit-suspension consequence in Sec. 39-17-1321(c)(2): a permit holder who possesses a handgun while under the influence inside an alcohol-serving establishment loses the permit for three years.
There is NOT a stand-alone "alcohol-served establishment" statute in Part 13; the Justia codes index assigns Sec. 39-17-1305 to "Prohibited firearm registries," not to alcohol carry. The operative on-premises rule is the Sec. 39-17-1321(b) framework described above: the offense is possessing a firearm while consuming alcohol in an establishment that serves it for on-premises consumption, with the permit-holder carve-out functionally embedded in the Sec. 39-17-1321(b) "and consuming" conjunctive element. Posting is a separate Sec. 39-17-1359 matter.
Sec. 39-17-1321(a) is not a public-place offense. The current statutory text reaches handgun possession while under the influence anywhere. Possessing a handgun in your home, in a friend's home, or in your own vehicle while impaired remains within the scope of subsection (a). The 2026 proposed amendment in HB 2514 would narrow the offense to "in a public place." Until that amendment passes, treat the current statute as reaching private as well as public possession.
The vehicle context is the most common operational risk point. Tennessee's broad transport authority at Sec. 39-17-1313 lets a non-prohibited adult transport and store a handgun or long gun in a privately owned vehicle even without a permit. That authority does not override Sec. 39-17-1321(a). A driver who consumes alcohol at dinner and then sits behind the wheel with a loaded handgun in the console is possessing a handgun while under the influence, even though the underlying transport is otherwise lawful under Sec. 39-17-1313.
A workaround that Tennessee practitioners cite, summarized in the handgunlaw.us secondary guidance: "if an HCP holder has a drink, it is allowable to unload the firearm and lock it in the trunk of the vehicle, provided that the driver is under 0.08% BAC." That practical guidance reflects the structure of Sec. 39-17-1313 (broad transport authority) combined with the case-law presumption that a securely stored, locked, unloaded firearm separated from the driver may not constitute "possession" for purposes of Sec. 39-17-1321(a). The framework is practitioner-derived rather than codified, and the safer student protocol is: do not carry while drinking, period.
Sec. 39-17-1351(c)(10), (11), and (17) impose alcohol-and-drugs eligibility filters at the front end of permit issuance, separately from the under-influence offense at Sec. 39-17-1321. To qualify for an enhanced or concealed permit, the applicant must confirm under oath that:
Attorney General Opinion 14-86 (September 18, 2014) construes the "unlawful user" element. The phrase is not statutorily defined in Tennessee, but the Attorney General applies federal interpretation: "the regular and repeated use of alcohol, a controlled substance, or a controlled-substance analogue in a manner other than as prescribed by a physician or otherwise permitted by law during a period that reasonably covers the time in which a handgun carry permit is sought." A single episode of intoxication does not, by itself, establish unlawful-user status. A pattern of use does.
Sec. 39-17-1351(e) further requires the classroom portion of every Department-approved handgun safety course to include "instruction on alcohol and drugs, the effects of those substances on a person's reflexes, judgment and ability to safely handle a firearm, and Sec. 39-17-1321." That instructional requirement has been in place since September 1, 2010. Beginning October 1, 2023, the same subsection also requires instruction on safe storage.
Tennessee enhanced-handgun-safety-program instructors face parallel disqualifiers under Rule 1340-02-03-.06 of the Tennessee Department of Safety regulations: the instructor "[s]hall not...[h]ave been convicted of any drug related offense or alcohol related offense in the past ten (10) years." Active orders of protection and active firearm disqualifications are also bars.
| Offense | Statute | Grade | Maximum penalty | Collateral consequences |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Possession of handgun while under influence (alcohol or controlled substance) | Sec. 39-17-1321(a) | Class A misdemeanor | Up to 11 months 29 days; up to $2,500 fine | Per Sec. 39-17-1321(c)(2): if violation occurs in an alcohol-serving establishment and offender holds an enhanced or concealed permit, mandatory three-year permit suspension under Sec. 39-17-1352. |
| Possession of firearm in alcohol-serving public establishment while consuming alcohol | Sec. 39-17-1321(b) | Class A misdemeanor | Up to 11 months 29 days; up to $2,500 fine | If offender holds an enhanced or concealed permit, mandatory three-year permit suspension under Sec. 39-17-1352 (applied via Sec. 39-17-1321(c)(2) cross-reference). |
| Carrying firearm with intent to go armed when subject to disqualifier (e.g., two-time DUI within ten years or one within five) | Sec. 39-17-1307(h)(1)(B) | Class B misdemeanor | Up to 6 months; up to $500 fine | Statute draws DUI disqualifiers directly from Sec. 39-17-1307(h)(1)(B). |
| Federal: possession of firearm by unlawful user of controlled substance | 18 U.S.C. Sec. 922(g)(3) | Federal felony | Up to 15 years; up to $250,000 fine | Lifetime federal prohibited-person status; affects 4473 and NICS at every future transfer. |
In addition to the criminal grading, a permit holder whose permit is suspended under Sec. 39-17-1352 may not lawfully carry under the permit until the suspension expires and the permit is reinstated. The Department of Safety's permit-suspension procedures govern the process.
The Tennessee Department of Safety requires every enhanced handgun safety course to cover Sec. 39-17-1321. The following operational scenarios capture the common student questions:
Dinner at a non-posted restaurant that serves alcohol. Lawful for a permit holder or a permitless carrier to enter and to remain seated, armed, throughout the meal, provided the carrier does not consume any alcoholic beverage. Iced tea, soda, water, coffee, and non-alcoholic mocktails are all fine. The moment a beer, wine, or cocktail is ordered and consumed by the carrier, Sec. 39-17-1321(b) is violated.
Restaurant or bar posted under Sec. 39-17-1359. Unlawful for any carrier (permit or permitless) to enter while armed. Posting is a criminal-trespass-type rule layered on top of Sec. 39-17-1321; entering a posted establishment armed is a separate offense under Sec. 39-17-1359, independent of whether the carrier is drinking.
Carrier consumes one beer at a tailgate or backyard barbecue, then handles a handgun. Sec. 39-17-1321(a) applies. "Under the influence" is not bounded by a public-place element. A measurable BAC plus handgun possession plus a sufficient indicia-of-impairment showing puts the carrier within the statute. Until HB 2514 enacts a 0.08% trigger, prosecutors apply the case-by-case impairment standard.
Carrier uses cannabis (legal in another state) while visiting Tennessee, then carries a handgun. Sec. 39-17-1321(a) applies (controlled-substance impairment). 18 U.S.C. Sec. 922(g)(3) separately applies if the use is part of a pattern. The federal exposure is the more serious of the two.
Carrier takes prescribed Schedule IV anxiolytic at prescribed dose, then carries a handgun. Not within Sec. 39-17-1321(a)'s "under the influence" element if the medication is used as prescribed and does not actually impair. The statute does not bar permitted, on-label prescription use. It bars impairment. Practitioners advise caution: any new prescription with a "do not operate heavy machinery" warning should suspend carry until tolerance is established.
Permit holder with one DUI ten years ago. Not categorically disqualified under Sec. 39-17-1351(c)(11) if the conviction is outside both the five-year and the two-within-ten lookback windows. Two DUIs within ten years, or one DUI within five years, disqualifies the applicant from a Tennessee enhanced or concealed permit.
Driver with handgun in console pulled over after dinner that included two glasses of wine. High legal exposure. Sec. 39-17-1321(a) applies if the driver is "under the influence" as a matter of fact. Sec. 39-17-1313's transport authority does not shield against the under-influence offense. If the driver fails a field sobriety test, the under-influence charge and a DUI charge will likely both be filed.
"Tennessee has a 0.08% statutory BAC limit for firearms." Not yet. HB 2514 (114th General Assembly, 2026 session) proposes that language. It has not been enacted as of this writing. The current statute uses the unspecified "under the influence" formulation.
"Tennessee has zero-tolerance BAC for permit holders." This is the practitioner-derived risk recommendation reported in secondary sources, not a statutory rule. The actual statutory test is impairment.
"My permit lets me drink at a restaurant where alcohol is served, as long as I'm not 'drunk.'" Wrong. Sec. 39-17-1321(b) is a flat ban on consuming any alcoholic beverage while possessing a firearm in an alcohol-serving public establishment. There is no "moderate drinking" carve-out. One sip violates the statute.
"Permitless carry under Sec. 39-17-1307(g) exempts me from the under-influence rule." Wrong. Sec. 39-17-1321(a) explicitly applies "Notwithstanding whether a person has a permit." Permitless carriers are subject to the same offense.
"Cannabis is just a state-law issue." Wrong. Federal 18 U.S.C. Sec. 922(g)(3) makes any cannabis user (including in states that have legalized cannabis) a federal prohibited person. Tennessee has not legalized cannabis. Federal exposure for a Tennessee cannabis user who possesses a firearm is severe.
"AG Opinion 14-86 set a BAC limit for the under-influence offense." No. The opinion construes the permit-eligibility "unlawful user" phrase at Sec. 39-17-1351(c)(10). It does not set a BAC limit for the under-influence offense at Sec. 39-17-1321(a).
HB 2514 and SB 2478 of the 114th General Assembly (introduced in the 2025-2026 session) propose multiple amendments to Tennessee's firearms framework, including:
Narrowing Sec. 39-17-1321(a) to a "public place" offense and adding the statutory definition: "'under the influence of alcohol' means the alcohol concentration in the person's blood or breath is eight-hundredths of one percent (0.08%) or more." Fiscal note FM2821 confirms the proposed 0.08% definition.
Companion bills (SB 2422 / HB 2371) earlier in the session proposed substituting the current possession-based offense with a "carrying, with the intent to go armed, a firearm while under the influence of intoxicants or such substances that impairs the person's ability to safely carry a firearm by depriving the person of the clearness of mind and control of oneself that the person would otherwise possess" framework.
Neither bill has passed. HB 2514 is reset on Final Calendar 4 of the Criminal Justice Subcommittee (April 7, 2026), and SB 2478 has been deferred to 2027 in the Senate Judiciary Committee (March 23, 2026). Tennessee instructors should track these bills and update curriculum if either becomes law.
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