Determine your eligibility. You are not eligible if you have been convicted of a felony, have had a previous handgun license suspended, are under 18 years old (under 23 years old if a delinquent as a child), have been arrested for a class A or B felony, arrested for any felony involving violence or the use of a deadly weapon.
The Basic Process. Indiana collects two fee's during the application process. The first fee goes to the State's general fund, and the second goes to the local department's fund for firearms and firearm training. The basic process to obtain a permit is: complete the application, provide fingerprints, pay the State fee, pay the Local fee at your local law enforcement agency, and then wait to receive your permit.
Determine how you want to apply. The online application is located at https://firearms.ariesportal.com/. If you prefer not to use the online form, you can contact your local law enforcement agency to determine how to submit the application. If you live outside of an incorporated town or city, you can contact the sheriff's office of the county you live in.
Determine when you should apply and how they accept payment. This varies depending on where you're applying. Most police departments have specific days of the week and operating hours for handling applications. If you use the online application process, you can continue through to L-1 Enrollment site to schedule a time to be fingerprinted and pay the State license fee.
Prepare to Pay State Fee. Purchase a cashier's check or money order for $75 ($60 if you have a current license) made payable to: State of Indiana. If you plan on going to an L-1 Enrollment center for the state processing, they charge an additional fee of $9.95. That fee gets added to the state fee and they send in the state fee for you. So, if you are getting a new license at an L-1 Enrollment center, you will bring one payment for $84.95. If you choose to pay by money order, L-1 Enrollment requires money orders be made out to: L-1 Enrollment.
Prepare to Pay Local Fee. Purchase another cashier's check or money order for $50 ($40 if you have a current license) made payable to your local police department or sheriff's office. In some cases, the local payment can be made with a personal check or in cash.
Get everything together. At this point you should know where you're going and when. You should also have your fee payments ready to go. Be sure to bring your driver's license or other form of State recognized photo ID.
Apply! Use the online application, or go to your designated place of application and fill out the official application. It will ask for your name, full address, length of residence in the community, whether your residence is located within the limits of any city or town, your occupation, place of business or employment, criminal record (if any) and convictions (minor traffic offenses excepted), age, race, sex, nationality, date of birth, citizenship, height, weight, build, color of hair, color of eyes, scars and marks, whether you have previously held an Indiana license to carry (serial number and year issued, if so) whether your license has ever been suspended (year and reason, if so) and your reason for desiring a license.
Fingerprinting. You'll need to be finger printed. If you use the ink process, they usually have a place for you to wash your hands but it's somewhat difficult to get all the ink off. If you use the INKless process, your fingerprints are scanned electronically. There is no mess with the INKless process and it is faster to receive your permit.
The leg work. If you filled out your application on line, your local law enforcement agency will have electronic access to it. They will complete more of the form when you go in for fingerprinting. They run the criminal background check and enter your prints into the database (if you didn't do the INKless). This can take a couple of days. You then need to return to pick up your permit application and local approval (background check) to be mailed (along with the $75 money order) to the state.
Wait a little while. If you use the online application and the inkless fingerprinting process, it takes about 2 weeks from the time you have everything submitted and paid to receive your permit. If you submit the application manually and use inked fingerprinting, it usually takes 4-8 weeks to process an application. With the increased demand due to the new lifetime licenses your request might take 12-14 weeks. If you are renewing a license they will staple your old license to your application (pink copy). If you keep them stapled and carry both then you may continue carrying a handgun until you receive your new license or your application is rejected.
Check your mailbox regularly. Eventually your license will arrive in the mail and you'll finally have your lifetime license! Or, your application will be rejected and a portion of your application fee will be refunded.
Get it laminated. Take your new card and get it laminated to protect it. (Notice that it has a place to sign it before you laminate it.)
Notify the State of changes. If you change your name, address or are convicted of something that might change your eligibility you must notify the superintendent, in writing, within 30 days. You can (but are not required to) purchase a new license after an address change for a fee of $20.
Know the local laws.
Educate yourself and your family about gun safety.
Carry responsibly.
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