Are AR-15s legal in Colorado?
Last verified against primary sources: · Updated
Yes. AR-15s are legal to own in Colorado. There is no ban on possessing one and no registration requirement — if you lawfully own an AR-15, you can keep it.
What changes is buying one: starting August 1, 2026, an AR-15 is a "specified semiautomatic firearm" under SB25-003, so purchasing it requires the state's new eligibility-card and safety-course pathway. Colorado's 15-round magazine limit also applies.
Owning an AR-15: legal, with no registration
Nothing in Colorado law bans possessing an AR-15, and SB25-003 does not change that. The new statute, C.R.S. § 18-12-116, prohibits specific transactions — not ownership:
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.
The prohibited verbs are manufacture, distribute, transfer, sell, and purchase. Possession is not on the list, and the act creates no registration or surrender requirement for firearms owned before August 1, 2026.
Is an AR-15 a "specified semiautomatic firearm"?
Yes. The statute's covered-firearm definition reaches semiautomatic rifles with detachable magazines:
"Specified semiautomatic firearm" means any of the following, except as provided in subsection (1)(d)(II) of this section: (A) a semiautomatic rifle or semiautomatic shotgun with a detachable magazine; or (B) a gas-operated semiautomatic handgun with a detachable magazine.
A standard AR-15 rifle is a semiautomatic rifle with a detachable magazine, so it is covered. For rifles, the operating system does not matter — the only question is whether the magazine is detachable. That means from August 1, 2026, buying an AR-15 requires the safety-course pathway (and the AR-pattern pistol is covered too).
Magazine limit still applies
Colorado's 15-round magazine limit is separate from SB25-003 and remains in force. SB25-003 did make one change here: it raised the penalty for the large-capacity-magazine offense (C.R.S. § 18-12-302) from a class 2 to a class 1 misdemeanor, effective when the act was signed on April 10, 2025.
The details of what counts as a large-capacity magazine, and the exceptions, are covered on the magazine capacity hub and the What is the magazine limit in Colorado? page.
Local ordinances
Some Colorado cities have their own firearm ordinances that can add local rules on top of state law. For those, see the Denver and Boulder pages.
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). 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.
Common questions
Are AR-15s legal to own in Colorado?
Yes. There is no ban on possessing an AR-15 in Colorado and no registration requirement. SB25-003 restricts buying and selling covered firearms starting August 1, 2026, but not owning them.
Do I have to register my AR-15 in Colorado?
No. SB25-003 creates no registration or surrender requirement. It prohibits manufacturing, distributing, transferring, selling, and purchasing covered firearms — not possessing ones you already own.
Is an AR-15 a "specified semiautomatic firearm"?
Yes. It is a semiautomatic rifle with a detachable magazine, which falls within C.R.S. § 18-12-116(1)(d)(I). For rifles the operating system does not matter — a detachable magazine is enough to make it covered.
Can I still buy an AR-15 in Colorado?
Yes. Before August 1, 2026, under the existing purchase rules; from August 1, 2026, only through the new eligibility-card and safety-course pathway. See the page on buying an AR-15 after August 2026 for the steps.
What magazine limit applies to an AR-15 in Colorado?
Colorado's 15-round magazine limit applies. SB25-003 raised the penalty for the large-capacity-magazine offense to a class 1 misdemeanor; see the magazine capacity pages for the full rules and exceptions.