Order online, pick up at a licensed dealer in New Hanover County. Wilmington is a port city on the Cape Fear River, with a historic riverfront, a film and television industry and three beach towns on the barrier islands. The battleship North Carolina is moored across the river.
Pick an FFL dealer near you that accepts shipped transfers and name it at checkout. We confirm their license and ship the firearm to them. Ammunition, optics and parts ship straight to your door where North Carolina law allows.
North Carolina repealed its pistol purchase permit when Session Law 2023-8 (Senate Bill 41) became law on March 29, 2023, so a handgun from a dealer no longer needs a sheriff's permit. At the dealer you show photo ID, fill out ATF Form 4473 and the dealer runs a federal NICS background check. Federal law sets the dealer minimum at 21 for handguns and 18 for rifles and shotguns. North Carolina has no state waiting period, no gun registration and no state magazine limit.
Dealers in these communities all work for Wilmington-area buyers:
Open carry is generally lawful in North Carolina for adults who may legally possess a firearm, but it is barred at parades, funerals, picket lines and demonstrations and in the places listed in G.S. 14-415.11(c). Carrying a concealed handgun requires a concealed handgun permit from the New Hanover County Sheriff: you must be 21, a resident for 30 days, and pass an approved course with live fire. The new-permit fee is $80, plus up to $10 for fingerprints, and the permit runs five years. A permitless-carry bill, Senate Bill 50, was vetoed in 2025 and had not become law when we last checked.
The Wildlife Resources Commission splits deer hunting into Northeastern, Southeastern, Central, Northwestern and Western zones. Its 2026-27 season sheet, still marked tentative, opens gun season on October 17, 2026 in the eastern zones, November 14 in the Central zone and the Northwestern CWD area, November 21 in the rest of the Northwestern zone and November 28 in the Western zone; every zone closes January 1, 2027. Rifles, shotguns, handguns and muzzleloaders are legal in gun season. Check the New Hanover County line in the NCWRC regulations digest before you hunt.
New Hanover County is in the Southeastern deer zone, gun season October 17, 2026 to January 1, 2027, and in coastal bear zone 5, which opens November 9. Holly Shelter Game Land in Pender County is the big public tract nearby.
The Holly Shelter Shooting Range in Rocky Point, about thirty minutes north, has a 200-yard rifle line, and the Cape Fear marshes draw waterfowl hunters each winter.
The Wildlife Resources Commission lists ten public shooting ranges, some run by the agency itself and some with county or YMCA partners. Most require a range pass issued on site after a short safety video; fees, hours and closures differ by range.
Source: NC Wildlife Resources Commission public shooting range list and range pages, October 2026. Distances are approximate; call or check the agency site before you drive out.
Yes. Order here, name a licensed FFL dealer in Wrightsville Beach, Carolina Beach, Kure Beach, Wilmington or anywhere in New Hanover County, and we ship the firearm to them. You fill out ATF Form 4473 at their counter and they run the background check.
No. North Carolina repealed the pistol purchase permit on March 29, 2023. A dealer near Wilmington checks your ID, has you fill out Form 4473 and runs the federal NICS check.
The New Hanover County Sheriff's Office. You apply in the county where you live, with a course certificate, fingerprints and the $80 fee; the sheriff has about 45 days to issue or deny once the file is complete.
No. Every firearm ships to a licensed FFL dealer you choose near Wilmington, where you complete the paperwork and background check. Ammunition, magazines and parts ship to your door.
It depends on the zone. Under the NCWRC 2026-27 sheet, gun season opens October 17, 2026 in the Northeastern and Southeastern zones and between November 14 and November 28 in the Central, Northwestern and Western zones. Check the digest for New Hanover County.
No state waiting period and no state magazine limit. A dealer can hand over a gun once the NICS check comes back as proceed.
A North Carolina hunting license with the waterfowl privilege, HIP certification, a federal duck stamp if you are 16 or older, non-toxic shot and a shotgun limited to three shells. Season dates come from the NCWRC migratory bird page each year.
Each dealer sets its own fee, commonly $20 to $75. Call before you order to confirm the price and that they accept firearms shipped from an online store.
General information, not legal advice. Rules current as of October 2026. See our North Carolina gun law overview and check with New Hanover County Sheriff or a local attorney about your own situation.