Restoring Your Gun Rights in Maine: How to Get Firearm Rights Back

The short answer: Maine does not automatically hand firearm rights back to anyone with a disqualifying conviction. The only paths are (1) applying to the Office of the Governor for a firearm possession permit under 15 M.R.S. §393, available five years after you are finally discharged from your sentence, but only for certain conviction categories, or (2) a gubernatorial pardon through the Board on Executive Clemency — though the board will not even hold a hearing on a petition filed solely to get your gun rights back. Maine has no adult expungement, no automatic restoration, and no certificate of rehabilitation that restores firearm rights. And even if Maine grants you relief, that does not necessarily end the matter — you may still be a federal felon in possession the moment you touch a gun.

Read this before you do anything else: restoring your rights under Maine law and restoring them under federal law are two separate locks, and opening one does not open the other. Getting a state permit or a pardon in Maine does not automatically erase your federal disability under 18 U.S.C. §922(g). Confirm the federal effect in writing with a qualified lawyer before you ever buy, receive, or possess a firearm.

Who loses firearm rights, and is Maine's ban broader than federal law?

Two systems can independently take away your right to have a gun:

• Federal law: Any felony conviction — a crime punishable by more than one year in prison — triggers the federal firearm ban under 18 U.S.C. §922(g)(1), regardless of what state you were convicted in or what the sentence actually was. A misdemeanor conviction for domestic violence also triggers a federal ban under 18 U.S.C. §922(g)(9), known as the Lautenberg Amendment. Federal law also bars unlawful drug users, certain immigration statuses, people dishonorably discharged from the military, and people under specified mental-health commitments, among others.
• Maine law: 15 M.R.S. §393 makes it a separate state crime to possess a firearm if you fall into any of a long list of categories that closely track the federal list — felony-level convictions, certain out-of-state and federal convictions, qualifying domestic-violence misdemeanors, protective orders (including Maine's newer extreme risk protection orders), involuntary psychiatric commitment, fugitive status, unlawful drug use, certain immigration statuses, and dishonorable discharge.

Maine's list runs parallel to the federal list rather than being dramatically broader, with two notable differences worth knowing: Maine permanently locks anyone convicted of a crime involving use of a firearm or dangerous weapon out of the state permit process described below, no matter how much time passes — and Maine's own domestic-violence-misdemeanor firearm ban expires on its own after five years if there is no new conviction, while the parallel federal Lautenberg ban does not expire on its own at all.

The two locks: why Maine relief may not fix your federal problem

This is the single most important thing to understand. Federal law only stops treating a person as "convicted" for firearms purposes if the state relief you received — expungement, set-aside, pardon, or restoration of civil rights — actually restores your civil rights and does not expressly continue to restrict your firearm rights. That test lives in 18 U.S.C. §921(a)(20) for felonies and the parallel §921(a)(33)(B)(ii) for qualifying domestic-violence misdemeanors. If the Maine relief you obtained doesn't meet that test, or if it says in writing that you still cannot possess a firearm, the federal bar stays in place even though you may be perfectly legal under Maine law.

There's an added wrinkle for Maine specifically: because Maine does not take away voting rights or most other civil rights upon conviction in the first place, it is not always clear that Maine relief satisfies the federal "restoration of civil rights" test at all. That is exactly the kind of question a lawyer needs to answer for your specific conviction before you rely on any Maine-issued permit or pardon.

It gets more restrictive still if your underlying conviction was a federal felony rather than a state one. Under Beecham v. United States, a federal conviction can generally only be cleared through federal relief — a state pardon, permit, or expungement does not reach it. The federal relief mechanism that exists on paper, an application to ATF under 18 U.S.C. §925(c), has been unfunded by Congress for decades and is not a realistic option for most people. If your conviction is federal, talk to a lawyer about whether any current path exists at all before assuming Maine can help you.

How Maine actually restores firearm rights

Maine offers exactly two possible mechanisms — nothing more:

• Permit application to the Governor's Office. If your disqualifying conviction or juvenile adjudication falls within the eligible categories under 15 M.R.S. §393(1)(A-1)(1)–(4) or paragraph (C), you may apply for a permit to possess a firearm five years after you are finally discharged from your sentence. Two limits are worth knowing up front: this permit does not authorize carrying a concealed handgun, and by statute it is valid for only four years before it must be renewed.
• Gubernatorial pardon. A pardon, handled through the Board on Executive Clemency, can lift some of the automatic legal consequences of a conviction, including a firearms disability — but the board has stated it will not hear petitions filed for the sole purpose of restoring firearm rights.

Maine does not offer automatic restoration of firearm rights, adult expungement or set-aside of the conviction itself, or a certificate of rehabilitation. Maine's record-sealing statutes, where they apply, do not restore firearm eligibility.

Waiting period and eligibility

The permit route requires five years from the date you are finally discharged from every part of your sentence — incarceration, probation, and parole. Confirm your exact discharge date with the sentencing court or your probation office, since that date starts the clock.

Some categories are never eligible for the permit, no matter how much time passes — most notably anyone convicted of a crime involving the use of a firearm or dangerous weapon against a person. Others remain barred only while a separate status persists (an active protective order, ongoing unlawful drug use, unresolved immigration status, and similar conditions).

Beyond that, the exact contours of who qualifies can be fact-specific and the statute has been amended over the years. Do not assume your particular conviction qualifies — confirm current eligibility with the Maine Office of the Governor, the Attorney General's office, or a Maine criminal-defense or firearms lawyer before you file anything.

Steps to restore your gun rights in Maine

1. Get your certified record. Obtain certified court documents showing the exact statute of conviction, the sentence imposed, and your discharge date.
2. Screen for a permanent bar first. If the conviction involved use of a firearm or dangerous weapon against a person, the state permit route is closed to you regardless of time passed; ask a lawyer what, if anything, remains available.
3. Let the five-year clock run. Confirm your final discharge date with the court or probation office before applying — applying early only invites denial.
4. Choose your track. Apply to the Office of the Governor for a firearm possession permit under §393, or pursue a full pardon through the Board on Executive Clemency (administered with the Department of Corrections) if you have reasons beyond just firearm restoration.
5. Expect notice and a chance for objection. For the permit, the Governor's Office must notify the sentencing judge, the Attorney General, the relevant district attorneys, and local law enforcement, who have 30 days to object in writing; a timely objection blocks initial issuance, and the Governor may deny even if no one objects. A pardon petition, if a hearing is granted, requires public notice published once a week for four consecutive weeks at your expense, followed by a public hearing before the board.
6. Expect months, not days. The permit process runs at least the 30-day notice window plus review time; pardon cases commonly take six months to over a year. Confirm current timelines and any fees directly with the Governor's Office or the pardon board.
7. Get it in writing and keep it. Whatever relief you receive, obtain the permit or pardon document itself and certified proof, and keep copies permanently.
8. Confirm the federal effect before you touch a firearm. Have a lawyer review whether your specific Maine relief satisfies 18 U.S.C. §921(a)(20) or §921(a)(33)(B)(ii) and does not expressly preserve a firearms restriction. Do this before you buy, receive, borrow, or otherwise possess a firearm.

Permanent and serious exclusions

Some situations in Maine have no realistic path back to firearm possession, or at least none through the ordinary permit process:

• Any conviction involving the use of a firearm or dangerous weapon against a person — permanently excluded from the §393 permit, by the statute's own terms.
• A pardon petition whose sole purpose is restoring gun rights — the clemency board will not schedule a hearing on it.
• An underlying federal felony conviction — state relief generally does not reach it at all, and the federal ATF relief program has sat unfunded for decades.
• Ongoing disqualifying status (active protective order, current unlawful drug use, unresolved immigration status, and similar) — these end only when the underlying status ends, not through the permit process.

Because the statute has been amended repeatedly and eligibility categories are technical, do not assume your conviction is either permanently barred or automatically eligible — confirm with a current, qualified source.

Practical bottom line

Get any Maine restoration in writing and keep it permanently. Before you buy, receive, borrow, inherit, or otherwise possess a firearm, have a Maine lawyer confirm — in writing — that your relief also clears the separate federal bar. Never assume that "my rights were restored" in Maine means you are federally clear; the two systems are legally independent, and the gap between them is exactly where people accidentally commit a serious federal felony. When in doubt, don't possess a firearm until you have that confirmation.

This article is general legal information, not legal advice for your specific situation — confirm current Maine and federal requirements with a licensed attorney before taking any action involving firearms.