Montgomery County PA CCW question

[Karys]

Originally Posted by gprimr1

One more question, the references, do they need to be Montgomery county residents, PA residents, or anyone?

My LCTF was originally issued in Centre county. When I renewed in Montgomery I had to jump through all the same hoops.

One of my references was in Montgomery and one was in Bucks county. I don't think they even bothered to check my references. I would think your references would at least have to be PA residents. It seems to differ from county to county.

[soup]

When I picked up my LTCF I went to the Pottstown Police department first. They had the police check card there and they also gave me a copy of the application you'd get from the court house so I could have it all filled out prior to going. They did charge me $10 for their background check but it was instant.

Montco is nice, once you have all your paperwork in order you just take a trip to the Sheriff's Office and hand them everything. The entire process took less than an hour for me as everything was instant, Went to the Sheriff's office on my lunch break, was given my LTCF that day.

[archon]

Montgomery County does things a little bit different then the rest of the state.

If you live in Ardmore, go to the Lower Merion Township building (it's in Ardmore) which houses the police department. They have the police check cards and applications there. You fill out the police check card and give it to the duty officer. Depending on who is working the desk (and how pro/anti gun they are), they will either run your check while you wait or ask you to come back the next day. Sometimes when they are really busy they will tell you that it will take about a week and that they will mail the card to the Sheriff's office. If this happens just call the sheriff's office in about a week to see if they recieved it.

Take the completed application and the police check card (if not mailed) to the Sheriff's office in Norristown. Go early in the day because they have been known to back-up. Make sure to have cash on you to pay the fees. A sheriff's deputy will process the application and unless there is a problem your permit gets issued the same day.

There are two options for permits in Montgomery County. You can either bring two passport sized photos with you and get a flimsy paper permit or you can pay a few extra bucks to get a permit that is the same quality as your drivers license. I think it is $28 for the regular permit and $48 for the upgraded permit (check with the sheriff before you go to verify.) IMO, it is worth the extra money for the upgraded license.

All in all, the sheriff seems to be pretty pro-gun and so are most of his deputies. The staff is generally kind and courteous. You shouldn't have a problem. (Which isn't the same story over in DelCo.)

[marinakorp]

Originally Posted by archon

You can either bring two passport sized photos with you and get a flimsy paper permit or you can pay a few extra bucks to get a permit that is the same quality as your drivers license. I think it is $28 for the regular permit and $48 for the upgraded permit (check with the sheriff before you go to verify.) IMO, it is worth the extra money for the upgraded license.

Yes... get the upgraded permit. THe paper one... doesn't fit in a wallt well. The upgraded one is the size of a driverslicense / credit card... fits nicely

[gprimr1]

Oh yeah I planned to get the upgraded one. This sounds really simple

[JWS]

This sounds like s@#t to me, I thought that the local sheriff was NOT allowed to require anything that the state didn't mandate! If the locals are allowed to continue to set their own requirements next thing you know they will be revoking for no reason.......oh wait they are!

[HiredGoon]

Originally Posted by JWS

This sounds like s@#t to me, I thought that the local sheriff was NOT allowed to require anything that the state didn't mandate! If the locals are allowed to continue to set their own requirements next thing you know they will be revoking for no reason.......oh wait they are!

Unfortunately, I think they feel they are "covered" by the following excerpt from the PA UFA (UNIFORM FIREARMS ACT):

(e) Issuance of license.--
(1) A license to carry a firearm shall be for the
purpose of carrying a firearm concealed on or about one's
person or in a vehicle and shall be issued if, after an
investigation not to exceed 45 days, it appears that the
applicant is an individual concerning whom no good cause
exists to deny the license.

It doesn't really detail what kind of resources may be used for this investigation.

[gprimr1]

I signed my lease today, so either next Tuesday or Wednesday I'll be applying.

I think I'm going to like Ardmore.

[offshorebear]

Just go to the police station in Ardmore. The door is on the side behind the parking lot. Go up to the window and they will give you the check card to fill out. I think they just want your name and address. Give it back to them and they will do the back ground check and fax the results to the sheriff in Norristown. Start calling the sheriff after about two weeks to see if he has received the back ground investigation yet. When he has it in go to Norristown and fill out the LTCF app, give him a check, and pick up your LTCF. It took me all of 20 minutes this summer and about 2 weeks for the back ground check.

[emsjeep]

you guys are lucky, my New York Permit cost upwards of $300 and took 5 months...also, if you call to ask about it they make sure it takes the full 6 months...they send out a sheet with the packet that says in big bold letters "DO NOT CALL THE PLS TO INQUIRE ABOUT THE STATUS OF YOUR LICENSE OR INVESTIGATION!"