New Hampshire Knife Laws (2026): Carry, Felons, and Preemption

New Hampshire has no general statewide knife-type or blade-length ban for an adult member of the public. It reaches knives only through a functional "deadly weapon" definition, a felon-specific possession ban, domestic-violence protective-order relinquishment and possession-ban provisions, a courthouse-security ban, and a minor-sale statute, and it explicitly claims state authority over knife regulation by name.

Jurisdiction scope: This page covers New Hampshire state law only, principally RSA 625:11, V, RSA 159:3, 159:15, 159:19, 159:19-a, 159:24, 159:26, and RSA 173-B:1, 173-B:4, and 173-B:5. It does not cover New Hampshire's firearm-specific license-to-carry statute (RSA 159:6) in detail, since it governs pistols and revolvers rather than knives, or the full scope of relief a domestic violence protective order can impose beyond the weapons-relinquishment provisions discussed here.

Can you carry a knife openly or concealed in New Hampshire?

Yes, for an adult who is not a convicted felon, not subject to a protective order that reaches deadly weapons, and outside a courthouse. New Hampshire has no general statewide statute setting a blade-length limit or naming a knife type as illegal to own, carry openly, or carry concealed for the public at large. RSA § 159:16, the state's general carrying-and-selling weapons offense, was narrowed by a 2010 amendment to reach only "any blackjack, slung shot, or metallic knuckles," and no other section of New Hampshire's weapons chapter (RSA 159) or its general definitions chapter (RSA 625) restricts general knife carry. Knives instead reach the criminal code only through the functional "deadly weapon" definition described below, the felon-specific possession ban, the domestic-violence protective-order relinquishment provision, the courthouse-security ban, and the sale-to-minors statute, each covered in turn.

The functional "deadly weapon" definition

RSA § 625:11, V provides: "'Deadly weapon' means any firearm, knife or other substance or thing which, in the manner it is used, intended to be used, or threatened to be used, is known to be capable of producing death or serious bodily injury." This definition does not make a knife illegal to own or carry by itself. It determines whether a knife counts as a "deadly weapon" for the several other statutes described below that turn on that term, based on how the knife was used, intended to be used, or threatened to be used in a given situation, not on its blade length or mechanism.

Convicted felons: a named list of weapons

RSA § 159:3(I) makes it a class B felony if a person "[o]wns or has in his possession or under his control, a pistol, revolver, or other firearm, or slungshot, metallic knuckles, billies, stiletto, switchblade knife, sword cane, pistol cane, blackjack, dagger, dirk-knife, or other deadly weapon as defined in RSA 625:11, V," and has been convicted of a felony against the person or property of another, a felony drug offense under RSA 318-B, or an equivalent out-of-state or federal felony. Paragraph I-a extends liability to a convicted felon who signs a firearm-purchase application. The state confiscates the weapon of a person convicted under this section, per paragraph II, and paragraph III provides an affirmative defense where the underlying felony would not have been a felony in New Hampshire when committed. This list, unlike RSA 625:11's functional test, names specific knife types by type alone, regardless of how the item was used, but it applies only to a person with a qualifying felony conviction, not to the public generally. A domestic violence protective order can impose a comparable restriction on someone who is not a felon, covered below.

Domestic violence protective orders

A person subject to a New Hampshire domestic violence protective order can be ordered to give up a knife, separately from the felon-possession ban above. Under RSA § 173-B:5, I(a)(6), a final protective order may direct "the defendant to relinquish to the peace officer, in addition to the relief specified in RSA 173-B:5, I, any and all deadly weapons specified in the protective order that are in the control, ownership, or possession of the defendant, or any other person on behalf of the defendant." A final order goes further than relinquishment of specified items: RSA § 173-B:5, II provides that "the defendant shall be prohibited from purchasing, receiving, or possessing any deadly weapons and any and all firearms and ammunition for the duration of the order," a mandatory ban reaching any deadly weapon rather than only the ones the order names, and the court may subsequently issue a search warrant authorizing a peace officer to seize deadly weapons and firearms believed to be on the defendant's premises. A temporary order can impose the narrower relinquishment requirement under RSA § 173-B:4, I(a)(9), for the duration of the order, and RSA § 173-B:4, II lets a court prohibit the defendant from purchasing, receiving, or possessing any deadly weapons for the order's duration and authorizes a search warrant if there is probable cause one remains on the defendant's premises. "Deadly weapon," for this chapter, is defined at RSA § 173-B:1, VII as having "the meaning ascribed to it in RSA 625:11, V," the same functional definition that names a knife directly, described above.

Using a deadly weapon during a violent crime

RSA § 159:15(I) provides: "A person shall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor if that person uses or employs slung shot, metallic knuckles, billies, or other deadly weapon as defined in RSA 625:11, V during the commission or attempted commission of a violent crime." "Violent crime," for this section, takes the meaning given in RSA 651:5, XIII. This is a separate, additional offense triggered by using a knife (as a deadly weapon under the functional definition) during a violent crime, not a standalone knife-possession or knife-carry ban.

A related but distinct offense targets two specific bladed items by name rather than through the functional definition. RSA § 159:19-a provides: "I. Any person who uses a pistol cane or sword cane on another person with intent to commit a crime punishable as a misdemeanor shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. II. Any person who uses a pistol cane or sword cane on another person with intent to commit a crime punishable as a felony shall be guilty of a class B felony." Paragraph III bars a sentence under this section from running concurrently with any other term of imprisonment. Like RSA 159:15, this is a use-during-a-crime offense, not a possession or carry ban; simply owning a sword cane or pistol cane is not itself illegal under this section.

Courthouses: a flat ban regardless of license

RSA § 159:19(I) provides: "No person shall knowingly carry a loaded or unloaded pistol, revolver, or firearm or any other deadly weapon as defined in RSA 625:11, V, whether open or concealed or whether licensed or unlicensed, upon the person or within any of the person's possessions owned or within the person's control in a courtroom or area used by a court." Violation is a class B felony. "Area used by a court" is defined in paragraph III to include an entire building dedicated exclusively to court use (except the area between the entrance and courthouse security screening), or, in a shared building, the court facility's courtrooms, jury and deliberation rooms, conference and interview rooms, judge's chambers, other court staff facilities, holding facilities, and connecting corridors, stairways, waiting areas, and elevators. The ban does not apply to marshals, sheriffs, deputy sheriffs, police or other duly appointed or elected law enforcement officers, bailiffs, court security officers, or a person with the court's prior authorization to introduce a weapon into evidence, per paragraph IV. It is an affirmative defense under paragraph V that the required notice was not posted at each public entrance to the courthouse.

Sale to minors: martial arts weapons

RSA § 159:24(I) defines "martial arts weapon" as "any kind of sword, knife, spear, throwing star, throwing dart, or nunchaku or any other object designed for use in the martial arts which is capable of being used as a lethal or dangerous weapon." Paragraph II makes it a misdemeanor to sell, deliver, or otherwise transfer such a weapon to a person under 18 without the written consent of that person's parent or guardian, with an exception in paragraph III for a parent, guardian, administrator, or executor giving the weapon to their own child, ward, or heir.

Safe school zones: a reporting framework, not a possession ban

RSA chapter 193-D, "Safe School Zones," is a discipline and reporting framework, not a standalone weapon-possession offense. It defines an "act of theft, destruction, or violence" to include, among other listed offenses, "[u]nlawful possession or sale of a firearm or other dangerous weapon under RSA 159," under RSA § 193-D:1, I(d), and requires schools to report such acts and permits an extended sentence under RSA § 193-D:3 when one is committed in a safe school zone. The chapter's mandatory-expulsion rulemaking directive, at RSA § 193-D:2, I(b)(2), is written for "knowingly possessing a firearm in a safe school zone" specifically, not for a knife. Chapter 193-D does not itself create a knife-possession offense; it incorporates whichever RSA 159 offense (such as the felon-possession ban) was independently violated.

State authority over knives, named directly

RSA § 159:26, titled "Firearms, Ammunition, and Knives; Authority of the State," addresses knives directly rather than through a firearms-only lens. Paragraph I provides: "To the extent consistent with federal law, the state of New Hampshire shall have authority and jurisdiction over the sale, purchase, ownership, use, possession, transportation, licensing, permitting, taxation, or other matter pertaining to firearms, firearms components, ammunition, firearms supplies, or knives in the state. Except as otherwise specifically provided by statute, no ordinance or regulation of a political subdivision may regulate the sale, purchase, ownership, use, possession, transportation, licensing, permitting, taxation, or other matter pertaining to firearms, firearms components, ammunition, or firearms supplies in the state. Nothing in this section shall be construed as affecting a political subdivision's right to adopt zoning ordinances for the purpose of regulating firearms or knives businesses in the same manner as other businesses or to take any action allowed under RSA 207:59." The middle sentence, the operative "no ordinance...may regulate" clause, lists "firearms, firearms components, ammunition, or firearms supplies" without repeating "knives" from the first sentence's broader jurisdiction declaration. Paragraph II resolves the effect directly: "Upon the effective date of this section, all municipal ordinances and regulations not authorized under paragraph I relative to the sale, purchase, ownership, use, possession, transportation, licensing, permitting, taxation, or other matter pertaining to firearms, firearm components, ammunition, firearms supplies, or knives shall be null and void." Because paragraph II's voiding clause names "knives" directly, an unauthorized local ordinance regulating knives is void under the statute's own text, even though the middle sentence of paragraph I does not repeat the word.

Federal law: what it does and does not reach

Federal law does not ban an individual from owning or carrying a switchblade. The Federal Switchblade Act, 15 U.S.C. §§ 1241 to 1245, instead restricts interstate commerce in switchblade knives, barring their manufacture for, or introduction, transport, and sale in, interstate commerce, and, in 15 U.S.C. § 1245, makes it a federal offense to knowingly possess, manufacture, sell, or import a ballistic knife in or affecting interstate commerce or within federal territorial jurisdiction. The two switchblade offense sections, §§ 1242 and 1243, do not apply to certain knives and people, listed as exemptions in 15 U.S.C. § 1244. A 2009 amendment, § 1244(5), exempts any knife with a spring, detent, or other closure-bias mechanism that requires hand, wrist, or arm exertion on the blade itself to overcome the bias and assist opening, the carve-out that keeps modern assisted-opening folding knives legal in interstate commerce. A separate exemption, § 1244(4), covers a person with only one arm possessing or carrying a switchblade with a blade three inches or less. New Hampshire's switchblade-specific restrictions apply only to convicted felons and to sales to minors, not to general possession or interstate transport.

Disclaimer: This article provides general legal information about New Hampshire's knife laws as of September 2026. It is not legal advice. Consult a lawyer licensed in New Hampshire for advice about a specific situation. A local ordinance may still affect knife carry in specific circumstances not addressed here.

For a state-by-state comparison, see knife laws by state. New Hampshire's self-defense statutes are covered separately on the New Hampshire self-defense laws page.

Statutes cited reflect their in-force version as of 2026-09-18. Last updated: 2026-09-18.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it legal to carry a knife concealed in New Hampshire?

Yes, for an adult who is not a convicted felon, not subject to a protective order restricting deadly weapons, and outside a courthouse. New Hampshire has no general statewide statute banning concealed knife carry, blade length, or knife type for the public at large. RSA 159:16, the state's general carrying-and-selling weapons offense, was narrowed in 2010 to reach only a blackjack, slung shot, or metallic knuckles, and no other section of New Hampshire's weapons chapter restricts general knife carry.

Are switchblades illegal in New Hampshire?

Not for the general public. A switchblade knife is named in RSA 159:3's list of weapons a convicted felon may not possess, a class B felony, and in RSA 159:24's martial-arts-weapon sale-to-minors statute. No New Hampshire statute bans switchblade ownership or carry for an adult who is not a felon.

Does New Hampshire preempt local knife ordinances?

Yes. RSA 159:26, titled 'Firearms, Ammunition, and Knives; Authority of the State,' declares state authority over knives directly and, in paragraph II, voids any unauthorized municipal ordinance or regulation relative to knives, alongside firearms, ammunition, and firearms components.

Can you carry a knife in a New Hampshire courthouse?

No. RSA 159:19 bans knowingly carrying a deadly weapon, openly or concealed, licensed or unlicensed, in a courtroom or area used by a court. A knife counts as a deadly weapon under RSA 625:11, V's functional definition only if, in the manner it is used, intended to be used, or threatened to be used, it is known to be capable of producing death or serious bodily injury. Violation is a class B felony.

Can a felon possess a knife in New Hampshire?

Not if it falls within RSA 159:3's named list, which includes a stiletto, switchblade knife, sword cane, pistol cane, dagger, dirk-knife, or other deadly weapon as defined in RSA 625:11, V. A convicted felon who owns, possesses, or controls one of these commits a class B felony.

Can a protective order restrict knife possession in New Hampshire?

Yes. RSA 173-B:5, I(a)(6) lets a final domestic violence protective order direct the defendant to relinquish any and all deadly weapons specified in the order, and RSA 173-B:5, II separately imposes a mandatory ban on the defendant purchasing, receiving, or possessing any deadly weapons for the order's duration, not only the ones specified for relinquishment. RSA 173-B:4 allows the narrower relinquishment requirement at the temporary-order stage. A knife qualifies if it meets RSA 625:11, V's functional definition of a deadly weapon, which names a knife directly.

Is using a sword cane or pistol cane a separate crime in New Hampshire?

Yes. RSA 159:19-a makes it a separate offense, on top of whatever crime it was used to commit, to use a pistol cane or sword cane on another person with intent to commit a crime: a misdemeanor if the underlying crime is a misdemeanor, and a class B felony if the underlying crime is a felony. Owning a sword cane or pistol cane by itself is not illegal under this section.