Pennsylvania Knife Laws (2026): Schools, Courts, No General Ban

Pennsylvania's general offensive-weapons statute no longer names a knife of any kind, following a 2022 amendment. That does not make every knife rule the same statewide: a separate, broader school statute bans any knife or cutting instrument on school grounds outright, and a separate court-facility statute still specifically bans a dagger or an automatic-opening knife, even though the general statute dropped that same language.

Jurisdiction scope: This page covers Pennsylvania state law only, principally 18 Pa.C.S. §§ 907, 908, 912, 913, and 6120. It does not cover Pennsylvania's License to Carry Firearms statutes in detail, since those govern handguns rather than knives. A specific municipality's local ordinance is not addressed here since it is not part of the state code; check the relevant municipal code directly.

Can you carry a knife openly or concealed in Pennsylvania?

For an ordinary knife carried without criminal intent, yes, openly and concealed, outside a school or court facility. 18 Pa.C.S. § 908(c), which defines "offensive weapons" for the state's general prohibited-weapons offense, no longer names a knife, dagger, or automatic-opening blade by type. A 2022 amendment, Act 119, struck a bracketed clause that had read "dagger, knife, razor or cutting instrument, the blade of which is exposed in an automatic way by switch, push-button, spring mechanism, or otherwise" from the definition. "Dirk" and "stiletto" never appeared in § 908(c), and the deleted clause's automatic-exposure qualifier meant the pre-2022 statute did not reach an ordinary, non-automatic knife either. The definition, as it now reads, lists "bomb, grenade, machine gun, sawed-off shotgun with a barrel less than 18 inches, firearm specially made or specially adapted for concealment or silent discharge, any blackjack, sandbag, metal knuckles, any stun gun, stun baton, taser or other electronic or electric weapon or other implement for the infliction of serious bodily injury which serves no common lawful purpose." An ordinary knife, carried for a common lawful purpose, is not named on this list and does not fall within the surviving catch-all, which reaches only an implement that "serves no common lawful purpose."

Concealed carry with criminal intent

§ 907(b) provides a separate, narrower prohibition: "A person commits a misdemeanor of the first degree if he possesses a firearm or other weapon concealed upon his person with intent to employ it criminally." "Weapon" is defined at § 907(d) as "anything readily capable of lethal use and possessed under circumstances not manifestly appropriate for lawful uses which it may have," a definition broad enough to reach a knife. This is an intent-based offense: the statute requires that the person concealed the weapon with intent to use it criminally, not merely that a knife was concealed. § 907(a) similarly bans possessing "any instrument of crime with intent to employ it criminally," covering an item "specially made or specially adapted for criminal use" or an ordinary item "used for criminal purposes and possessed by the actor under circumstances not manifestly appropriate for lawful uses it may have."

Schools: a flat ban with its own broader definition

Pennsylvania's school-weapons statute, § 912, does not rely on § 907's definition and does not carry an intent element. § 912(a) provides: "Notwithstanding the definition of 'weapon' in section 907 ..., 'weapon' for purposes of this section shall include but not be limited to any knife, cutting instrument, cutting tool, nun-chuck stick, firearm, shotgun, rifle and any other tool, instrument or implement capable of inflicting serious bodily injury." § 912(b) makes it a first-degree misdemeanor to possess such a weapon "in the buildings of, on the grounds of, or in any conveyance providing transportation to or from any elementary or secondary publicly-funded educational institution, any elementary or secondary private school licensed by the Department of Education or any elementary or secondary parochial school." Because this definition expressly names "any knife," an ordinary pocketknife that would not be an "offensive weapon" under § 908 or a "weapon" under § 907 absent criminal intent is still a "weapon" for § 912 purposes, and simple possession on school grounds, without any intent element, is enough to violate the statute.

§ 912(c) provides a defense: "the weapon is possessed and used in conjunction with a lawful supervised school activity or course or is possessed for other lawful purpose." § 912's coverage is limited to elementary and secondary institutions: it reaches "any elementary or secondary publicly-funded educational institution, any elementary or secondary private school licensed by the Department of Education or any elementary or secondary parochial school," and no college or university appears anywhere in the section's text.

Court facilities: a narrower list survives

§ 913 restricts firearms and other dangerous weapons in a court facility, but "court facility" is itself a defined term, and it is narrower than most readers would assume. § 913(a) makes it an offense to knowingly possess or cause to be present a firearm or other dangerous weapon in a court facility, and a more serious offense if possessed with intent that it be used to commit a crime. § 913(f) defines "court facility" as "the courtroom of a court of record; a courtroom of a community court; the courtroom of a magisterial district judge; a courtroom of the Philadelphia Municipal Court; a courtroom of the Pittsburgh Magistrates Court; a courtroom of the Traffic Court of Philadelphia; judge's chambers; witness rooms; jury deliberation rooms; attorney conference rooms; prisoner holding cells; offices of court clerks, the district attorney, the sheriff and probation and parole officers; and any adjoining corridors." A courthouse building that also holds offices unrelated to those listed is not, in its entirety, a "court facility" under this definition. § 913(f) separately defines "dangerous weapon" for this section as "a bomb, any explosive or incendiary device or material when possessed with intent to use or to provide such material to commit any offense, graded as a misdemeanor of the third degree or higher, grenade, blackjack, sandbag, metal knuckles, dagger, knife (the blade of which is exposed in an automatic way by switch, push-button, spring mechanism or otherwise) or other implement for the infliction of serious bodily injury which serves no common lawful purpose." A dagger and an automatic-opening knife are both still named here, language that closely tracks what § 908's general offensive-weapons definition contained before its 2022 amendment removed it.

§ 913(b)(1) makes simple possession a third-degree misdemeanor, reduced to a summary offense in the narrow circumstance where the person was lawfully carrying a licensed firearm and simply failed to check it before entering, and § 913(b)(2) makes possession with intent to use the weapon in a crime a first-degree misdemeanor. § 913(c) exempts law enforcement and court officials performing official duties, and an attorney who has written court authorization to bring a weapon into the facility as a trial exhibit or demonstration item, provided the weapon is unloaded and in a secure wrapper. Two more provisions matter to an ordinary carrier: § 913(d) requires notice of subsections (a) and (e) to be posted conspicuously at each public entrance to the courthouse or other building containing a court facility, and bars a conviction under subsection (a)(1) if that notice was not posted (unless the person had actual notice anyway). § 913(e) requires each county to make lockers or similar facilities available, at no charge, at or within the building containing a court facility for the temporary checking of a firearm or other dangerous weapon that is not otherwise prohibited by law, with a receipt issued to the person checking it.

No statewide knife preemption

18 Pa.C.S. § 6120(a) provides: "No county, municipality or township may in any manner regulate the lawful ownership, possession, transfer or transportation of firearms, ammunition or ammunition components when carried or transported for purposes not prohibited by the laws of this Commonwealth." The statute's definitions in § 6120(b) define "firearms" by cross-reference to § 5515, a definition scoped to firearms, and the operative text nowhere mentions a knife. A Pennsylvania county, municipality, or township's own ordinance regulating knives, such as a local blade-length or public-carry restriction, is not addressed or displaced by this preemption statute. A Pennsylvania municipality may have its own knife ordinance; municipal codes are not part of the state statutes covered by this page, so check the local code directly for any knife-specific provision before relying on the state-law answer above.

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, 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. Pennsylvania's own § 913 court-facility ban on an automatic-opening knife is a state offense independent of these federal exemptions.

Disclaimer: This article provides general legal information about Pennsylvania's knife laws as of September 2026. It is not legal advice. Consult a lawyer licensed in Pennsylvania for advice about a specific situation.

For a state-by-state comparison, see knife laws by state. Pennsylvania's self-defense statutes are covered separately on the Pennsylvania 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 in Pennsylvania?

Generally yes, for an ordinary knife carried without criminal intent. 18 Pa.C.S. 908(c), the general offensive-weapons definition, no longer names any knife type after a 2022 amendment (Act 119). Concealed carry with intent to use a knife criminally is separately prohibited under 907(b).

Are switchblades illegal in Pennsylvania?

Not under the general offensive-weapons statute, 18 Pa.C.S. 908, which dropped its automatic-knife language in 2022; that section's surviving catch-all still reaches an implement that serves no common lawful purpose, which an ordinary switchblade carried for lawful use does not fall within. An automatic-opening knife is still specifically named as a 'dangerous weapon' in the narrower court-facility statute, 18 Pa.C.S. 913, and possessing it in a court facility as that section defines the term is a crime regardless of the general statute's current scope.

Can you carry a knife on school property in Pennsylvania?

No, generally, for an elementary or secondary school. 18 Pa.C.S. 912 defines 'weapon' for schools to expressly include any knife or cutting instrument and bans possession on elementary or secondary school grounds, buildings, or transportation, a first-degree misdemeanor, with a defense for a lawful supervised school activity or other lawful purpose. The section's own text does not reach a college or university.

Does Pennsylvania preempt local knife ordinances?

No. Pennsylvania's statewide preemption statute, 18 Pa.C.S. 6120, is limited by its own text to firearms, ammunition, and ammunition components, and does not mention knives, so a local ordinance regulating knives is not preempted by this statute. A Pennsylvania municipality may have its own knife-specific ordinance; check the local code of the municipality or township directly before relying on the state-law answers above.