Sometimes new gun owners or even experienced gun owners get really confused between CHL and LTC acronyms used for gun licenses in Texas. Many people have a question in mind what is the difference between CHL and LTC.
Concealed Handgun License (CHL)
Before 2016 the term which was used for handgun license was CHL or concealed handgun license. Whenever an individual applied for a gun license they would apply for the CHL or concealed handgun license. Because before 2016 an individual was only allowed to carry a concealed handgun and was not allowed to openly carry the handgun in public.
License to Carry (LTC)
LTC is known as a license to carry. In 2016 the Texas State passed a law in which they allowed and legalized both the concealed carry of a handgun and the open carry. After passing the law they changed the term in 2017 from CHL or concealed handgun license to LTC or license to carry. After open carry of handguns was allowed by the Texas State the CHL didn’t make any sense so they changed the name from concealed handgun license to license to carry. The license to carry in Texas is only used for handguns and no other weapons fall under this license.
So there is no difference between CHL concealed handgun license and an LTC license to carry and these terms refer to the same thing. Mostly both terms are used interchangeably because still people sometimes get confused between them. And now the official name given by the Texas State is the license to carry or LTC. Under this Texas handgun license, both the open carry of a handgun in shoulder or belt holster and the concealed carry of a handgun are legal and allowed.
