Except as permitted by law, Iowa prohibits the possession or carrying of a gun in or on a vehicle on a public highway, unless the firearm is taken down or totally contained in a securely fastened case, and its barrels and attached magazines are unloaded.¹

Iowa does not otherwise regulate carrying guns in vehicles. In 2025, Iowa repealed a law allowing people to carry loaded pistols or revolvers while in a snowmobile or all-terrain vehicle if their conduct was “otherwise lawful.”²