Pre-trip check · MD → DC
Driving from Maryland to District of Columbia?
The law changes the moment you cross the line — what's legal to carry, light, or do in Maryland can be a violation in District of Columbia. Every status below is live from LawLert's database, dated, and linked to its official source.
What changes for you (10)
Open burning is prohibited in the District of Columbia under 20 DCMR § 604, with limited exceptions (recreational/cooking fires, certain official uses).
Full District of Columbia rule · Official source · verified Jun 19, 2026
BANNED. D.C. Code 22-4514 prohibits any person in the District from possessing any firearm silencer, regardless of federal NFA registration (law-enforcement and military exceptions only).
Full District of Columbia rule · Official source · verified Jul 18, 2026
Radar detectors are banned in the District of Columbia — it is illegal to use one or even have one in a vehicle, and illegal to sell them (DCMR 18-736).
Full District of Columbia rule · Official source · verified Jun 18, 2026
Recreational possession, gifting, and home cultivation are legal for adults 21+ (Initiative 71), but commercial recreational sales are NOT permitted (no licensed adult-use retail). Cannabis remains illegal under federal…
Full District of Columbia rule · Official source · verified Jul 12, 2026
Certain ground-based consumer fireworks (sparklers, fountains, cones, torches, novelties — nothing aerial or exploding) may be bought from licensed temporary stands during a window around July 4. Stands need a DLCP…
Full District of Columbia rule · Official source · verified Jun 7, 2026
Graduated; top rate 10.75% (on taxable income over $1,000,000).
Full District of Columbia rule · Official source · verified May 31, 2026
Sunday sales permitted. Off-premise (Class A/B) retail generally 7am–midnight Sundays (Class A licensees may sell/deliver Sundays 7am–midnight) and as early as 6am other days.
Full District of Columbia rule · Official source · verified May 31, 2026
Paid DFS is legal; operators accept DC players. Minimum age 18. VERIFY (no dedicated official page).
Full District of Columbia rule · Official source · verified May 31, 2026
Not applicable — hunting is prohibited throughout the District of Columbia (no hunting on any day).
Full District of Columbia rule · Official source · verified Jun 19, 2026
Uniform district-wide: DC is a single jurisdiction with no county/city subdivisions, so its knife laws (Title 22, Ch. 45) apply throughout the District.
Full District of Columbia rule · Official source · verified Jul 7, 2026
Same status
Matching status ≠ identical law — details, limits and penalties can still differ.
Carrying with a permit? Whether Maryland permits are honored in District of Columbia is its own map — check District of Columbia concealed-carry reciprocity. And federal land (national parks, forests) plays by federal rules in both states — see the federal-land guide.
Also from Maryland: MD → DE · MD → PA · MD → VA · MD → WV · reverse (DC → MD)
Maryland to District of Columbia: common questions
- Do the laws change when you drive from Maryland to District of Columbia?
- Yes — 10 of the 13 categories LawLert tracks have a different status in District of Columbia than in Maryland: burn bans, firearms, driving, cannabis, fireworks, taxes, alcohol, gambling, hunting, knives. Each is listed on this page with its current status, the official source it came from, and the date it was last verified.
- What are the burn bans laws in District of Columbia if I'm coming from Maryland?
- District of Columbia: Restricted — Open burning is prohibited in the District of Columbia under 20 DCMR § 604, with limited exceptions (recreational/cooking fires, certain official uses). In Maryland the same category is Conditional.
- What are the firearms laws in District of Columbia if I'm coming from Maryland?
- District of Columbia: Restricted — BANNED. D.C. Code 22-4514 prohibits any person in the District from possessing any firearm silencer, regardless of federal NFA registration (law-enforcement and military exceptions only). In Maryland the same category is Conditional.
- What are the driving laws in District of Columbia if I'm coming from Maryland?
- District of Columbia: Restricted — Radar detectors are banned in the District of Columbia — it is illegal to use one or even have one in a vehicle, and illegal to sell them (DCMR 18-736). In Maryland the same category is Permitted.
- Is my Maryland concealed carry permit honored in District of Columbia?
- Permit reciprocity is decided separately from the firearms status shown on this page, so it is not answered here. LawLert publishes District of Columbia's recognition list, with the statute or agency page behind it, at lawlertapp.com/firearms/DC/reciprocity. Permitless carry, where a state allows it, is a different question again — it does not make an out-of-state permit valid.
- How current is this Maryland to District of Columbia comparison?
- Every rule on this page stores the date it was last checked against its source; the oldest on this comparison is 2026-05-31. LawLert carries 6,693 rules, each with a source URL, and publishes a log of every correction it has made at lawlertapp.com/how-we-verify. Laws change — confirm anything consequential against the linked source.