# Rights and status

Firearms, voting, professional licenses, and a passport. What the conviction actually changes, and what varies by state.

## Absolute — Firearms

Federal law prohibits possession following a felony conviction. This includes firearms in a home you live in.

Take this seriously. It is among the fastest routes back.

## Depends on your state — Voting

Restoration depends on state law and varies substantially. Several states restore automatically upon release from incarceration. Find out what yours does rather than assuming you cannot.

## Start early — Professional licenses

Rules vary by profession and state. Some boards have a formal process for people with convictions. Start early, because the timelines are long.

## Two separate questions — Passport and international travel

A passport is generally obtainable, but travel outside the country during supervised release (post-prison supervision; not parole) requires permission and is frequently refused. Certain convictions carry additional passport restrictions.

## Further out — What comes back, and when

This is the version you need in the first month. Which rights return on release, which return when supervision ends, why the firearms restoration process on the books is not a real option, and where jury service sits are in [Your rights, and when you get them back](/life-after-federal-prison/voting-guns-and-jury-duty). Once you are off paper and actually booking a trip, [Travel](/life-after-federal-prison/international-travel-with-a-felony) covers the border problem.

### [The first thirty days](/getting-out-of-federal-prison/first-thirty-days-in-order)

In rough order. None of it is complicated, all of it takes longer than it should, and the sequencing is what decides how the month goes.

**Need help with this? Just ask.**

These pages cover the general rules. Your situation has details they don't. Email me a question. **Answers are free** , and "you don't need to pay anyone for this" is my most common answer.

[josh@federalprisondude.com](mailto:josh@federalprisondude.com?subject=Getting%20out%20question)

I answer in the order received, usually within a couple of days. I have a day job. If your situation genuinely needs more than an email, I take a limited number of consults, so say so and we'll work it out.