# Your rights, and when you get them back

Voting depends on your state. Guns are off the table. Jury service is barred, and a passport is usually fine.

## Depends on your state — Voting

A couple of states never take it away at all. Most give it back when you walk out of the facility. Some wait until supervision ends. A few make you take an extra step.

Look up your own state, because people assume they can't vote when they can.

## Treat as permanent — Guns are off the table

Federal law bars possession after a felony conviction, and that includes firearms in a house you live in.

There's a restoration process on the books that Congress hasn't funded since 1992, so it isn't a real option. Courts have been fighting about how this applies to non-violent cases, and some of that is unsettled. None of it is settled enough for you to act on.

Talk to a lawyer if you're curious, and until then treat this as permanent.

This is one of the fastest ways back to prison and it's not worth testing.

## Barred, with a caveat — Jury service

Federal jury service is barred by a felony conviction unless your civil rights get restored. State rules vary.

## Usually fine — A passport

Generally obtainable. A narrow set of drug trafficking convictions can block one.

Getting the passport is a separate question from being allowed to travel, which is [the next part](/life-after-federal-prison/international-travel-with-a-felony).

### [Travel](/life-after-federal-prison/international-travel-with-a-felony)

You can travel once supervision ends. Canada is the one that catches people, and it catches them at the airport.

**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=Once%20you%27re%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.