Pre-trip check · GA → TN
Driving from Georgia to Tennessee?
The law changes the moment you cross the line — what's legal to carry, light, or do in Georgia can be a violation in Tennessee. Every status below is live from LawLert's database, dated, and linked to its official source.
Laws change at the state line.The free LawLert iPhone app alerts you when you cross into a state where a law you track differs: firearms, cannabis, alcohol, fireworks and 9 more. No account.Get the appWhat changes for you (9)
Marijuana is illegal to possess in Tennessee in any amount. Simple possession is a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to 11 months and 29 days in jail and a fine of up to $2,500. Possessing half an ounce (14.175…
Full Tennessee rule · Official source · verified Aug 27, 2026
Prohibited: no commercial or tribal casinos, card rooms, or racinos. Legal in-person gambling is limited to the state lottery and certain charitable raffles.
Full Tennessee rule · Official source · verified May 31, 2026
From Oct 15–May 15, anyone burning open-air within 500 ft of forest, grassland, or woodland must by law get a free debris-burn permit from the Division of Forestry. Burning without one is a Class C misdemeanor.…
Full Tennessee rule · Official source · verified Jun 18, 2026
Tennessee (TCA 39-13-903) makes it a Class C misdemeanor to use a drone to capture an image of a person or private property with intent to conduct surveillance.
Full Tennessee rule · Official source · verified Jul 7, 2026
The general state sales tax rate is 7%. Each county and/or city adds a local option sales tax on top (commonly up to 2.75%), so combined rates run about 9% to 9.75%.
Full Tennessee rule · Official source · verified Jul 18, 2026
Tennessee has no proactive duty to inform, but an enhanced-permit holder must keep the permit in immediate possession while carrying and display it on an officer's demand (T.C.A. § 39-17-1351(t); the same rule applies…
Full Tennessee rule · Official source · verified Jul 18, 2026
In Tennessee, consumer fireworks are legal with no personal purchase permit. Retailers must hold a State Fire Marshal permit and buy through licensed Tennessee dealers; display operators are licensed separately.
Full Tennessee rule · Official source · verified Jun 7, 2026
In Tennessee, last call is 3 a.m. statewide, though some counties are dry.
Full Tennessee rule · Official source · verified Jun 5, 2026
Tennessee preempts local knife regulation: state law occupies the field on the transfer, ownership, possession and transportation of knives, and no city, county or metropolitan government may regulate it (T.C.A.…
Full Tennessee rule · Official source · verified Jul 30, 2026
Same status
Matching status ≠ identical law — details, limits and penalties can still differ.
Carrying with a permit? Whether Georgia permits are honored in Tennessee is its own map — check Tennessee concealed-carry reciprocity. And federal land (national parks, forests) plays by federal rules in both states — see the federal-land guide.
Also from Georgia: GA → AL · GA → FL · GA → NC · GA → SC · reverse (TN → GA)
Georgia to Tennessee: common questions
- Do the laws change when you drive from Georgia to Tennessee?
- Yes — 9 of the 13 categories LawLert tracks have a different status in Tennessee than in Georgia: cannabis, gambling, burn bans, drones, taxes, firearms, fireworks, alcohol, 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 cannabis laws in Tennessee if I'm coming from Georgia?
- Tennessee: Restricted — Marijuana is illegal to possess in Tennessee in any amount. Simple possession is a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to 11 months and 29 days in jail and a fine of up to $2,500. Possessing half an ounce (14.175… In Georgia the same category is Conditional.
- What are the gambling laws in Tennessee if I'm coming from Georgia?
- Tennessee: Restricted — Prohibited: no commercial or tribal casinos, card rooms, or racinos. Legal in-person gambling is limited to the state lottery and certain charitable raffles. In Georgia the same category is Conditional.
- What are the burn bans laws in Tennessee if I'm coming from Georgia?
- Tennessee: Restricted — From Oct 15–May 15, anyone burning open-air within 500 ft of forest, grassland, or woodland must by law get a free debris-burn permit from the Division of Forestry. Burning without one is a Class C misdemeanor.… In Georgia the same category is Conditional.
- Is my Georgia concealed carry permit honored in Tennessee?
- Permit reciprocity is decided separately from the firearms status shown on this page, so it is not answered here. LawLert publishes Tennessee's recognition list, with the statute or agency page behind it, at lawlertapp.com/firearms/TN/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 Georgia to Tennessee 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. Every rule LawLert publishes carries a source URL, and every correction it has made is public at lawlertapp.com/how-we-verify. Laws change — confirm anything consequential against the linked source.