Nebraska has no license for uniformed security guards. No state agency trains, tests or registers them, and Omaha and Lincoln don't license them either. Three state laws still shape the job: the Private Detective Licensing Act if you work security out of uniform for a company, the concealed carry law if you carry a handgun, and the minimum wage. Your employer sets the rest, so keep a copy of every certificate it gives you.
Out of uniform: the plain clothes investigator license
The Secretary of State licenses private detectives, private detective agencies and plain clothes investigators. Its rules count non-uniformed security services as part of the private detective business, along with investigations and surveillance (433 NAC ch. 3, § 001.02). The Act covers businesses that advertise or offer these services to the public (Neb. Rev. Stat. § 71-3201).
So a security company that offers plainclothes work needs a private detective agency license, and everyone who works for it in Nebraska out of uniform needs a plain clothes investigator license. Uniformed guards need neither.
- Who qualifies: 21 or older, a U.S. citizen, and of good moral character (§ 71-3205). No license goes to anyone convicted of a felony, or of a misdemeanor involving a sex offense or moral turpitude, unless fully pardoned (§ 71-3206).
- What you file: the application, a release of information, two fingerprint cards, a citizenship attestation, a copy of your driver's license and a color photo taken within 90 days. The State Patrol investigates your character and reputation and has up to 90 days to report.
- The exam: you need 80% (§ 006.01). It's given on the third Wednesday of each month at 10 a.m. in Lincoln. You wait at least 21 days between attempts, and after 3 failures you can't test again (§ 007.02).
- Cost: $25, plus $38 for the State Patrol check on a first application. Fees aren't refunded (§ 008).
- Tied to your employer: the agency signs a statement vouching for your knowledge, and the license is void when your job with the agency ends or the agency's license expires (§ 006.02).
- Renewal: every license expires June 30 of the first even-numbered year after it's issued, so one issued in 2026 runs to June 30, 2028. Renew by that date (§ 71-3209).
Carrying a handgun
Since 2023, anyone 21 or older who isn't barred from having a firearm may carry a concealed handgun anywhere in Nebraska, with or without a permit (§ 28-1202.01). Members of the armed forces, National Guard and ROTC and peace officers qualify at 18 (§ 28-1201). Cities and counties can't regulate firearms, so no Nebraska city can require an armed-guard permit (§ 13-330).
Places where no one may carry, permit or not (§ 28-1202.01(3)):
- police stations, jails and any building with a courtroom
- banks and other financial institutions
- schools, hospitals and places of worship
- professional and semiprofessional sporting events, and political rallies or fundraisers
- bars: any liquor licensee that makes more than half its income from alcohol
- polling places during an election, and public meetings of local governing bodies
The only security exceptions are for staff that a bank, or a place of worship that gives its congregation written notice, authorizes to carry (§ 28-1202.01(4)). A property owner or employer can also ban handguns; if the place is open to the public, it must post a sign or ask you to remove the gun. An employer can ban handguns in company vehicles.
On duty with a handgun:
- Carry your ID and show it when a peace officer or emergency responder asks (§ 28-1202.03).
- Tell an officer or emergency responder immediately that you're carrying when they contact you (§ 28-1202.04).
- Don't carry while drinking, or with alcohol or a non-prescribed controlled substance still in your system (§ 28-1202.02).
The optional permit: the State Patrol issues concealed handgun permits for $100, good for 5 years. Applicants must be 21, Nebraska residents for 180 days, and show proof of training (§ 69-2433). Renewal is $50. The Patrol sends a notice at least 4 months before expiry, you can apply from 4 months before, and the window closes 30 business days after (§ 69-2436). A permit is what lets you carry in the State Capitol (§ 28-1202.01(11)).
Pay: a $15 minimum wage that rises in January
Nebraska's minimum wage is $15 an hour in 2026. On January 1, 2027 it rises 1.75%, which works out to about $15.26, and the Department of Labor publishes the exact rate by October 15 (§ 48-1203). Nebraska's 4,700 security guards earned a median of $19.15 an hour in 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Omaha, Lincoln and other cities
- Omaha: the police department's permits cover special events, closed property, parking and taxi drivers. None is a security guard license.
- Lincoln: the city's permit list runs from auctioneers and pawnbrokers to public dances and taxi drivers, with an alarm registration permit but no security guard permit.
- Everywhere else: state law lets cities appoint special police on their own terms (§ 71-3203), so ask the city clerk or police department where you'll work.
Starting a security company
A company that provides only uniformed guards needs no state security license. Offer plainclothes security, investigations or surveillance, and it needs a private detective agency license: $100 plus $38 for the qualifying individual's check, a $10,000 surety bond kept in force (§ 71-3207), verifiable investigative experience for the qualifying individual (3,000 hours, or less with a criminal justice degree, § 005.01), and a plain clothes investigator license for every person who works for it in Nebraska.
How tessura helps
A plain clothes investigator license ends on June 30 of every even-numbered year and is void the day you leave your agency, and a concealed handgun permit runs 5 years. tessura is free for guards: keep your licenses, permit and training certificates in the credential wallet and get reminders at 60, 30 and 7 days before each one expires.
tessura is not affiliated with the Nebraska Secretary of State, the Nebraska State Patrol, the City of Omaha, the City of Lincoln or any state agency. Rules change, so confirm anything you rely on with the agency that issues it.