The International Defensive Pistol Association (IDPA), founded in 1996, is an organization based in Bogata, Texas that governs a practical shooting sport (IDPA), which is based on defensive pistol tactics, everyday carry equipment, and full-charge service ammunition, to solve simulated "real world" self-defense scenarios.

Competitors (shooters) are required to use handguns and equipment (holsters, ammunition carriers) that are suitable for self-defense, and wear a concealment garment tha conceals the handgun and associated equipment from view of bystanders.

[1] The sport came about as a response to the perceived shortcomings in competitions organized by the United States Practical Shooting Association (USPSA) and its migration away from the use of common, un-customized handguns.

[1] It was decided by the founders of IDPA (Bill Wilson, John Sayle, Ken Hackathorn, Dick Thomas, Walt Rauch and Larry Vickers), that USPSA competitions had become too far removed from the reality of defensive shooting situations, using extensively modified guns, handmade ammunition, and speed-draw holsters that were impractical for self-defense.

The IDPA founders believed that USPSA matches had become "equipment races", which were heavily dependent on a shooter's gear rather than their ability.

A Scenario stage represents a self-defense situation that could happen in real life.

The official IDPA target is made of cardboard and has a vaguely humanoid shape consisting of a "head" and a "body".

Unlimited scoring means that the shooter may fire more than the required number of shots at a target.

Extra shots (makeups) are beneficial if they remove more points down than the time it takes to fire them.

Limited scoring means that the shooter may NOT fire more than the required number of shots at a target.

Flagrant penalties may be assessed by the Safety Officer for infractions such as: The examples provided in the rule book should not be considered automatic.

The Revolver (REV) and Back-Up Gun (BUG) divisions are further divided into two subcategories each.

[4] In the following table, note that "Max Rounds Loaded" is a general maximum for all competitions.

In the semi-automatic divisions, this refers to the maximum number of rounds allowed to be loaded in the magazine.