My brother would like to give me a handgun he purchased but there are a few complicating factors. He is a resident of Indiana and is currently residing there. He is a lawyer so obviously wants to make sure it is done legitimately. I am a resident of Idaho currently residing in Ohio due to being a member of the Air Force. Does anyone know if he can just gift it to me legally (and if so, is paperwork necessary to provide a paper trail), or do we have to perform a transfer at a FFL dealer to make it legal? Basically, he want to make sure that in the case of something happening to the gun (theft, accident...) it can't hurt his career. As far as I can tell, the ATF and NRA sites don't go into too much depth on this subject. Thanks.
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Gifting a handgun across state borders
- Thread starter pduff21
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Tommy Vercetti
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you can ship it from your gunshop to his, they won't do this for free but then you won't get in trouble, nor will he
I'm not a lawyer...
You don't have residency in his state (IN), so he can't gift it to you. Probably the cleanest way is for him to give you the money and you buy it for yourself.
edit: I mean he can't gift it to you man to man or under the Christmas tree. You have to go through the FFL in your state of residence.
You don't have residency in his state (IN), so he can't gift it to you. Probably the cleanest way is for him to give you the money and you buy it for yourself.
edit: I mean he can't gift it to you man to man or under the Christmas tree. You have to go through the FFL in your state of residence.
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orionengnr
New member
First off, thank you for your service to our great Country.
If you are on active duty, permanently stationed in Indiana, I believe you are a "resident" for legal purposes. You may maintain an Idaho driver's license and use Idaho for tax filing purposes, but you have established a residence in IN (you sleep there).
Note--I am not a lawyer and did not sleep in a Holiday Inn last night. I would recommend that you check with either Base Legal or a local lawyer (I would probably phrase the question more toward legal residence than I would the specific issue at hand.) I might also walk into a local gun shop, show them your military ID and Idaho DL, and ask if you can buy a pistol legally. If the answer is "yes" (which I'm pretty sure it will be) then you are a "resident" for legal purposes and gifting will be just as legal as buying.
I am sure some TFL members still on active duty can shed some light on this.
If you are on active duty, permanently stationed in Indiana, I believe you are a "resident" for legal purposes. You may maintain an Idaho driver's license and use Idaho for tax filing purposes, but you have established a residence in IN (you sleep there).
Note--I am not a lawyer and did not sleep in a Holiday Inn last night. I would recommend that you check with either Base Legal or a local lawyer (I would probably phrase the question more toward legal residence than I would the specific issue at hand.) I might also walk into a local gun shop, show them your military ID and Idaho DL, and ask if you can buy a pistol legally. If the answer is "yes" (which I'm pretty sure it will be) then you are a "resident" for legal purposes and gifting will be just as legal as buying.
I am sure some TFL members still on active duty can shed some light on this.
You don't have residency in his state (IN), so he can't gift it to you.
What?
He sends it to an FFL in your state of residence and you go down and pick it up.
If you have PCS orders to IN AND actually live their you are a resident of IN.
Some FFLs will not accept shipments from non-FFLs (though the law allows them to), so check with an FFL in your state of residence (where you sleep every night and have orders).
brickeyee said:If you have PCS orders to IN AND actually live their you are a resident of IN.
That is not true, brickeyee. A military member, for the purposes of firearms transactions is a member of the state they have permanent orders to, PERIOD, irregardless of where they actually live. If a military member has orders to Maryland, and they live in Virginia, for the purpose of firearms transactions they are residents of both Maryland and Virginia. Maryland because of the permanent orders there and Virginia because of presence in that state with the intention of making a home there.
In the situation the OP describes, he is a resident of OHIO because that is where his orders are to. He is NOT, for the purposes of firearms transactions, a resident of Idaho, even though he has an Idaho driver's license, because he is not present in Idaho with the intention of making a home there.
To the OP,
The transfer must occur at an FFL in your state of residence, which is currently OHIO because of your orders. Your brother can get that handgun to the Ohio dealer either by directly shipping it to them (if the receiving FFL accepts private shipments), delivering it to them in person, or having an FFL in IN send it to the Ohio FFL.
When you go to the Ohio FFL to pick it up, you will have to show your military ID card, a certified copy of your orders (in the Navy that means stamped "original" by our personnel support offices), fill out a form 4473 and have a NICS background check performed. You also must be 21 years of age or older because the gun has to go through a licensed dealer. Oh, and I almost forgot, pay the dealer his transfer fee.
He can't gift it to him as in hand him the gun on Christmas morning (like we gift everything else in the world). I edited my post to reflect. I agree he has to go through the FFL.What?
He sends it to an FFL in your state of residence and you go down and pick it up.
If you have PCS orders to IN AND actually live their you are a resident of IN.
And the OP is on orders in OH, not IN.
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You find a dealer in Ohio who will be willing to handle that transaction and get the details nailed down, including the amount of the fee. Get a signed copy of his FFL and make a couple of copies. Send the original and copies to your brother in Indiana.
He can box the gun up and go to FedEx or UPS (NOT to the post office) and ship the gun to the Ohio dealer. There is no need for a dealer on the Indiana end; it might make things easier but there would be another fee. He should keep the original signed FFL and have a copy to show the carrier and also a copy to place inside the box. He should also enclose a note saying who the gun is for so the Ohio dealer knows what is going on.
Since you are military stationed in Ohio, that is your state of residence for firearms transactions.
Jim
He can box the gun up and go to FedEx or UPS (NOT to the post office) and ship the gun to the Ohio dealer. There is no need for a dealer on the Indiana end; it might make things easier but there would be another fee. He should keep the original signed FFL and have a copy to show the carrier and also a copy to place inside the box. He should also enclose a note saying who the gun is for so the Ohio dealer knows what is going on.
Since you are military stationed in Ohio, that is your state of residence for firearms transactions.
Jim
I wonder sometimes that the training the goverment has done a great job, and now we worry about paper trails once upon a time a man wanted to gift a gun to a brother would not have thought twice of leaving a paper trail, and the brother or sister having a swell gift.....yes indeedy the training has indeed worked and being Politically Correct is the norm to follow, instead of being Family....
NESHOOTER said:I wonder sometimes that the training the goverment has done a great job, and now we worry about paper trails once upon a time a man wanted to gift a gun to a brother would not have thought twice of leaving a paper trail, and the brother or sister having a swell gift.....yes indeedy the training has indeed worked and being Politically Correct is the norm to follow, instead of being Family....
It is not about being "Politically Correct", it is about following Federal laws. If "being Family" in the gifting of a firearm is above Federal law in your family and you want to be a family of felons, go right ahead, but we, on this forum, don't recommend that people do that.
Do you know any local LEO's, that you could ask to check on the laws for you? If not, then I would just follow what the others suggested as for going through 2 seperate FFL's, you might have to pay the FFl in both states, but at least you would have a paper trail, and your brother can be assurred that all the I's were dotted and the t's were crossed.
NavyLT
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Join Date: January 25, 2006
Location: Oak Harbor, WA
Posts: 969 Quote:
Originally Posted by NESHOOTER
I wonder sometimes that the training the goverment has done a great job, and now we worry about paper trails once upon a time a man wanted to gift a gun to a brother would not have thought twice of leaving a paper trail, and the brother or sister having a swell gift.....yes indeedy the training has indeed worked and being Politically Correct is the norm to follow, instead of being Family....
It is not about being "Politically Correct", it is about following Federal laws. If "being Family" in the gifting of a firearm is above Federal law in your family and you want to be a family of felons, go right ahead, but we, on this forum, don't recommend that people do that.
Well as with all goverment you can not find anything in clear writing as in USA.GOV on transferning to family members instate or out of state in my searches as for you stating my family is codoning to be a family of felons, Is Wrong, I am not condoning to be a felon to anyone but rather an opinon of unspoken and spoken understanding of what many have shared their thoughts have been said "They can pry my gun from my cold dead hand" on this fourm and base on your opinon when and if the ban on firearms in this nation you will be the first in line... to hand over all of you firearms and not put any away in hiding with any family or friends... to defend your 2nd amenment right but you choose to follow the dictatorship of interpertation of our forefathers decree then, bravo to you sir, my hat is off to you....
That the mind set of people that think they deserve to be saluted, some know history of tipping you hat but for your enjoyment just off another post here on the fourm
. Not all officers are gentlemen......enough said....everyone has a gun that nobody knows about, at least i do, ya never know! I know in georgia there aint no limt
Question asked and answered correctly.
Discussions of law in other sections of TFL should be primarily oriented toward the practicalities of legal, responsible firearms ownership and use.
In the future reserve this sort of musing for the Law and Civil Rights subforum of TFL.I wonder sometimes that the training the goverment has done a great job, and now we worry about paper trails once upon a time a man wanted to gift a gun to a brother would not have thought twice of leaving a paper trail, and the brother or sister having a swell gift.....yes indeedy the training has indeed worked and being Politically Correct is the norm to follow, instead of being Family....
Discussions of law in other sections of TFL should be primarily oriented toward the practicalities of legal, responsible firearms ownership and use.
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