Shopowners: how can a Canuck buy a rifle in the US?

C

Clead

New member
Any help/info would be appreciated. I checked with our Canadian Feds and Canada Customs, and they both gave me a green light to bring home long guns from the US. As long as I REGISTER(arrghh) them at the border on the way home. Can I buy long guns without any U.S. ID? I am 25 with Canuck ID. I would like to follow all the rules on this one as I seem to have complete co-operation from my side of the border. I would like to make my purchases in Wash. State if that makes any legal difference.
Again any help appreciated.
Clead.
 
Just bring your paperwork with you and hope you pass the background check.
 
Clead, as far as we're concerned, you can buy long guns here, since Canucky isn't on this week's Enemies List. Getting them back over the border is your own problem, though. :(
 
Clead:
Only question that I have is: Why would you WANT to buy a rifle in WA state? They cost more there!<g>
Are you looking at a particular type of rifle? If you do purchase one there, it must be shipped to Canada Customs, registered and picked up there; you CANNOT take it to the border yourself..well..you CAN, but you'll never see the rifle again.
As an aside, even if you bought a rifle here in Canada, it's automatically registered anyway if you buy it from a dealer.
 
You have to purchase from an FFL here that is willing to drive it to an airport which has service to a Canadian airport that has a customs office. I understand that only the airlines will ship across the border, but that it's not a big deal. You bring your RCMP approval paperwork to the airport and get it cleared through customs. At least this is the way the procedure was explained to me. Prices are often better in Canada.
 
The rule for handguns (and I suppose would be the same for rifles) you would have to have a FFL here export it to Canada for you. You cannot buy here because you are not a US citizen. An American could buy the rifle and re-sell it to you and you could get permission to take it into Canada by the RCMP. I did that with a handgun for a Canadian friend once. Took him 6 weeks to do the Canadian paperwork beforehand for the RCMP. Now the catch to that little plan is that it is unlawfull for the American to buy the weapon for the express purpose of reselling it to anyone much less a foreign national. Of course that was not my intent when I made my purchase (I just decided that I didn't like the handgun so I sold it to a person who happened to be from Canada!).
 
To buy a gun from an FFL you will need a resident alien card and documentation that you have resided in the United States continuously for the past 90 days. The documentation can take the form of utility bills from the past three months or any other documentation that demonstrates you have been HERE without leaving the country. In Florida you will also need to be a Florida resident.

If you can get the gun into Canada you might want to consider a private sale from a trusted friend. If you do buy a gun from a stranger make out a sales receipt, get them to sign it, and check the serial number of the weapon to see if it has been stolen.
 
Tom B, read Tbeck's post. You don't have to be a US citize n to buy a gun but you must have the right paperwork.

The last question in the second column of the 4473 asks if you area US citizen. You may answer no but like mentioned , you must provide the right documents.
 
I called my gun dealer and he verified that you are correct. If you have been here 90 days. The reason my Canadian friend couldn't buy was the fact that he had not met the 90 day rule. Sorry about my mistake. But note: My dealer said there is a rule change about that taking place now and is being mailed to FFLs by ATF but he hasn't seen the changes as of yet.
 
Thanks for the replies, everone. I just want to pick up an Springfield M6 Scout State-side because no one up here sells them! I don't know why, but I just can't find one in Canada, and I REALLY want one, I just like them. If any Canucks know any shops up here that carry Springfield Armory's products, please let me know. I would be happier mail-ordering one from back east than going through this cross-border hassle to get one.
Clead
 
Clead:
Call Williams' Arms in Port Perry, Ontario..toll free 1-877-833-2634. They advertise the M6 Scout...CDN$339 for the blue model, CDN$399 for stainless...a .22/410 over and under?..why don't you get the Savage 24F Predator instead in .223 x 12 GA. If you're going to pack an over and under, pack one with a wallop. <gg>...$549 from S.I.R. in Winnipeg. (1-800-265-6245)
Mike
 
Mike, thanks a lot for the info. I like the portability and backpack-a-bility of the M6, especially in the Great White North. I try to buy take-down models if I have the choice. A bit of a survivalist mentality I guess. I like to be able to carry a long gun in a normal pack. Also, the Scout seems to fill a "hole" in my collection that the @4 would be too big for. If anyone has experience with both of these combo guns, I would appreciate any input you might have.
Thanks,
Clead.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top