Student wishing to purchase a handgun. Rec's on best way to do so.

G

generalreceipt

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Hi everyone,

I'm really glad to have found this forum and was hoping to get some info regarding a handgun purchase. I've been going to graduate school in Virginia for the past couple years and recently acquired a Virginia Concealed Carry License. However, my drivers license is from the District of Columbia. The problem is, as far as I know, DC doesn't have any FFL dealers. Plus, the red tape seems endless. As far as I know, I'm basically a Virginia resident since I pay taxes here but I just don't have a Virginia Photo ID. It seems that I'd have to get a VA license and get the car tagged, titled and registered in VA, which seems like a big hassle. Anyone have any ideas as to the best way to proceed?

Thanks!
 
Sorry if I wasn't clear. I currently live in Virginia and have filed two Virginia tax returns thus far. I put that out there because as a tax lawyer once told me, where you pay taxes is where you live. So if your question is what is my legal residence, my guess is Virginia, based on the fact that I maintain an apartment here, pay taxes here, etc.

My drivers license however is from DC so I'm not sure if I'm considered to still be a resident of DC.
 
Here in Nebraska, you just need a couple of recent pieces of mail- utility bills, bank statements, etc, with your physical street address on them ....
 
Yeah I was just hoping to avoid having to re-register, re-tag and re-title my vehicle. If that's the only way I guess I'll do that but was hoping someone knew of an alternative.
 
You're a dual resident. If you're filing tax returns in Virginia and you live there half the year or more, you qualify as a resident:

Individuals who are physically present in Virginia, or who maintain a place of abode here for more than 183 days during the taxable year are actual residents. The period of residency does not have to be consecutive days. Most Virginia residents are actual residents of Virginia.

It is possible to be an actual resident of Virginia and a domiciliary resident of another state. For example, dual status commonly occurs when a resident of another state enrolls in a Virginia school and lives here during the school year.
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Your carry permit qualifies as acceptable identification for the purchase.
 
Most states require licensing cars brought into the state within a month or two after taking residence, I guess I don't see that as a big issue. Your existing title is valid in any state, it's ownership evidence, no matter where you live. You don't need to re-title unless you have weird laws there.
 
Most states require licensing cars brought into the state within a month or two after taking residence
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Most states also have an exception for non-resident students so he is not required to re-register his vehicle.
 
The 183 day rule defines residency for some purposes, such as paying taxes and voting. For purchasing a firearm, however, residency is defined by the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in their "Federal Firearms Regulations Reference Guide" (http://www.atf.gov/files/publications/download/p/atf-p-5300-4.pdf) page 39 as follows:

State of Residence. The State in which an individual resides. An individual resides in a State if he or she is present in a State with the intention of making a home in that State. If an individual is on active duty as a member of the Armed Forces, the individual's State of residence is the State in which his or her permanent duty station is located. An alien who is legally in the United States shall be considered to be a resident of a State only if the alien is residing in the State and has resided in the State for a period of at least 90 days prior to the date of sale or delivery of a firearm. The following are examples that illustrate this definition:

Example 1. A maintains a home in State X. A travels to State Y on a hunting, fishing, business, or other type of trip. A does not become a resident of State Y by reason of such trip.

Example 2. A is a U.S. citizen and maintains a home in State X and a home in State Y. A resides in State X except for weekends or the summer months of the year and in State Y for the weekends or the summer months of the year. During the time that A actually resides in State X, A is a resident of State X, and during the time that A actually resides in State Y, A is a resident of State Y.

This is also stated clearly in Form 4473 in the instructions for Question 2 and Questions 20b and 20c (http://www.atf.gov/files/forms/download/atf-f-4473-1.pdf) and goes on to say an out-of-state driver's license may be used to establish identification as follows:

"For example, if a U.S. citizen has two States of residence and is trying to buy a handgun in State X, he may provide a driver's license (showing his name, date of birth, and photograph) issued by State Y and another government-issued document (such as a tax document) from State X showing his residence address."

If you are maintaining an apartment or home in Virginia, you are considered under federal law to be a resident of Virginia while you are staying there for the purposes of buying a firearm. Unfortunately, Virginia Code requires that an FFL must see a photo ID issued by the Commonwealth, so you would need a VA DL to buy from an FFL.

This does not apply to private sales, and in theory you can buy privately with a proof or residency such as a tax or utility bill, but very few private sellers will sell you a handgun without a Virginia driver's license. Your concealed carry permit, however, along with proof of residency make be okay for some.

TomVA
 
What the OP has NOT told us is whether or not he maintains any sort of residence in Washington. He said he resides in VA, pays taxes in VA, files his income tax from VA, but has a DC driver's license.

He may be a dual resident ... or he may be breaking the law by not having a VA driver's license and registering his motor vehicle in VA.
 
Unfortunately, Virginia Code requires that an FFL must see a photo ID issued by the Commonwealth, so you would need a VA DL to buy from an FFL.
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I thought the Virginia carry license was a picture ID. If so, that qualifies as identification for purchase.
 
There is a Virginia photo ID issued by DMV that you may look into if you want to keep a DC license. It is not a driver's license just a photo ID card.
 
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