ATF / BATFE

September 16, 2014

ATF revises Form 1 and Form 5

ATF is pleased to announce the availability of revised ATF Form 1, Application to Make and Register a Firearm, and ATF Form 5, Application for Tax Exempt Transfer and Registration of Firearm.

The ATF Form 1 has been revised to allow the payment of the making tax by use of a credit or debit card. This is a new option that was requested by the industry. Payment by check or money order will still be allowed when the application is submitted on paper.

The Form 1 and Form 5 have been revised to incorporate the questions relating to non-immigrant status that are contained in ATF Form 5330.20, Certification of Compliance with 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(5)(B). Form 5330.20 is to be submitted when the applicant maker is an individual, not a legal entity. With a submission of the revised Form 1, the submission of Form 5330.20 will not be required. This revision was also requested by the industry.

September 12, 2014

What to do if the ATF rejects your Gun Trust Application to build a Machine Gun

by David M. Goldman

You need to timely dispute the ATF denial. ATF is denying these applications under 922 (O) (1)

Except as provided in paragraph (2), it shall be unlawful for any person to transfer or possess a machinegun.

But if you read the section 922 (O) (2) (A), the exception, states that:

a transfer to or by, or possession by or under the authority of, the United States or any department or agency thereof or a State, or a department, agency, or political subdivision thereof; or

August 28, 2014

ATF form 5 and Form 9 returning in September 2014

by David M. Goldman

ATF is pleased to announce the return of the following eForms to active service: ATF Form 5 on 8/27/2014, ATF Form 9 on 9/2/2014, and ATF Form 5300.11 (AFMER) on 9/5/2014.

Please note that at this time no date has been determined for the return of the ATF Forms 3 and Form 4 to service on the current platform. In the interim, ATF has devoted additional resources to paper forms processing within the NFA Branch to augment the volume of receipts and current pending applications.

July 6, 2014

What to do if your ATF eForm is rejected.

by David M. Goldman

One of the benefits in using a Gun Trust is that you are able to submit electronic applications with the new ATF website. This is possible because a Gun Trust does not require a CLEO signature nor fingerprints. Currently only Form1s can be submitted electronically, but Form 4s should be back online soon. It is important to fill out the application correctly as there is not a way to correct mistakes that are made like with the paper forms. A mistake in the past would have put your application in the back of the line, but not any more.

If you make a mistake on an ATF eform (http://www.atfonline.gov) there is a way to submit a correction without going to the end of the line.

Once you receive the notice that your eForm has been rejected, you will receive a refund of the application fee in around 10 days. You do not have to wait for the refund to be processed to resubmit a corrected application. You can pay the fee again while waiting for your refund or wait for the refund and them resubmit the application.

June 26, 2014

ATF eForms Approval for Gun Trust in only 1 Day

by David M. Goldman

One of our clients submitted an application to build a Form 1 on June 24, 2014 and was surprised when they checked their email the next morning and found that the ATF had approved the application to build the SBR.

When I first received the call, I thought it was a mistake, but then I walked the client through the Atfonline website and the process of printing the electronic Form 1. I have provided a copy for those who are as skeptical as I was about a 1 day approval process on a Form 1 from the ATF.

Not sure if this was a mistake or the ATF had just cleared out the backlog of Form 1’s but if you considering creating a Gun Trust to build an SBR, you may want to do it sooner than later.

June 24, 2014

ATF eForms adds Form 1 for Gun Trusts and time to process applications reduced.

by David M. Goldman

Today I received an announcement and verified that you can now process Form 1s online again. For those with a Gun Trust, you can now process these electronically again. Still no word on when Form 4s will be available to process online.

There are currently 15 legal examiners in the background investigation phase of hiring. ATF has been authorized to use overtime funding to process NFA applications and they reduced their outstanding applications by 23%. They are currently processing around 6000 applications a week and have a backlog of 62,000. This means that we might be looking at as little as 10 weeks to process applications and even quicker for electronic applications. This is a substantial decrease from the 9 -15 months we have been seeing in the past few months.

In the last 4 weeks they received 17,800 applications and processed more than 22,400 applications.

June 23, 2014

Supreme Court Decision on “Straw Purchases” Does Not Make Firearms Gift Purchases Illegal

by David M. Goldman

Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a case involving a Virginia man who could legally purchase a firearm and did so for an uncle from Pennsylvania. Even though the Pennsylvania man who ultimately bought the gun was not legally prohibited from owning a firearm and passed a background check, the Court, in a 5-4 decision, said the transfer violated federal “straw purchase” law.

The ruling has resulted in confusion among federal firearm licensees (FFLs), particularly relating to gift purchases of firearms.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has been asked to provide clarification on the Supreme Court’s decision for its firearms retailer members.

May 27, 2014

ATF Updates 41P Final Action Date: No Changes for Gun Trusts Before 2015

by David M. Goldman

Late in 2013, the ATF published a notice that they intended to seek to revise the regulations regarding the documentation that is required for a Gun Trust and for a business. After the ATF received more than 9500 comments on the proposed changes, the ATF had originally announced that a decision was set to be published in June of this year. As the June date has approached, we have reported that it was unlikely that the ATF would actually be able to review and respond to the comments by the June date and that the ATF was not likely to be able to respond until 2015.

In the latest publication of the Semi-Annual Regulatory Agenda, ATF updated the date of the projected date to show that ATF does not expect to publish a final rule until 2015.

DOJ/ATF RIN: 1140-AA43 Publication ID: Spring 2014

May 15, 2014

Did ATF Accidentally Open the Machine Gun Registry for Gun Trusts

by David M. Goldman

Based on the ATF letter requiring NICS checks for Trusts, the ATF may have accidentally opened the registry for new Machine Guns when registered in the name of a trust which is not a person under the GCA.

The Prince Law Blog quotes the same letter I wrote about a few days ago where the ATF determined that “Unlike individuals, corporations, partnerships, and associations; unincorporated trusts do not fall within the definition of “person” in the GCA.” And therefore, as a result,

Because unincorporated trusts are not “persons” under the GCA, a Federal firearms licensee (FFL) cannot transfer firearms to them without complying with the GCA. Thus, when an FFL transfers an NFA firearm to a trustee or other person acting on behalf of a trust, the transfer is made to this person as an individual (i.e., not as a trust). As the trustee or other person acting on behalf of the trust is not the approved transferee under the NFA, 18 U.S.C. 5812, the trustee or other person acting on behalf of a trust must undergo a NICS check. The individual must also be a resident of the same State as the FFL when receiving the firearm.

May 5, 2014

Does a Trust need a NICS check under the NFA and GCA?

by David M. Goldman

One of the most common questions Class 3 SOT Dealers ask has finally been addressed by the ATF and should help clear the inconsistent answers given by local ATF offices.

Is a NICS check required when a Gun Trust is used to purchase firearms that are subject to the NFA?

Short Answer: Yes.