Violators may be fined up to $250,000, and imprisoned up to 10 years, or both.
In addition, any vessel, vehicle or aircraft used to transport, conceal or possess an unregistered NFA firearm is subject to seizure and forfeiture, as is the weapon itself.
Basically, there are 2 ways that an individual (who is not prohibited by Federal, State, or local law from receiving or possessing firearms) may legally acquire NFA firearms:
By transfer after approval by ATF of a registered weapon from its lawful owner residing in the same State as the transferee.
By obtaining prior approval from ATF to make NFA firearms.
This blog is dedicated to providing information to help residents of every state understand the current laws and regulations related to the purchase, sale, possession, and transportation of Guns and other weapons regulated by the NFA. In addition, we will attempt to put you in contact with a lawyer in your state who can help in the purchase, manufacture, possession, or transfer of Silencer, Short-Barreled Rifle, Short Barreled Shotgun, Machine Gun, Destructive Device, or Any Other Weapon regulated by the NFA.
If you are a lawyer in and interested in helping clients in your state preserve their rights to purchase class 3 items please contact us.
If you are interested in a NFA Trust to purchase Class 3 items and would like to find someone to help in the preparation of a Gun Trust you should contact a NFA Gun Trust Lawyer®.
THE NATIONAL FIREARMS ACT
TITLE 26, UNITED STATES CODE, CHAPTER 53 INTERNAL REVENUE CODE
The National Firearms Act (NFA) is part of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. All administration and enforcement of the Internal Revenue Code, with the exception of the NFA, is by the Secretary of the Treasury. The ATF administration and enforcement was transferred to the Department of Justice under the Homeland Security Act of 2002.
The National Firearm Act of 1934 was enacted in reaction to activities of gangsters and outlaws of the time. The original law was passed as tax legislation in order to discourage ownership of certain firearms and destructive devices without creating an outright prohibition of the items. The tax on the weapons of $200 was a substantial amount of money in 1934. Because criminals were unlikely to register their NFA weapons, the government was able to use the possession of the weapons without proper tax as a tool to arrest and stop criminal activity. At the time the enforcement of the NFA was the responsibility of the Department of the Treasury.
The National Firearms act controls the ownership, transfer, and possession of a limited set of devices which include machine guns, silencers, short barreled rifles, and short barreled shotguns by requiring federal registration and a tax stamp for each device owned or transferred. The tax stamp is acquired in the registration process and requires specific paperwork. This paperwork referred to as a form 4 or form 1 typically requires a signature of local law enforcement, fingerprints and a payment of the $200 tax. Later the tax on ‘any other weapons was changed to $5. The tax is payable at manufacture and each time the NFA device changes ownership except when it is inherited or a dealer acquires the device.
The NFA also required serial numbers on firearms and made it unlawful to alter them. The process had the effect of registering all manufacturers, importers, and dealers.
NFA Gun Trust Lawyer Blog