Buying and Selling Guns
Dealer-sale purchase/transfer reporting, plus universal background checks has resulted in a de facto pistol registration system. Long-guns (rifle, shotguns) and pistols that have not changed hands since the provisions of I-594 went into effect are not registered. Gun owners are not required to register their firearms.
Who cannot possess a firearm?
State Prohibited Persons 9.41.040
Previously been convicted or found not guilty by reason of insanity;
Convicted of any felony;
One of the following crime committed by one family or household member against another:
Previously been convicted or found not guilty by reason of insanity;
Convicted of any felony;
One of the following crime committed by one family or household member against another:
- Assault in the fourth degree;
- Coercion, stalking, reckless endangerment;
- Criminal trespass in the first degree; or
- Violation of the provisions of a protection order or no-contact order restraining the person or excluding the person from a residence.
- Under a domestic restraining order;
- After having previously been involuntarily committed for mental health treatment;
- If the person is free pending trial, appeal, or sentencing for a serious offense as defined in 9.41.010.
Federal Prohibited Persons
The following are federally prohibited persons:
The following are federally prohibited persons:
- Anyone under indictment or information in any court for a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year; (felony case is in court--you've been arrested, but not yet convicted)
- Anyone convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year; (a felon)
- A fugitive from justice;
- An unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance; (including marijuana, medicinal or not)
- Anyone adjudicated as a mental defective or has been committed to any mental institution;
- An illegal alien;
- Anyone discharged from the military under dishonorable conditions;
- Anyone who has renounced his or her United States citizenship;
- Anyone subject to a court order restraining the person from harassing, stalking, or threatening an intimate partner or child of the intimate partner;
- Anyone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence.
Dealer Sales
9.41.110 Dealer Pistol Registration
(9)(a) A true record in triplicate shall be made of every pistol sold, in a book kept for the purpose, the form of which may be prescribed by the director of licensing and shall be personally signed by the purchaser and by the person effecting the sale, each in the presence of the other, and shall contain the date of sale, the caliber, make, model and manufacturer's number of the weapon, the name, address, occupation, and place of birth of the purchaser and a statement signed by the purchaser that he or she is not ineligible under RCW 9.41.040 to possess a firearm.
(b) One copy shall within six hours be sent by certified mail to the chief of police of the municipality or the sheriff of the county of which the purchaser is a resident; the duplicate the dealer shall within seven days send to the director of licensing; the triplicate the dealer shall retain for six years.
Read about how reporting gun sales/transfers creates a gun registry.
I got denied for a gun purchase. What do I do?
Visit the NICS Brady Check FBI appeals page. Contact an attorney. If you are currently under indictment for a crime (pre-trial) or on probation, don't even bother trying to buy a gun.
I was charged/arrested/convicted of a felony/domestic violence, etc. Can you tell me if I'm allowed to buy a gun?
No, you need to read the law yourself and consult an attorney. Frontier Carry does not provide legal advice. In most of our correspondence on this matter, important details, such as conviction and true facts are often left out, making it impossible to provide correct guidance. Please do not email us on this topic, we cannot assist.
Can I buy a handgun if I’m under 21? Can I sell a handgun to someone under 21?
No. Federal prohibits dealers from selling or transferring handguns to persons under 21, which is why most persons under 18 do not own handguns. As private sales are now illegal in Washington, the only option is a gift from an exempted relative. See this ATF page.
Can I buy a firearm as a gift for someone?
Yes, as long as the receiver is not a prohibited person and the gifting is not being used to circumvent a background check or other laws. Calling a purchase intended in place of another is a straw purchase. For example: a girlfriend buying a gun for her boyfriend, because he is afraid he has a record would be an illegal straw purchase. If the girlfriend was buying her law-abiding boyfriend a gun for Christmas, that would be a legitimate gift and legal.
Do I have to register my guns? No.
Is there a waiting period to pick-up my gun?
No, except if your background check comes back 'Delayed' and it is not cleared or denied within three days.
Can I buy more than one gun at a time? Yes.
Visit the NICS Brady Check FBI appeals page. Contact an attorney. If you are currently under indictment for a crime (pre-trial) or on probation, don't even bother trying to buy a gun.
I was charged/arrested/convicted of a felony/domestic violence, etc. Can you tell me if I'm allowed to buy a gun?
No, you need to read the law yourself and consult an attorney. Frontier Carry does not provide legal advice. In most of our correspondence on this matter, important details, such as conviction and true facts are often left out, making it impossible to provide correct guidance. Please do not email us on this topic, we cannot assist.
Can I buy a handgun if I’m under 21? Can I sell a handgun to someone under 21?
No. Federal prohibits dealers from selling or transferring handguns to persons under 21, which is why most persons under 18 do not own handguns. As private sales are now illegal in Washington, the only option is a gift from an exempted relative. See this ATF page.
Can I buy a firearm as a gift for someone?
Yes, as long as the receiver is not a prohibited person and the gifting is not being used to circumvent a background check or other laws. Calling a purchase intended in place of another is a straw purchase. For example: a girlfriend buying a gun for her boyfriend, because he is afraid he has a record would be an illegal straw purchase. If the girlfriend was buying her law-abiding boyfriend a gun for Christmas, that would be a legitimate gift and legal.
Do I have to register my guns? No.
Is there a waiting period to pick-up my gun?
No, except if your background check comes back 'Delayed' and it is not cleared or denied within three days.
Can I buy more than one gun at a time? Yes.
9.41.092 Dealer Background Checks (I-594)
Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, a licensed dealer may not deliver any firearm to a purchaser or transferee until the earlier of:
- The results of all required background checks are known and the purchaser or transferee is not prohibited from owning or possessing a firearm under federal or state law; or
- 10 business days have elapsed from the date the licensed dealer requested the background check. However, for sales and transfers of pistols if the purchaser or transferee does not have a valid permanent Washington driver's license or state ID card or has not been a resident of the state for the previous 90 days, then the time period in this subsection shall be extended from 10 business days to 60 days.
Universal Background Checks (No Private Sales)
Private gun sales are illegal in Washington.
One may well ask: 'How can you advocate breaking some laws and obeying others?' The answer lies in the fact that there are two types of laws: just and unjust. I would be the first to advocate obeying just laws. One has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to obey just laws. Conversely, one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws. I would agree with St. Augustine that 'an unjust law is no law at all.'-Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
9.41.113 (I-594)
(1) All firearm sales or transfers, in whole or part in this state including without limitation a sale or transfer where either the purchaser or seller or transferee or transferor is in Washington, shall be subject to background checks unless specifically exempted by state or federal law. The background check requirement applies to all sales or transfers including, but not limited to, sales and transfers through a licensed dealer, at gun shows, online, and between unlicensed persons.
(2) No person shall sell or transfer a firearm unless:
(a) The person is a licensed dealer;
(b) The purchaser or transferee is a licensed dealer; or
(c) The requirements of subsection (3) of this section are met.
(3) Where neither party to a prospective firearms transaction is a licensed dealer, the parties to the transaction shall complete the sale or transfer through a licensed dealer as follows:
(a) The seller or transferor shall deliver the firearm to a licensed dealer to process the sale or transfer as if it is selling or transferring the firearm from its inventory to the purchaser or transferee, except that the unlicensed seller or transferor may remove the firearm from the business premises of the licensed dealer while the background check is being conducted. If the seller or transferor removes the firearm from the business premises of the licensed dealer while the background check is being conducted, the purchaser or transferee and the seller or transferor shall return to the business premises of the licensed dealer and the seller or transferor shall again deliver the firearm to the licensed dealer prior to completing the sale or transfer.
(b) Except as provided in (a) of this subsection, the licensed dealer shall comply with all requirements of federal and state law that would apply if the licensed dealer were selling or transferring the firearm from its inventory to the purchaser or transferee, including but not limited to conducting a background check on the prospective purchaser or transferee in accordance with federal and state law requirements and fulfilling all federal and state recordkeeping requirements.
(c) The purchaser or transferee must complete, sign, and submit all federal, state, and local forms necessary to process the required background check to the licensed dealer conducting the background check.
(d) If the results of the background check indicate that the purchaser or transferee is ineligible to possess a firearm, then the licensed dealer shall return the firearm to the seller or transferor.
(e) The licensed dealer may charge a fee that reflects the fair market value of the administrative costs and efforts incurred by the licensed dealer for facilitating the sale or transfer of the firearm.
(4) This section does not apply to:
(a) A transfer between immediate family members, which for this subsection shall be limited to spouses, domestic partners, parents, children, siblings, grandparents, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, first cousins, aunts, and uncles, that is a bona fide gift;
(b) The sale or transfer of an antique firearm;
(c) A temporary transfer of possession of a firearm if such transfer is necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm to the person to whom the firearm is transferred if:
(i) The temporary transfer only lasts as long as immediately necessary to prevent such imminent death or great bodily harm; and
(ii) The person to whom the firearm is transferred is not prohibited from possessing firearms under state or federal law;
(d) Any law enforcement or corrections agency and, to the extent the person is acting within the course and scope of his or her employment or official duties, any law enforcement or corrections officer, United States marshal, member of the armed forces of the United States or the national guard, or federal official;
(e) A federally licensed gunsmith who receives a firearm solely for the purposes of service or repair, or the return of the firearm to its owner by the federally licensed gunsmith;
(f) The temporary transfer of a firearm (i) between spouses or domestic partners; (ii) if the temporary transfer occurs, and the firearm is kept at all times, at an established shooting range authorized by the governing body of the jurisdiction in which such range is located; (iii) if the temporary transfer occurs and the transferee's possession of the firearm is exclusively at a lawful organized competition involving the use of a firearm, or while participating in or practicing for a performance by an organized group that uses firearms as a part of the performance; (iv) to a person who is under eighteen years of age for lawful hunting, sporting, or educational purposes while under the direct supervision and control of a responsible adult who is not prohibited from possessing firearms; or (v) while hunting if the hunting is legal in all places where the person to whom the firearm is transferred possesses the firearm and the person to whom the firearm is transferred has completed all training and holds all licenses or permits required for such hunting, provided that any temporary transfer allowed by this subsection is permitted only if the person to whom the firearm is transferred is not prohibited from possessing firearms under state or federal law; or
(g) A person who (i) acquired a firearm other than a pistol by operation of law upon the death of the former owner of the firearm or (ii) acquired a pistol by operation of law upon the death of the former owner of the pistol within the preceding sixty days. At the end of the sixty-day period, the person must either have lawfully transferred the pistol or must have contacted the department of licensing to notify the department that he or she has possession of the pistol and intends to retain possession of the pistol, in compliance with all federal and state laws.
9.41.115 Penalties
Notwithstanding the penalty provisions in this chapter, any person knowingly violating RCW 9.41.113 is guilty of a gross misdemeanor punishable under chapter 9A.20 RCW. If a person previously has been found guilty under this section, then the person is guilty of a class C felony punishable under chapter 9A.20 RCW for each subsequent knowing violation of RCW 9.41.113. A person is guilty of a separate offense for each and every gun sold or transferred without complying with the background check requirements of RCW 9.41.113. It is an affirmative defense to any prosecution brought under this section that the sale or transfer satisfied one of the exceptions in RCW 9.41.113(4).
In the first 14 months of universal background checks, only 50 prohibited persons were stopped by the law, or 3.5 people per month. That's only about 1% of the 329 per month or 3,948 total denials from dealer sales (source).
“It just proves to me that the initiative was a lot of flash and not much substance,” Second Amendment’s Dave Workman said. Workman said the initiative is an inconvenience to more than a million Washington gun owners and it’s not been effective in punishing felons who break the law.
“Have there been 50 arrests and 50 prosecutions?” Workman asked. State court records show there have been no prosecutions related to I-594.
Clearly this has not been a resounding success and indicative of the fact that criminals do not legally source guns.
Hard to understand? Check the flowchart (click for larger version)
Courtesy of Tawnos, imgur.com/QLMj1Em
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Washington gun owners who fought against the heavily contested 2014 gun-rights battle do not need a lecture on the danger of background checks brought by I-594. This law was bought and paid for by billionaire former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and other anti-gun groups. Washington was targeted because it is a 'purple' state with urban populations that vote for liberal causes and Democratic politicians. Washington was the first state to fall to the new tactic of lying to voters via ballot initiatives in states 'easy' for anti-gunners to win in so that they might build momentum to ban private gun sales across the country. Nevada is next and NevadaCarry.org contains excellent, detailed information on what a horror and farce these laws are.
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