subject: What Does Atf Require From Aspiring Ffl Dealers? [print this page] People wishing to become professional dealers/manufacturers or importers of firearms need to get an FFL or Federal Firearms License as per the requirements of the Gun Control Act. This article discusses what the ATF requires from FFL applicants.
In the United States, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives or better known as BATFE oversees the federal firearms licensing system. The Bureau falls under the U.S. Department of Justice and administers the legal procedures of issuing licenses to gun dealers. Every requirement and procedure concerning the FFL is defined according to the Gun Control Act.
The Act also defines who needs an FFL or not. For instance, people who are make rare sales, purchases or exchanges of guns for the purposes of the augmentation of a private assortment (like in the case of a hobby), do not need to get an FFL. Only people engaged in the business of buying/selling/repairing/importing firearms as a means of livelihood need the license to go about their actions in a legal manner.
The Bureau has a certain set of pre-requisites to be fulfilled before a person can apply for a federal firearms license. These are the essential following requirements:
The person applying must have completed at least 21 years of age
The person must not have been found guilty of any criminal act punishable by being jailed for the duration of more than a year. The person must not be a fugitive or any sort of addict. By addict one means addicted to any illegal and controlled stuff. The applicant must not be an unlawful alien and should not be mentally challenged or defective in any way. This means people who have been admitted to a mental facility are unfit for applying for an FFL. People who have renounced U.S. citizenship are also unfit to apply and so are the Armed Forces personnel who have been discharged dishonorably. The applicant can also not have been issued a restraining order for not stalking, harassing or threatening someone.
The applicant should not have knowingly broken any federal firearms laws or regulations.
The person applying for an FFL must not knowingly withhold critical information or fail to disclose the same. The applicant must not have made any incorrect statement in the application too.
The applicant must have a facility from which he can do his firearms dealings. The home or commercial facility should be legal and a permanent structure. And also that he must have clients which have been designated by the licensee.
Additionally the applicant must also certify that the business he plans to run is not illegal as per the state or local laws of the area where the business premise is situated. The applicant is also required to certify that he will set up the dealership with the required conditions within the first 30 days of FFL application approval and he will not do any business till the state and local law requirements are met.
The application process involves the collection of Form 7 (for dealers) and Form 7CR (for collectors) from the local ATF office. The next essential step in how to become a FFL dealer is to fill the form in such a manner that it is not rejected by the ATF. If the application is approved, one would get their FFL delivered within 30 to 90 days.
