CAN I GET AN FFL LICENSE

shaunt

shaunt

New member
what would someone have to do to obtain a ffl and what does it do i know you can get guns and ammo at wholesale but what else thanks
 
You can get an un-invited, at any time, visit from the BATF. I don't know if it's a state-by-state thing or not but here your "shop" or FFL location has to be zoned "commercial".

If I were you, and are only interested in getting guns and shooting related items at wholesale, I would pass on the FFL.
 
Better off getting a Curios and Relics license. It's much cheaper, simple to obtain and less attempting for the BATF to come knocking as they see fit. One thing for sure, is you do not want the business to be in your home, make it completely seperate from your residence. I don't have one but have often thought about getting the R&C license to get ammo, old military firearms and gun parts at wholesale cost.

Mike may be right, not sure about the commercial zoning portion but many FFL holders I knew gave up the license years ago when the rules changed. BATF is not your friend.
 
It is my understanding that the fees went way up some time back to discourage folks from applying unless they were serious about making a business of it.
 
I have a good friend that is a gunsmith and had been operating out of a sporting goods store that he owned. He sold the store and built a new shop near his home with the idea of doing the gun-repair/building at the new location. He had an FFL for 30+ years and he was denied on the basis that it was zoned residential. The county and township went to bat for him and changed the zoning just so he could get his license.

I think that was one of the new ways that the BATF was trying to get rid of some of the "hobby" FFL holders. Seriously consider what FALfire and I have said about visits from the BATF. Once you have a license, the licensed premises can be searched at any time, with out cause or warrant. Also, if you decide to purchase some guns and have them logged into your FFL, those guns have to be on the licensed premises at all times. You can "log them out" to yourself, but if you bring them back to the licensed premises, they have to be logged back in.

It may look appealing to have an FFL, but unless you are serious about doing business, I wouldn't even consider it.
 
thank you for your replies gentlemen (and i use that term loosely) /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smiliesmack.gifj.k. i always see guns online for a great price that i cant get cause it has to go to a ffl license holder but it sounds like it would be a pain in the a** but the discounts that you get are very attractive so i thought it would be a good idea just for personal purchases but i guess not thanks for all yalls info /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif
SHAUNT
 
shaunt:

You can buy the gun online at the good price and arrange to have it shipped to an FFL dealer near you, who then for a small fee will sign the gun out to you in the regular way.

That's how internet gun sales generally work and why they are thriving. There's no need for you to be an FFL holder to still get some good buys.

JMO - BCB
 
*******HOW ABOUT THEM DALLAS MAVERICKS*******
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I had a FFL for 18 years and yes anyone can get a FFL if you can pass the background check. Once you get the license you have to keep two record books, one for your stock and the other for your personal weapons. You have to have a store front and be available to the public so many hours a week. The ATF can come to your business one time a year unannounced and then they suppose to notifly you after that when they are coming for a check. You have to have a state tax number and county tax number to do business. The place you do business must meet all zoning regulations for you area. Record keeping is very important because they will write you up for any thing they can find like someone writing on the 4473 form a y or n instead of writing out yes or no. I got tired of fooling with them and gave the license up a couple of years back. I do miss the license sometime when i see something on the auctions that is a good deal and don't have time to find someone to do the transfer. My answer is, if you are not going to be a full time dealer then apply for the license, if not then forget it , just not worth the effort. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif
 
My dad had a small gun shop in upstate New York. He had a seperate shop and a stocking business until he died. We sold the business and stock to another dealer in the area then did everything necessary to take care of the books. About 3 years after his death the BATF came knocking on the door wanting to know what he was doing and insisting on seeing his books. You would have thought that telling them that he died and the business was sold to dealer XXX would have made them happy, but they weren't. It got resolved peacefully enough, but a quick check of their records would have told them everything they needed to know about the business. ..... Of course it didn't help that there were still guns he's owned for years stuck in every corner of the house.
 
The deal on the license is you can not get one just to buy guns and ammo for yourself. You have to be engaged in business for profit, have state sales tax lic, business permits for your local area.
 
Quote:
*******HOW ABOUT THEM DALLAS MAVERICKS*******
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I think he got the point, eh? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smiliesmack.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
If you are not a large volume dealer you will not get great wholesale prices. Usually I can buy a gun at Walmart close to what I can get it wholesale for. Internet sales are certainly easier. I can buy many guns from other dealers on the internet cheaper than my wholesale price too. I think they move them cheaper to keep up their volume and keep down their wholesale prices.
 
The Batf&e requires that you have a store front with regular hours, a state tax stamp/number/business license, and permission from the local law Enforcment, your store front must be zoned commercial and meet all local regulations, proper distance from schools ect.
You must keep accurate records of every sale, and purchase even your own. Any mistakes can get you an arbitrary jail term and fines.And they get to change the rules at whim. Not the Laws just the rules they are mandated with being able to make.
I had thought about getting a gunsmiths license but even to just do repairs is too much hassle I will stick to just working on my own stuff.
 
One other caveat is that there must be so many firearms sold in a certain time period. If you do not make X number of sales in X numbe of months then you are in violation also. One more rule to make it harder for low end dealer.
 
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms...that should be a convenience store, not a government agency

Find someone like yourself who has the FFL and needs to move guns to keep it. Work a deal on the transfer fee with him between $10-20 and buy away. You could buy 10-20 guns before you save a penny and this way the paper hassle is his.
 
It really amazes me the number of people who have a lot of misconceived ideas on a subject. Reading above I have found many incorrect statements concerning this subject. There is no "certain number" of guns that must be sold. Many gunsmiths hold FFL's and don't sell many firearms, but must have one to accept a gun into their business just to work on it. You don't have to be zoned commercial, just not zoned against commercial selling. You don't have to have Law Enforcement permission, you must notify them when you apply for FFL but nothing else has to be done. I don't even think they can refuse your application to the Feds unless they advise the Feds that you would be inviolation of a local zoning ordinance. Really don't have to have a store front or "regular hours", you do have to put down at least a common time to allow them to make a compliance inspection no more than once a year, but most dealers do not even see an agent in 10 years. As far as I know,there is no background check, the law says that the BATF "MUST" issue FFL within 45 days (I think it is 45) after you apply unless they find you do not comply with basically what you would sign on a 4473. Only one set of books is required, and if you "take" a firearm for yourself, you simply note in book that it is transfered to your personal collection and it can even be stored with for sale firearms if it is properly marked "not for sale". Only hitch here is that if you personally sell it within one year, you must note it back into your book and have buyer go through same proceedure as purchasing firearm out of FFL inventory.

I really enjoy hearing people speak of what they do not fully understand. Almost as much fun as hearing people speak of NFA ownership and having to have a "license" or pay a fee each year. Not to mention that full auto is "illegal". Did you know that in the USA there is no such thing as an "illegal firearm"? The proper term is "prohibited" since every firearm is legal to own under certain conditions.
 
THA , I was told personally by the ATF Agent who checked my records that I had to keep my personal firearms in a seperate log book and he checked it when he checked my business records. I only got wrote up one time because I sold a rifle to my brother and he missed one yes box on the 4473 . I didn't check it when he filled it out . I had to send a copy of my FFL appication to the local LE . The reason i gave up my license was they changed the local zoneing restrictions in my area and i was going to have to move my business to another location. I retired so i gave up the license. I was only checked three times in 18 years of having the license. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 


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