If you enjoy collecting and shooting guns, you may already know that most civilians in the United States can legally own and fire a number of different guns without a federal license. A: A Class 3 firearm, actually an NFA firearm, is a special class of highly regulated firearms (silencer, machine guns, etc.). As an SOT, you can import (Class 1), manufacture (Class 2) or sell (Class 3) NFA firearms and save a lot of money and time on NFA firearms for yourself. Also, keep in mind that it`s a mistake that you need a Class 3 license to purchase or own NFA items. You only need them to sell them commercially. Individuals do not need a special license to purchase a muffler or other NFA item. You just have to pay the tax. The only vague exception is that a small handful of states only allow ownership of NFA items if they are on the ATF`s Curio and Relics list and the buyer has an FFL of 03. 1) ATF Form 1 – Maker Form – is used by non-manufacturers to manufacture NFA weapons – for civilians, only short-range rifles, short-range shotguns, silencers and AOW can be produced (after May 1986). The «one-time» tax stamp for this form is $200. The manufacturer receives an approved form from the ATF and can then manufacture the item in question. Once this is done, if the transfer of ownership is necessary, it will be facilitated on a Form 4 below.
In most states, including West Virginia, Kentucky, and Ohio, silencers can be owned by individuals, corporations, and trusts. So basically, be a law-abiding person who can legally own a gun, and you meet the basic standards for getting an FFL. I hope that all this information about what a Class 3 firearms licence is has not confused you and that you can see the benefits of an FFL becoming a SOT. Firearms owners are subject to the firearms laws of the state in which they are located and not exclusively to their State of residence. Reciprocity between States exists in certain situations, for example with regard to secret transport permits. These are recognized from state to state. For example, Idaho recognizes an Oregon permit, but Oregon does not recognize an Idaho permit. Florida grants a license to carry weapons and hidden firearms, but others only allow the secret carrying of firearms. Some states don`t recognize extrastate permits to carry a gun at all, so it`s important to understand the laws of each state when traveling with a handgun.
[4] 6) Interestingly and largely unknown, since the NFA went into effect in 1934, there has been only ONE, yes, ONE crime committed throughout the United States since 1934, involving a legally registered NFA firearm. And it was, ironically, committed by a crooked police officer who went to a drug home and shot someone at the scene. He used his legally acquired Uzi submachine gun to commit the crime. You hear about machine guns and sawed-off shotguns on the news all the time, but it was all from people who own an illegal, unregistered weapon. There are also millions of records of legally held documents in the NFA registry, so it`s not like we`re just talking about a few hundred or a thousand potential people. 5) Any other weapon (AOW) – these are usually things that do not meet the other criteria mentioned above. Put a gun in the front handle, guess what? You have just made an AOW weapon and if the correct papers and approval have not been obtained beforehand, you have violated NFA regulations and possess a contraband weapon that is subject to heavy fines and penalties. Other common AOW classifications are those wallet cases you see that should/could be fired while the gun is still in the holster. Pen guns are another example. Class III NFA Weapons / Title 2 Firearms are not as well known or as simple as Title 1 firearms.
All Class III/Title 2 weapons belong to 1 of the 6 different categories. 4) Manufacture of NFA weapons. In 1986, President Ronald Reagan signed a law that essentially stopped the production of new machine guns. The Gun Owners Protection Act, which introduces restrictions on gun ownership with the reopening of interstate sales of long guns on a limited basis, the legalization of ammunition shipments by the U.S. Postal Service (partial repeal of the Gun Control Act), the repeal of the requirement to keep records of the sale of non-armor-piercing ammunition and federal protection of state transportation of firearms, in which possession of such firearms would otherwise be illegal, also included an amendment, the Hughes Amendment (William J. Hughes D-N.J.), which prohibited civilians from owning machine guns manufactured after 1986. However, all 5 other categories (SBR, SBS, silencer, AOW and destructive devices) can still be created by an individual if they first request it and get permission to do so. You will file a Form ATF 1 (Maker Form) and pay a $200 tax fee. A civilian can still legally own any machine gun developed BEFORE May 1986, provided they obtain approval of the ATF Form 4 discussed above. Remember that no civilian can own a machine gun manufactured AFTER May 1986, with the exception of law enforcement and the military, so a limited quantity is available. «Class 3» comes from the SOT class system; However, for each SOT class, you must have a specific FFL type. Under the SOT system, there are three categories of taxpayers: There are three categories of special occupation taxpayers or SOT that FFL holders can receive.
Logically, these are Class 1, Class 2 and Class 3 SOTs. A Class 3 license or (more accurately) a Class 3 SOT and the associated required FFL 01 or 02 allow you to sell NFA items such as silencers, rifles and short-range shotguns, NFA equipment, pre-May 1986 machine guns, and fully automatic weapons to qualified retail government buyers.