US political term for sale of firearms by private sellers
This article is about a U.S. political term. For information about U.S. gun shows, see Gun shows in the United States.
A WASR-10 rifle offered for sale at a gun show by a private seller
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Gun show loophole is a political term in the United States referring to the sale of firearms by private sellers, including those done at gun shows, that do not require the seller to conduct a federal background check of the buyer. This is also called the private sale exemption.[1][2] Under U.S. federal law, any person may sell a firearm to a federally unlicensed resident of the state where they reside, as long as they do not know or have reasonable cause to believe that the person is prohibited from receiving or possessing firearms.[3][4][5][6]
Under federal law, for sales of firearms by holders of a Federal Firearms License (FFL), such as gun stores, pawn shops, outdoors stores and other licensees, the seller must perform a background check of the buyer and record the sale, regardless of whether the sale takes place at the seller's regular place of business or at a gun show. Firearm sales between private individuals who reside in the same state – that is, sales in the "secondary market" – are exempt from these federal requirements; however, in some states, it is the same.
Twenty-two U.S. states and the District of Columbia have laws that require background checks for some or all private sales, including sales at gun shows. In some of these states, such non-commercial sales also must be facilitated through a federally licensed dealer, who performs the background check and records the sale. In other states, gun buyers must first obtain a license or permit from the state, which performs a background check before issuing the license (thus typically not requiring a duplicative background check from a gun dealer).[7]
Since the mid-1990s, gun control advocates have campaigned for universal background checks and an end to the gun show loophole. Advocates for gun rights have stated that there is no loophole because current laws provide a single, uniform set of rules for commercial gun sellers regardless of the place of sale, and the United States Constitution does not empower the federal government to regulate non-commercial, intrastate transfers of legal firearms between private citizens.[8]
^Wintemute, Garen (February 2013). Background Checks for Firearm Transfers(PDF). Violence Prevention Research Program, University of California, Davis. pp. 34–5.*"Background checks, permanent records needed for all firearm transfers, not just gun sales by retailers". UC Davis Health (Press release). February 20, 2013. Archived from the original on 2013-05-09.
^"unlicensed-persons". BATFE. Retrieved 12 August 2019.
^"To whom may an unlicensed person transfer firearms under the GCA?". www.atf.gov. Retrieved April 8, 2021.
^"Top 10 Frequently Asked Firearms Questions and Answers". Department of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms. December 12, 2014. Retrieved 12 December 2015.
^Hale, Steven (January 13, 2013). "Gun shows, Internet keep weapons flowing around background checks". Archived from the original on January 15, 2013. Retrieved 2 August 2015.
^18 U.S.C. § 921: Definitions
^"Universal Background Checks". Giffords. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
^Kopel, David. "The Facts About Gun Shows". Cato Institute. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
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