[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 87 (Wednesday, May 6, 2026)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 24357-24362]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2026-08924]
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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives
27 CFR Part 478
[Docket No. ATF-2026-0009; ATF No. 2025R-32D]
RIN 1140-AA61
Licensee ``eZ Check'' Verification for Transfers
AGENCY: Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives,
Department of Justice.
ACTION: Direct final rule.
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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives
(``ATF'') is amending Department of Justice (``Department'')
regulations to allow federal firearms licensees (``FFLs'') that are
transferring a firearm to another FFL to verify the transferee FFL's
license through ATF's publicly available ``FFL eZ Check'' system, as an
alternative to the current requirement to obtain a certified copy of
the transferee's license. Additionally, because the eZ Check system is
accessible, free to use, and updated regularly, this rule removes the
now-unnecessary provision that allows a transferor to rely on a
certified list provided by a multi-licensed organization for up to 45
days to make transfers to licensees operated by such organization.
DATES: This direct final rule is effective on August 4, 2026, unless
significant adverse comments are received by June 5, 2026. If ATF
receives a significant adverse comment within the stated time that
warrant revising the rule (as described under the ``Public
Participation'' heading in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of
this regulation at Part IV of this preamble), ATF will publish a notice
in the Federal Register withdrawing the rule before the effective date.
Commenters should be aware that the https://www.regulations.gov comment
system will not accept comments after midnight Eastern Time on the last
day of the comment period.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by RIN 1140-AA61, by
either of the following methods--
Federal e-rulemaking portal: https://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
Mail: ATF Rulemaking Comments; Mail Stop 6N-518, Office of
Regulatory Affairs; Enforcement Programs and Services; Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; 99 New York Ave. NE;
Washington, DC 20226; ATTN: ATF RIN 1140-AA61.
Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name and
number (RIN 1140-AA61) for this direct final rule. ATF may post all
properly completed comments it receives from either of the methods
described above, without change, to the federal e-rulemaking portal,
https://www.regulations.gov. This includes any personally identifying
information (``PII'') or business proprietary information (``PROPIN'')
submitted in the body of the comment or as part of a related attachment
they want posted. Commenters who submit through the federal e-
rulemaking portal and do not want any of their PII posted on the
internet should omit it from the body of their comment and any uploaded
attachments that they want posted. If online commenters wish to submit
PII with their comment, they should place it in a separate attachment
and mark it at the top with the marking ``CUI//PRVCY.'' Commenters who
submit through mail should likewise omit their PII or PROPIN from the
body of the comment and provide any such information on the cover sheet
only, marking it at the top as ``CUI//PRVCY'' for PII, or as ``CUI//
PROPIN'' for PROPIN. For detailed instructions on submitting comments
and additional information on the rulemaking process, see the ``Public
Participation'' heading of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of
this document. A summary of this rule may be found at https://www.regulations.gov. Commenters must submit comments by using one of
the methods described above, not by emailing the address set forth in
the following paragraph.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Office of Regulatory Affairs, by email
at [email protected], by mail at Office of Regulatory Affairs; Enforcement
Programs and Services; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and
Explosives; 99 New York Ave. NE; Washington, DC 20226, or by telephone
[[Page 24358]]
at 202-648-7070 (this is not a toll-free number).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
The Attorney General is responsible for enforcing the Gun Control
Act of 1968 (``GCA''), as amended. This responsibility includes the
authority to promulgate regulations necessary to enforce the provisions
of the GCA.\1\ See 18 U.S.C. 926(a). Congress and the Attorney General
have delegated the responsibility for administering and enforcing the
GCA to the Director of ATF (``Director''), subject to the direction of
the Attorney General and the Deputy Attorney General. See 28 U.S.C.
599A(b)(1), (c)(1); 28 CFR 0.130(a)(1)-(2); Treas. Order No. 221(2)(a),
(d), 37 FR 11696-97 (June 10, 1972).\2\ Accordingly, the Department and
ATF have promulgated regulations to implement the GCA in 27 CFR part
478.
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\1\ Some GCA provisions still refer to the ``Secretary of the
Treasury.'' However, the Homeland Security Act of 2002, Public Law
107-296, 116 Stat. 2135, transferred the functions of ATF from the
Department of the Treasury to the Department of Justice, under the
general authority of the Attorney General. 26 U.S.C. 7801(a)(2); 28
U.S.C. 599A(c)(1). Thus, for ease of reference, this rule refers to
the Attorney General where relevant.
\2\ In Attorney General Order Number 6353-2025, the Attorney
General delegated authority to the Director to issue regulations
pertaining to matters within ATF's jurisdiction, including under the
GCA, National Firearms Act, and Title XI of the Organized Crime
Control Act. ATF's jurisdiction also includes those portions of sec.
38 of the Arms Export Control Act pertaining to permanently
importing defense articles and services and the Contraband Cigarette
Trafficking Act.
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The GCA at 18 U.S.C. 922(b)(3) makes it unlawful, with some
exceptions, for a licensed importer, manufacturer, dealer, or collector
to sell or deliver a firearm to any person who does not reside in (or,
if the person is a corporation or other business entity, that does not
maintain a place of business in) the state in which the licensee's
business premises is located. Further, licensees must conduct a
background check and maintain records (e.g., acquisition and
disposition records, Firearms Transaction Record, ATF Form 4473) before
transferring a firearm to a non-licensee. See 18 U.S.C. 922(t), 923(g);
27 CFR 478.102, 478.121-125.
Consequently, to sell a firearm to a non-licensee who resides in a
different state, a licensee must first ship the firearm to another
licensee who has business premises located in the same state as the
non-licensee. To facilitate lawful transfers via shipments between
firearms licensees, the Department promulgated regulations at 27 CFR
478.94, which provide that a licensed importer, manufacturer, or dealer
selling or disposing of firearms, and a licensed collector selling or
disposing of curios or relics, to another licensee must, with certain
exceptions, verify the identity and licensed status of the transferee
prior to the transaction. Further, the regulations provide that such
verification must be established by the transferee furnishing a
certified copy of its federal firearms license to the transferor. Under
Sec. 478.95, a licensee may reproduce its original license and certify
the reproduction to verify its licensed status for transfers under
Sec. 478.94, or the licensee may request a certified copy of its
license from ATF for a nominal fee.
II. Direct Final Rule
In 2002, ATF launched the FFL eZ Check system, which was designed
to allow an FFL that has a copy of another FFL's license to verify or
authenticate the license prior to shipping or transferring a firearm(s)
to that FFL.\3\ The regulations at Sec. 478.94 still require the
licensee to first obtain a certified copy of the transferee's license
and do not permit the licensee to use the eZ Check system as a
substitute for obtaining that copy. There is no cost for FFLs to use
this system.
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\3\ ATF, FFL eZ Check Application (last reviewed Sep. 8, 2025),
https://www.atf.gov/firearms/ffl-ez-check-application [https://perma.cc/6HKK-Z4BT].
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Even though the system was originally designed as a means to verify
that a license copy was valid, it can also be used to verify that a
licensee has a current and valid license without needing to compare the
system information to a copy. Because this system has been widely
available, and because a high number of FFLs use modern technologies to
conduct their business, ATF is amending Sec. 478.94 to allow
transferor licensees to verify that a transferee FFL has a current and
valid license through the FFL eZ Check system without first obtaining a
certified copy of the license. The transferor FFL would need only the
transferee's FFL number to confirm that the transferee's license is
active. Under this rule, the license number, expiration date, and
address verified through FFL eZ Check must match the information the
transferee provides at the time of the transaction. ATF is not removing
the option to verify a transferee's license by obtaining a certified
copy, so licensees can elect either method to comply with the
regulation's verification requirements.
The eZ Check alternative method modernizes the license verification
process, reduces the need to share paper copies of licenses between
FFLs, and streamlines compliance without diminishing regulatory
integrity. It also reduces costs to licensees because the eZ Check
system is publicly available and free.
Since FFLs can easily use the eZ Check system, this rule also
removes from Sec. 478.94 the provision that permits a transferor to
rely on a certified list (in lieu of a certified copy of each license)
from a multi-licensed business organization to sell or dispose of a
firearm to licensees on such list because it is unnecessary.
In addition to these changes, this rule makes minor structural
changes in Sec. 478.94 to improve readability by splitting the
regulation into paragraphs. Thus, under this rule, paragraph (a)
explains the regulatory requirements, paragraph (b) describes how to
verify licenses, and paragraph (c) discusses when verification is not
required.
III. Statutory and Executive Order Review
A. Administrative Procedure Act
Under 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) of the Administrative Procedure Act
(``APA''), an agency may forgo notice and comment when the agency for
good cause finds such procedures impracticable, unnecessary, or
contrary to the public interest. Agencies may dispense with the APA's
notice-and-comment requirements as unnecessary in situations in which
the rule is a routine determination, insignificant in nature and
impact, and inconsequential to the industry and to the public. Util.
Solid Waste Activities Grp. v. E.P.A., 236 F.3d 749, 755 (D.C. Cir.
2001). This formulation is consistent with the explanation of the
``unnecessary'' prong of the good cause exemption that the Attorney
General issued contemporaneously to the APA. See Dep't of Justice,
Attorney General's Manual on the Administrative Procedure Act 31 (1947)
(explaining that ``unnecessary'' refers to a ``minor rule or amendment
in which the public is not particularly interested'').
This rule allows FFLs to use the FFL eZ Check system, which is
free, to verify the validity of another licensee's license prior to
transferring a firearm, in lieu of needing to request from the
transferee licensee a certified copy of the transferee's license. These
changes are beneficial to both the industry and ATF. ATF does not
anticipate controversy or significant comments on making these changes
to allow electronic verification as an option because this online
system has been available since 2002 and is familiar to the industry,
and because it
[[Page 24359]]
is not required; licensees may still request certified copies if they
prefer. This rule merely updates ATF's regulations to make existing
technological options available to the industry, thereby providing more
flexibility for regulated parties. However, ATF is nonetheless
providing a full opportunity for notice and comment. Prior to the
effective date of this rule, ATF will consider any significant adverse
comments we receive and will withdraw the rule, if necessary, to
address them. Thus, ATF finds, for good cause, that it is unnecessary
to first publish a notice of proposed rulemaking for this rule.
In Recommendation 95-4, the Administrative Conference of the United
States (``ACUS'') endorsed direct final rulemaking as an appropriate
procedure to expedite promulgation of rules that are not controversial
and that are not expected to generate significant adverse comment.\4\
The direct-final-rule process allows an agency to issue a rule that it
believes to be noncontroversial ``without having to go through the
review process twice . . . while at the same time offering the public
the opportunity to challenge the agency's view that the rule is
noncontroversial.'' \5\ ACUS recommended that agencies use the direct
final rule process when they act under the ``unnecessary'' prong of the
good cause exemption in 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B). Consistent with this
recommendation, ATF is updating 27 CFR 478.94 through a direct final
rule because this rule makes noncontroversial changes, and ATF does not
expect to receive any significant adverse comments.
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\4\ Adoption of Recommendations, 60 FR 43108, 43110 (Aug. 18,
1995).
\5\ 60 FR 43110-11.
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Unless we receive a significant adverse comment that warrants
revising the rule by June 5, 2026, this rule will become effective on
August 4, 2026. If any timely significant adverse comments are
received, ATF will publish a notice in the Federal Register withdrawing
this direct final rule before its effective date. See section IV.A of
this preamble on ``Comments sought'' for a description of what is
considered a significant adverse comment.
B. Executive Orders 12866 and 13563
Executive Order 12866 (Regulatory Planning and Review) directs
agencies to assess the costs and benefits of available regulatory
alternatives and, if regulation is necessary, to select regulatory
approaches that maximize net benefits.
Executive Order 13563 (Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review)
emphasizes the importance of agencies quantifying both costs and
benefits, reducing costs, harmonizing rules, and promoting public
flexibility.
The Office of Management and Budget (``OMB'') has determined that
this rule is not a ``significant regulatory action'' under Executive
Order 12866. Therefore, it did not review this rule. ATF provides the
following analysis to comply with Executive Order 12866 and 13563.
This final rule amends 27 CFR 478.94 to allow FFLs to use ATF's eZ
Check system to verify another licensee's information prior to
transferring a firearm, as an alternative to obtaining a certified copy
of the transferee's license. This rulemaking provides qualitative
benefits to the industry by providing more flexibility with respect to
statutory and regulatory compliance. ATF also expects this rule to
produce monetary savings for industry because FFLs will no longer need
to expend time of funds to obtain certified copies of their licenses
when dealing with each other since using FFL eZ Check is faster and
more efficient. According to ATF's Federal Firearms Licensing Center,
as of December 23, 2025, there were 45,605 active dealer FFLs (Type
01). However, ATF has no data on how many of these licensees engage in
transfers with other licensees that will be impacted by this rule, nor
any data on the number of such transfers in which each licensee might
engage. Licensees do not report this information to ATF. For purposes
of this analysis, therefore, ATF uses an illustrative assumption that
50 percent of these dealers currently engage in a single firearm
transfer that will be affected by this rule each year. Assuming these
FFLs use the eZ Check system instead of continuing to rely on certified
copies, each FFL will save approximately $1 on paper and postage that
would have been spent to obtain and send a certified copy of a license.
This change in FFL practice would result in an estimated 22,803 FFLs
realizing a cost savings of at least $1 per year, which results in an
estimated $22,803 in cost savings per year.
Next, ATF estimates that copying licenses, mailing them to
licensees' counterparts, and certifying the copies takes approximately
one hour per transaction. By eliminating the time spent on these tasks,
this rule reduces compliance burdens by an estimated 22,803 hours in
time burden as well. ATF estimates that an FFL retail salesperson
handles these tasks and is paid an hourly wage rate of $17.64 per
hour.\6\ To account for fringe benefits such as insurance, ATF
calculated a load rate based on total hourly compensation (average
$45.03 for 2024) \7\ and divided the average total compensation by the
average hourly wages and salaries (average $31.10 for 2024),\8\
resulting in a load rate of 1.45.\9\ Multiplying the estimated hourly
wage rate for an FFL ($17.64) by the load rate of 1.45, ATF estimates
that an FFL will save a rounded $26 in loaded monetized time per hour.
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\6\ U.S. Bureau of Lab. Stats., Occupational Employment and
Wages, May 2023: 41-2031 Retail Salespersons, https://www.bls.gov/oes/2023/may/oes412031.htm [https://perma.cc/Z38C-9YEE].
\7\ U.S. Bureau of Lab. Stats., Total compensation cost per hour
worked for private industry workers (2024), https://data.bls.gov/dataViewer/view/timeseries/CMU2010000000000D [https://perma.cc/T2ZL-2UUB].
\8\ Id.
\9\ 1.45 load rate = $45.03 total hourly compensation/$31.10
hourly wages and salaries.
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In total, if 22,803 FFLs complete a single transfer per year, as
estimated above, and each saves an hour per transfer, FFLs may be able
to save $592,878 in total monetized time savings per year under this
illustrative example. When added to the saved postage and paper costs
of $22,803, ATF estimates the industry will save a total of $615,681
per year under this final rule under this illustrative example. This
rule will not create any costs or additional time burdens.
C. Executive Order 14192
Executive Order 14192 (Unleashing Prosperity Through Deregulation)
requires an agency, unless prohibited by law, to identify at least ten
existing regulations to be repealed or revised when the agency publicly
proposes for notice and comment or otherwise promulgates a new
regulation that qualifies as an Executive Order 14192 regulatory action
(defined in OMB Memorandum M-25-20 as a final significant regulatory
action as defined in section 3(f) of Executive Order 12866 that imposes
total costs greater than zero). In furtherance of this requirement,
section 3(c) of Executive Order 14192 requires that any new incremental
costs associated with such new regulations must, to the extent
permitted by law, also be offset by eliminating existing costs
associated with at least ten prior regulations. However, this final
rule is not an Executive Order 14192 regulatory action because it is
not a significant regulatory action as defined by Executive Order 12866
and it does not impose total costs greater than zero. This rule is an
Executive Order 14192 deregulatory action (defined OMB Memorandum M-25-
20 as a final action
[[Page 24360]]
that imposes total costs less than zero) because it provides the
industry with more flexibility and cost savings by allowing members of
the industry an alternative method to comply with statutory and
regulatory requirements; as a result, they will no longer need to take
time to request from ATF a copy of another licensee's license or make a
certified copy of their own license for verification purposes.
D. Executive Order 14294
Executive Order 14294 (Fighting Overcriminalization in Federal
Regulations) requires agencies promulgating regulations with criminal
regulatory offenses potentially subject to criminal enforcement to
explicitly describe the conduct subject to criminal enforcement, the
authorizing statutes, and the mens rea standard applicable to each
element of those offenses. This rule does not create a criminal
regulatory offense and is thus exempt from Executive Order 14294
requirements.
E. Executive Order 13132
This rule will not have substantial direct effects on the states,
the relationship between the federal government and the states, or the
distribution of power and responsibilities among the various levels of
government. Therefore, in accordance with section 6 of Executive Order
13132 (Federalism), the Director has determined that this rule does not
impose substantial direct compliance costs on state and local
governments, preempt state law, or meaningfully implicate federalism.
It thus does not warrant preparing a federalism summary impact
statement.
F. Executive Order 12988
This rule meets the applicable standards set forth in sections 3(a)
and 3(b)(2) of Executive Order 12988 (Civil Justice Reform).
G. Regulatory Flexibility Act
Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (``RFA''), 5 U.S.C. 601-612,
agencies are required to conduct a regulatory flexibility analysis of
any rule subject to notice-and-comment rulemaking requirements unless
the agency head certifies, including a statement of the factual basis,
that the proposed rule will not have a significant economic impact on a
substantial number of small entities. Small entities include certain
small businesses, small not-for-profit organizations that are
independently owned and operated and are not dominant in their fields,
and governmental jurisdictions with populations of less than 50,000.
This rule is deregulatory and imposes no additional costs to the
public because it provides FFLs a free, alternative method of verifying
another FFLs license thus saving them time from having to request a
certified copy from ATF; therefore, the Director certifies, after
consideration, that this rule will not have a significant economic
impact on a substantial number of small entities.
H. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995
This final rule does not include a federal mandate that might
result in the expenditure by state, local, and tribal governments, in
the aggregate, or by the private sector, of $100 million or more in any
one year, and it will not significantly or uniquely affect small
governments. Therefore, ATF has determined that no actions are
necessary under the provisions of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of
1995.
I. Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995
Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (``PRA''), 44 U.S.C.
3501-3521, agencies are required to submit to OMB, for review and
approval, any information collection requirements created by a rule or
any impacts it has on existing information collections. An information
collection includes any reporting, record-keeping, monitoring, posting,
labeling, or other similar actions an agency requires of the public.
See 5 CFR 1320.3(c). This final rule does not create any new
information collection requirements or impact any existing ones covered
by the PRA.
J. Congressional Review Act
This rule is not a major rule as defined by the Congressional
Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 804.
IV. Public Participation
A. Comments Sought
ATF requests comments on this direct final rule from all interested
persons. Pertinent to this direct final rule, a significant adverse
comment is a comment where the commenter explains why the rule would be
inappropriate, including by identifying challenges to the rule's
underlying premise or approach, or would be ineffective or unacceptable
without a change. A comment is significant in the following
circumstances:
(1) The comment opposes ATF's assessment regarding the non-
controversial nature of the rule and provides a reason sufficient to
require a substantive response in a notice-and-comment process. For
example, a substantive response may be required when:
(a) The comment causes ATF to reconsider its position or conduct
additional analysis;
(b) The comment raises an issue serious enough to warrant a
substantive response to clarify or complete the record; or
(c) The comment raises a relevant issue that was not previously
addressed or considered by ATF.
(2) The comment proposes a salient change or an addition to the
rule, and it is apparent that the rule would be ineffective or
unacceptable without incorporation of the change or addition; or
(3) The comment causes ATF to make a change (other than editorial
or administrative changes) to the rule.
All comments must reference this document's RIN 1140-AA61 and, if
handwritten, must be legible. If submitting by mail, you must also
include your complete first and last name and contact information. If
submitting a comment through the federal e-rulemaking portal, as
described in section IV.C of this preamble, you should carefully review
and follow the website's instructions on submitting comments. Whether
you submit comments online or by mail, ATF will post them online. If
submitting online as an individual, any information you provide in the
online fields for city, state, zip code, and phone will not be publicly
viewable when ATF publishes the comment on https://www.regulations.gov.
However, if you include such personally identifying information
(``PII'') in the body of your online comment, it may be posted and
viewable online. Similarly, if you submit a written comment with PII in
the body of the comment, it may be posted and viewable online.
Therefore, all commenters should review section IV.B of this preamble,
``Confidentiality,'' regarding how to submit PII if you do not want it
published online. ATF may not consider, or respond to, comments that do
not meet these requirements or comments containing excessive profanity.
ATF will retain comments containing excessive profanity as part of this
rulemaking's administrative record but will not publish such documents
on https://www.regulations.gov. ATF will treat all comments as
originals and will not acknowledge receipt of comments. In addition, if
ATF cannot read your comment due to handwriting or technical
difficulties and cannot contact you for clarification, ATF may not be
able to consider your comment.
[[Page 24361]]
ATF will carefully consider all comments, as appropriate, received
on or before the closing date.
B. Confidentiality
ATF will make all comments meeting the requirements of this
section, whether submitted electronically or on paper, and except as
provided below, available for public viewing on the internet through
the federal e-rulemaking portal, and subject to the Freedom of
Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552). Commenters who submit by mail and who
do not want their name or other PII posted on the internet should
submit their comments with a separate cover sheet containing their PII.
The separate cover sheet should be marked with ``CUI/PRVCY'' at the top
to identify it as protected PII under the Privacy Act. Both the cover
sheet and comment must reference this RIN 1140-AA61. For comments
submitted by mail, information contained on the cover sheet will not
appear when posted on the internet, but any PII that appears within the
body of a comment will not be redacted by ATF, and it may appear on the
internet. Similarly, commenters who submit through the federal e-
rulemaking portal and who do not want any of their PII posted on the
internet should omit such PII from the body of their comment and any
uploaded attachments. However, PII entered into the online fields
designated for name, email, and other contact information will not be
posted or viewable online.
A commenter may submit to ATF information identified as proprietary
or confidential business information by mail. To request that ATF
handle this information as controlled unclassified information
(``CUI''), the commenter must place any portion of a comment that is
proprietary or confidential business information under law or
regulation on pages separate from the balance of the comment, with each
page prominently marked ``CUI//PROPIN'' at the top of the page.
ATF will not make proprietary or confidential business information
submitted in compliance with these instructions available when
disclosing the comments that it receives but will disclose that the
commenter provided proprietary or confidential business information
that ATF is holding in a separate file to which the public does not
have access. If ATF receives a request to examine or copy this
information, it will treat it as any other request under the Freedom of
Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552). In addition, ATF will disclose such
proprietary or confidential business information to the extent required
by other legal process.
C. Submitting Comments
Submit comments using either of the two methods described below
(but do not submit the same comment multiple times or by more than one
method). Hand-delivered comments will not be accepted.
Federal e-rulemaking portal: ATF recommends that you
submit your comments to ATF via the federal e-rulemaking portal at
https://www.regulations.gov and follow the instructions. Comments will
be posted within a few days of being submitted. However, if large
volumes of comments are being processed simultaneously, your comment
may not be viewable for up to several weeks. Please keep the comment
tracking number that is provided after you have successfully uploaded
your comment.
Mail: Send written comments to the address listed in the
ADDRESSES section of this document. Written comments must appear in
minimum 12-point font size, include the commenter's first and last name
and full mailing address, and may be of any length. See also section
IV.B of this preamble, ``Confidentiality.''
D. Request for Hearing
Any interested person who desires an opportunity to comment orally
at a public hearing should submit his or her request, in writing, to
the Director, within the 30-day comment period. The Director, however,
reserves the right to determine, in light of all circumstances, whether
a public hearing is necessary.
Disclosure
Copies of this rule and the comments received in response to it are
available through the federal e-rulemaking portal at https://www.regulations.gov (search for RIN 1140-AA61).
Severability
ATF has determined that this rule implements and is fully
consistent with governing law. However, in the event any provision of
this rule, an amendment or revision made by this rule, or the
application of such provision or amendment or revision to any person or
circumstance, is held to be invalid or unenforceable by its terms, the
remainder of this rule, the amendments or revisions made by this rule,
and application of the provisions of the rule to any person or
circumstance shall not be affected and shall be construed so as to give
them the maximum effect permitted by law.
List of Subjects in 27 CFR Part 478
Administrative practice and procedure, Arms and munitions, Exports,
Freight, Imports, Intergovernmental relations, Law enforcement
officers, Military personnel, Penalties, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements, Research, Seizures and forfeitures, Transportation.
For the reasons discussed in the preamble, ATF amends 27 CFR part
478 as follows:
PART 478--COMMERCE IN FIREARMS AND AMMUNITION
0
1. The authority citation for 27 CFR part 478 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 552(a); 18 U.S.C. 847, 921-931; 44 U.S.C.
3504(h).
0
2. Revise Sec. 478.94 to read as follows:
Sec. 478.94 Sales or deliveries between licensees.
(a) A licensed importer, manufacturer, or dealer selling or
otherwise disposing of firearms, and a licensed collector selling or
otherwise disposing of curios or relics, to another licensee must
verify the identity and licensed status of the transferee prior to
making the transfer, unless one of the exceptions under paragraph (c)
of this section applies.
(b) Licensees must verify the transferee's license under paragraph
(a) of this section by:
(1) The transferee furnishing to the transferor a certified copy of
the transferee's license: or
(2) The transferor verifying the transferee's license through ATF's
online Federal Firearms Licensee eZ Check system by ensuring that the
transferee's license number, expiration date, and business premises
address in the eZ Check system match the information the transferee
provides to the transferor at the time they arrange the transfer.
(c) Circumstances in which verification is not required:
(1) Once a transferee has complied with the verification required
under paragraph (b) of this section, the transferor does not need to
re-verify that transferee's license for subsequent transfers with that
transferee during the remaining term of the transferee's current
license.
(2) If a licensee is returning a firearm, either directly or
through another licensee, to the licensee from which the licensee
acquired the firearm, the returning licensee is not required to furnish
a certified copy of its license, nor is the transferor required to
verify the license through the eZ Check system, with respect to the
returned firearm.
[[Page 24362]]
(3) Licensees that are part of a multi-licensed business
organization are not required to verify each others' licenses when
transferring firearms between such licensees operated by such
organization.
Robert Cekada,
Director.
[FR Doc. 2026-08924 Filed 5-5-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-FY-P