Prepare in original only at the licensed premises (“licensed premises” includes business temporarily conducted from a qualifying gun show or event in the same State in which the licensed premises is located) unless the transaction qualifies under 18 U.S.C. 922(c).

Dealers are only permitted to conduct firearm transactions from their licensed premises or a qualifying gun show/event unless the transaction qualifies under 18 U.S.C. § 922(c) which has a number of requirements.

Box 1 now has instructions for the Transferee to include a Jr., Sr., etc. if applicable. Additionally, there are now instructions to insert the acronym “IO” if the individual’s legal name is only an initial.

The instruction box in 10.b states “In addition to ethnicity, select one or more race in 10.b. Both 10.a. and 10.b. must be answered.” A number of individuals skip or miss box 10.a when filling out the 4473 due to the appearance of it being one question.

11.d “Are you a fugitive from justice?” contains some interesting language in the instructions.

Fugitive from Justice: Any person who has fled from any State

to avoid prosecution for a felony or a misdemeanor; or any person who leaves the State to avoid giving testimony in any criminal proceeding. The term also includes any person who knows that misdemeanor or felony charges are pending against such person and who leaves the State of prosecution.

This seemingly suggests that if an individual were to cross state lines, even with the intent to return to their state while charges were pending, they are now a fugitive from justice for the purposes of the 4473. The potential implications of this interpretation are far reaching.

11.e now contains the following language “Warning: The use or possession of marijuana remains unlawful under Federal law regardless of whether it has been legalized or decriminalized for medicinal or recreational purposes in the state where you reside.”

11.f refers individuals to the instructions for what it means to be adjudicated mentally defective rather than leaving some of the language in the question box.

Box 12 is now the country of citizenship, having been moved from Box 14 on the old form. The old 11.j, 11.k, 11.l and 12 have been combined into subsections in the new box 12. Of note, the language for the new box 12.c reads “Are you an alien illegally or unlawfully in the United States?” (Italics added).

Changes the Dealer and Employees will See

Box 19.g has created an optional field to include the name of the FFL employee completing the NICS Check.

Box 20 (the old Box 22) has changed a bit. It now reads “No NICS check was required because a background check was completed during the NFA approval process on the individual who will receive the NFA firearm(s), as reflected on the approved NFA application.”

The instructions for this question shed a bit more light.

Questions 20 and 21. NICS EXCEPTIONS: A NICS check is not required if the transfer qualifies for any of the exceptions in 27 CFR 478.102(d). Generally these include: (a) transfers of National Firearms Act firearms to an individual who has undergone a background check during the NFA approval process; (b) transfers where the transferee/buyer has presented the licensee with a permit or license that allows the transferee/buyer to possess, acquire, or carry a firearm, and the permit has been recognized by ATF as a valid alternative to the NICS check requirement; or (c) transfers certified by ATF as exempt because compliance with the NICS check requirements is impracticable. If the transfer qualifies for one of these exceptions, the licensee must obtain the documentation required by 27 CFR 478.131. A firearm must not be transferred to any transferee/buyer who fails to provide such documentation. A NICS check must be conducted if an NFA firearm has been approved for transfer to a trust, or to a legal entity such as a corporation, and no background check was conducted as part of the NFA approval process on the individual who will receive the firearm. Individuals who have undergone a background check during the NFA application process are listed on the approved NFA transfer form.

This still causes an issue for dealers in PA who don’t have access to the NICS system as the state law is very explicit in what PICS can be utilized for. Perhaps ATF will be forthcoming with information to licensees in PA on how to obtain a NICS account in order to access NICS for such purposes.

New for Section D where the firearms to be transferred are listed is the instruction “Must Be Completed By Transferor /Seller Even If The Firearm(s) is Not Transferred”. It now also directs dealers to list a model (“If Designated”).