In Missouri, you are not required to register firearms with the state, and the Coronavirus has not changed this fact.
Although some states require you to register your firearms, Missouri does not. You may buy or sell firearms in Missouri through a Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL) or through an individual by private sale. It is a good practice to document your private firearm purchase or sale with a bill of sale. By documenting your sale, you can protect yourself from liability if a crime is later committed with the firearm you sold by the purchaser or a subsequent owner.
Before purchasing a firearm, you may want to check with your local Sheriff’s office to ensure the gun you are purchasing is not stolen. The Sheriff will need the serial number of the firearm you plan to purchase in order to perform this check.
By documenting your purchase, you can later verify the time of purchase if a liability issue were to arise based on a crime or accident previously committed with the firearm you purchased. The ATF offers a helpful pamphlet entitled “Best Practices: Transfers of Firearms by Private Sellers” located on its website. This pamphlet is a good idea to read before entering into a “private sales” transaction involving a firearm.
An FFL will run a background check, as required by law, prior to a firearm purchase. Background checks are not required for private sales of firearms, but it is a crime to knowingly selling a firearm to someone who is prohibited by law from purchasing or possessing a firearm. Under Missouri law, persons who have been convicted of a felony offense, fugitives from justice, persons who are habitually drugged or intoxicated, and persons who have been adjudicated as mentally incompetent are not allowed to purchase or possess firearms.
After you purchase a firearm, you should record the serial number, receipt, make, and model. Keep this record in a safe place, separate from where you store your firearms. Store this information in a separate place from where you store your firearm. In the event that your firearm is ever lost or stolen, these key pieces of information will assist you in filing a police report, or an insurance claim if you have applicable coverage.
If you have any more firearm related questions, please call U.S. LawShield and ask to speak to your Independent Program Attorney.
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