Last reviewed October 31, 2026
Buying and Making Guns: Where It Stands in 2026
Buying a firearm in the United States still runs through the same federal framework built by the Gun Control Act of 1968: licensed dealers (FFLs), the ATF Form 4473 and a NICS background check. What changed in 2025 and 2026 is the direction of travel. After years of new rules aimed at law-abiding owners, federal policy has moved toward rolling back burdens, while a handful of states have moved the other way with permit-to-purchase systems, age limits and sales bans.
At the federal level, the NFA tax on suppressors, short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns and AOWs dropped to $0 on January 1, 2026, and ATF announced on October 9, 2026 that it will not enforce NFA registration and approval for those four categories. The 2024 “engaged in the business” dealer rule was vacated by a federal court in June 2026, ATF proposed a simpler Form 4473 in May 2026, and the Justice Department concluded in September 2026 that the federal ban on dealer handgun sales to adults 18 to 20 cannot be criminally enforced against dealers.
States remain the bigger variable. Washington’s permit-to-purchase law takes effect May 1, 2027, Colorado began issuing eligibility cards for certain semi-automatic firearms on August 1, 2026, and Virginia raised its handgun purchase age to 21 and banned sales of many semi-automatic firearms effective July 1, 2026. Use the guide below to go deeper on each topic.
Key Facts
- January 1, 2026: NFA making and transfer tax cut from $200 to $0 for suppressors, SBRs, SBSs and AOWs (One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed July 4, 2025). Machine guns and destructive devices still carry the $200 tax and full registration.
- October 9, 2026: ATF announced nationwide non-enforcement of NFA registration and approval for those four categories, following Silencer Shop Foundation v. ATF (N.D. Tex., August 5, 2026).
- March 26, 2025: Bondi v. VanDerStok upheld ATF’s frame and receiver rule against a facial challenge, so 80% kits that are readily completed can be treated as firearms.
- May 8, 2026: ATF published a proposed rule to revise Form 4473; comments closed August 6, 2026.
- June 12, 2026: a federal court in the Northern District of Texas vacated the 2024 “engaged in the business” rule in full.
- June 30, 2026: the Supreme Court declined to hear challenges to under-21 purchase bans (McCoy v. ATF and NRA v. Glass), leaving a circuit split in place.
- September 18, 2026: the Justice Department released an Office of Legal Counsel opinion concluding the federal under-21 dealer handgun sales ban is unconstitutional as applied to law-abiding adults 18 to 20.
What Gun Owners Should Know
- Federal rules set the floor; your state and city can add permits, waiting periods, registration and age limits. Check both before you buy, sell or build.
- Start with the 4473 and Background Checks to understand any dealer purchase.
- See Gun Permits and Gun Registration for state paperwork, and 18 yr vs. 21 yr Age for the fast-moving age question.
- For suppressors and other NFA items, read the National Firearms Act page and the buyer resources at NFA Buyers Guide.com and Suppressor Buyers Guide.com.
- Building your own? Review 80% Firearm Kits, 3D Printed Guns and Ghost Guns; several states now ban unserialized firearms outright.
- Track the court decisions behind these changes on the Court Cases page, and send specific questions to Ask Gun Questions.com.
Sources
- ATF: New Era of Reform (updated October 2026)
- DOJ: Federal Ban on Handgun Sales to 18-20-Year-Olds Unconstitutional (Sept. 18, 2026)
- ATF: Revising the Firearms Transaction Record, Form 4473 (RIN 1140-AA82)
- Supreme Court Docket No. 23-852: Bondi v. VanDerStok