Buying a Gun in Arkansas: Background Checks, Private Sales, and Carry

Buying a gun in Arkansas does not require a permit, license, or registration. If you buy from a federally licensed dealer, you fill out ATF Form 4473 and pass an instant background check; if you buy privately from another Arkansas resident, no paperwork or check is required at all. Federal law still sets the rules on who can buy, where the sale can happen, and what a dealer must document.

Who Can Legally Buy

Federal law sets the age floors, and Arkansas does not add its own. From a licensed dealer, you must be at least 21 for a handgun and at least 18 for a rifle or shotgun. In a private sale between two unlicensed people, federal law only prohibits transferring a handgun to someone the seller knows or has reason to believe is under 18.1Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Minimum Age for Gun Sales and Transfers There is no federal minimum age for private long-gun transfers.

Under Arkansas law, no one under 18 may possess a handgun outside their own home or private property.2Justia Law. Arkansas Code 5-73-119 – Handguns Furnishing any firearm to someone under 18 without a parent or guardian’s consent is a misdemeanor, and it becomes a felony if the weapon is a handgun.

Several categories of people cannot legally possess a firearm under federal law: anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison, anyone adjudicated mentally defective or committed to a mental institution, unlawful users of controlled substances, people dishonorably discharged from the military, people subject to a qualifying domestic violence protective order, people who have renounced U.S. citizenship, people unlawfully in the country, and people under indictment for a felony.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S.C. 922 – Unlawful Acts

Arkansas layers its own prohibition on top: no firearm possession by anyone convicted of a felony or adjudicated mentally ill.4Justia Law. Arkansas Code 5-73-103 – Possession of Firearms by Certain Persons “Felony conviction” here covers cases where the court suspended sentencing or ordered probation, so a conviction that never resulted in prison time still counts. Exceptions exist for certain business-regulation offenses and for convictions that have been expunged or pardoned with an explicit restoration of firearm rights. A person subject to an order of protection or convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence is also barred from possessing firearms under federal law.5Justia Law. Arkansas Code 9-15-207 – Order of Protection – Enforcement

Buying From a Licensed Dealer

A dealer sale in Arkansas takes as long as the background check takes. There is no waiting period, so a cleared check means you leave with the firearm the same day. You will need a valid government-issued photo ID. Active-duty military members stationed in Arkansas can use a military ID together with permanent-change-of-station orders to establish residency.6Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. 18 U.S.C. 922(t)(1)(C) Identification of Transferee

The NICS Background Check

Every dealer sale runs through the National Instant Criminal Background Check System. The dealer submits your information and the system searches for disqualifying records such as felony convictions, active warrants, or mental health adjudications.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S.C. 922 – Unlawful Acts – Section: (t) Most results come back within minutes. If the check goes to “delayed” status, the dealer must wait three business days before completing the sale, and after that window may proceed even without a final answer.

A valid Arkansas Concealed Handgun Carry License lets you skip the NICS check at the point of sale, because getting the license already required a background check.8Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Brady Permit Chart You still show the permit and complete the transaction form. If NICS denies you, the FBI has an appeal process that lets you request the reason, submit documents such as a court order restoring rights, and provide fingerprints to rule out mistaken identity.9Federal Bureau of Investigation. Challenges / Appeals

ATF Form 4473

You’ll fill out ATF Form 4473 at the counter. It collects identifying information and asks whether you are the actual buyer, whether you have felony convictions, whether you use controlled substances, and other questions tied to the federal disqualifiers.10Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Firearms Transaction Record – ATF Form 4473 A false answer is a federal crime carrying up to five years in prison.11Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S.C. 924 – Penalties The dealer keeps the completed form on file for ATF inspection.

Private Sales Between Arkansas Residents

Arkansas does not regulate private firearm sales between two residents. No background check, paperwork, or reporting to law enforcement is required, and this applies to sales at gun shows, between friends, through classified ads, and any other transfer between two unlicensed people.

Federal law still sets a floor. It is illegal to sell or transfer a firearm to anyone you know or have reason to believe is prohibited from possessing one. Red flags you should have noticed can defeat an “I didn’t know” defense. Although not required, a simple bill of sale listing both parties, the firearm’s make, model, and serial number, and the date protects you if the gun later turns up in a crime. Any licensed dealer will run a NICS check on a private buyer for a fee if you want one. If the buyer lives in another state, the sale must go through a licensed dealer in the buyer’s home state; there is no private interstate exception.12Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S.C. 922 – Unlawful Acts – Section: (a)(5)

Buying Across State Lines

Federal law generally bars you from buying a firearm outside your state of residence unless the transaction goes through a licensed dealer.13Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S.C. 922 – Unlawful Acts – Section: (a)(3) You can shop the inventory of an out-of-state dealer, but the firearm has to be shipped to a licensed dealer in Arkansas for the actual transfer to you.

Long guns get an exception. Arkansas residents may buy rifles, shotguns, and ammunition in other states as long as the purchase complies with the federal Gun Control Act.14Justia Law. Arkansas Code 5-73-125 – Interstate Sale and Purchase of Shotguns, Rifles, and Ammunition Federal law allows this only for a face-to-face sale with a licensed dealer in the other state that complies with both states’ laws.

Carrying After You Buy

Arkansas is a constitutional carry state. Adults who are legally allowed to possess a firearm can carry openly or concealed without a permit. The state still issues Concealed Handgun Carry Licenses for people who want reciprocity in other states and the NICS shortcut at the dealer counter.

Constitutional carry does not override restricted-location laws. Arkansas prohibits carrying firearms in a range of places:

  • All K-12 school property, school buses, and designated bus stops. Possession on K-12 property is a Class D felony with no option for a suspended sentence.2Justia Law. Arkansas Code 5-73-119 – Handguns
  • Courthouses, state offices, the State Capitol grounds, meeting places of any governmental body, and sessions of the General Assembly.
  • Portions of establishments licensed to serve alcohol for on-premises consumption. Restaurants with a liquor license are treated differently.
  • Churches and other places of worship.
  • College and university buildings, campus events, and student dorms, with limited exceptions for concealed-carry license holders under specific conditions.

Private businesses that post signs prohibiting firearms carry legal weight too: entering posted premises armed can lead to criminal charges. Arkansas has a state preemption law, so cities and counties cannot pass firearm rules stricter than state law.

Restoring Firearm Rights After a Felony

A felony conviction is not necessarily permanent. Arkansas recognizes two main paths back to legal possession. If the conviction has been expunged under Arkansas law, the state firearm prohibition no longer applies.15Arkansas Department of Public Safety. Weapons Possession and Use Code 5-73-101 Through 133 The Governor can also restore the right to possess firearms without granting a full pardon, based on a recommendation from the chief law enforcement officer where you live. To qualify for the gubernatorial route, the underlying felony must not have involved a weapon and must have occurred more than eight years prior. A pardon that explicitly restores firearm rights also lifts the state prohibition.

State restoration does not automatically resolve federal restrictions. Even after the Governor restores your rights, NICS may still flag you. An attorney can help ensure both state and federal records reflect the restoration.

Penalties Worth Knowing

Before you complete any purchase or sale, know what the state and federal government treat as serious: