To buy a gun in California, you must be at least 21, pass a background check through a licensed dealer’s Dealer Record of Sale (DROS) system, hold a valid Firearm Safety Certificate, wait 10 days before taking possession, and complete a safe-handling demonstration at pickup. California firearm purchase requirements apply the same way to retail sales and to private transfers, both of which have to go through a licensed dealer. The state also restricts which handguns and long guns can be sold here at all, so eligibility is only half the picture.
Who Can Legally Buy
You must be 21 or older to buy any firearm from a California dealer, handgun or long gun. Penal Code 27510 sets that floor, with narrow exceptions for law enforcement and military personnel.1California Legislative Information. California Code Penal Code 27510
Age alone isn’t enough. Several categories of people are prohibited from owning or possessing firearms in California:
- Anyone convicted of a felony, or addicted to narcotics, under Penal Code 29800.2California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 29800
- People convicted of certain violent misdemeanors, those under active restraining orders, and people under indictment for crimes punishable by more than a year in prison.3State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Personal Firearms Eligibility Check Program
- People a court has found dangerous to others because of a mental disorder, found not guilty by reason of insanity, found incompetent to stand trial, or placed under conservatorship because of a mental disorder, under Welfare and Institutions Code 8103.4California Legislative Information. California Welfare and Institutions Code 8103
- People with a history of substance abuse that triggers disqualification.
Violating any of these prohibitions is a felony.
Get Your Firearm Safety Certificate First
Before you start a purchase, you need a valid Firearm Safety Certificate (FSC). You get it by passing a 30-question written test given by a DOJ Certified Instructor, usually right at the dealer. Passing score is 75%. The fee is $25 and covers two attempts if you need them. The certificate is good for five years.5State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Firearm Safety Certificate Program FAQs
The test covers safe handling and storage, how different firearms operate, ammunition, prohibited transfers like straw purchases, and key California laws on concealed carry and lethal force in self-defense.6State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Firearm Safety Certificate Study Guide Active and retired law enforcement officers and qualifying military personnel are generally exempt.
What ID and Documents To Bring
You need a valid California driver license or California ID card. A military ID also works if you present permanent duty station orders showing a California posting; the dealer will keep copies of both.7State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. California Firearms Dealer Frequently Asked Questions
You do not need a Real ID. Any valid California DL or ID qualifies. But if yours reads “Federal Limits Apply” on the front, you must also present proof of lawful U.S. presence. Acceptable options include a U.S. passport or passport card, a certified U.S. birth certificate, a Certificate of Naturalization, a valid Permanent Resident Card, or a valid foreign passport with an approved immigration visa and I-94.8State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Identification Requirements for Firearms and Ammunition Eligibility If your name on a “Federal Limits Apply” ID differs from your supplemental document, bring a certified record of the change too, such as a marriage certificate or court-ordered name change.
For handgun purchases only, you also need a second document confirming your residential address. The address has to match either your DROS application or your driver license. A utility bill from the past three months, a residential lease, or a property deed all work. A P.O. box does not.7State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. California Firearms Dealer Frequently Asked Questions
The Dealer Record of Sale
The Dealer Record of Sale is the electronic form that starts your background check and registers the firearm with the state. Every dealer sale and every private party transfer runs through it at a licensed dealer.
You’ll provide your full legal name, every alias you’ve ever used, date and place of birth, residential address, email, phone, occupation, and a physical description. You’ll answer a series of yes-or-no questions about disqualifying factors including felony convictions, mental health adjudications, and restraining orders. The dealer records your right thumbprint on the form.9California Legislative Information. California Code Penal Code 28160 The dealer enters the firearm’s make, model, serial number, caliber, barrel length, color, type, and whether it’s new or used. You sign under penalty of perjury that everything is accurate.
Total DROS fees at the transaction come to $37.19, which includes a $31.19 DROS processing fee plus additional statutory fees.10State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Firearms Fees For a private party transfer handled through a dealer, add $10 per firearm on top of the DROS costs.
The 10-Day Waiting Period
Once the DROS is submitted, the mandatory wait begins. Penal Code 26815 prohibits the dealer from releasing a firearm within 10 days of the purchase application.11California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 26815 During those 10 days, DOJ checks your information against California criminal records, mental health databases, and federal systems.
Three outcomes are possible. An approval clears the dealer to release the firearm once the 10 days end. A denial means DOJ found a disqualifying factor and the transfer can’t happen. An “undetermined” status appears when DOJ hasn’t confirmed your eligibility within 30 days, and in that case whether to release the firearm is left to the dealer’s discretion.12Legal Information Institute (LII). Delivery of Firearms Following DROS Submission and Suspension If DOJ needs more time, the review can stretch to 30 days.
Some buyers can skip part of the wait. If you already own a firearm recorded in the state’s Automated Firearms System, hold a valid concealed carry permit, or have a Certificate of Eligibility with a firearm on record, the dealer may release the firearm before the full 10 days provided DOJ has already cleared the background check. Entertainment companies whose productions involve firearms and a few other narrow categories also qualify.
Picking Up the Firearm
Once the wait ends and DOJ issues an approval, you return to the dealer. You have from day 10 through day 30 to complete the pickup. Miss that window and the DROS expires, forcing you to start over and pay the fees again.
Before the dealer hands you anything, you have to perform a safe handling demonstration with the actual firearm you’re buying. For a semiautomatic pistol, that means safely removing and inserting the magazine, locking the slide back, visually and physically checking the chamber, loading and ejecting a dummy round, and applying the safety and any firearm safety device.13New York Codes, Rules and Regulations. 11 CCR 4258 – Safe Handling Demonstration Steps for Handguns with Alternative Designs You need to maintain muzzle awareness and trigger discipline throughout.
Every firearm must leave the shop with a California-approved firearm safety device such as a cable lock, one tested and listed on the DOJ roster. Buy one from the dealer (typically under $10) or show you own a qualifying gun safe by presenting a receipt and signing an affidavit under penalty of perjury.14California Department of Justice. Firearm Safety Devices Frequently Asked Questions The dealer confirms the device is present before releasing the firearm.
One Firearm Every 30 Days
California limits you to one firearm purchase within any 30-day period. The cap covers all firearms, including completed and unfinished frames and receivers, and applies to both dealer sales and private party transfers.15California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 27535 Try a second DROS inside that window and DOJ will block it.
Exceptions are narrow. Law enforcement agencies and full-time peace officers are exempt, and licensed Curio and Relic collectors with a valid Certificate of Eligibility can buy qualifying firearms outside the limit.16State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Firearms Frequently Asked Questions Private party transfers where the seller is legally required to relinquish all firearms (by court order, for example) are exempt, as are estate transfers from a deceased person’s representative to an heir or beneficiary.
Which Firearms You Can’t Buy in California
Eligibility is only part of it. California also restricts which firearms dealers may sell. Any handgun sold at retail must appear on the DOJ Roster of Handguns Certified for Sale. Since 2001, every roster handgun has passed firing, safety, and drop tests and been certified by DOJ.17California Department of Justice. Handguns Certified for Sale Handguns whose certification has expired can no longer move through dealers, though private party transfers, curio and relic handguns, and certain single-action revolvers are exempt from the roster requirement. The roster has shrunk over time, and many popular models sold in other states aren’t available at California dealers.
California also bans assault weapons, defined both by specific make and model and by physical characteristics. A semiautomatic centerfire rifle with a detachable magazine and features like a pistol grip, folding stock, or flash suppressor qualifies. Similar rules cover semiautomatic pistols and shotguns with certain configurations.18State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Assault Weapons Laws – California and Federal Law Magazines holding more than 10 rounds are prohibited from sale.
Buying Ammunition Has Its Own Check
California runs a background check on ammunition purchases too. Before a licensed vendor can sell you ammo, DOJ must approve the sale electronically.19State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Ammunition Purchase Authorization Program
How fast the check runs depends on whether your information is already in the state’s Automated Firearms System. If your name, date of birth, address, and ID match an existing AFS record and you’re not prohibited, the cross-reference runs quickly. A current Certificate of Eligibility also works. If you have no AFS record, the purchase kicks over to a manual DOJ analyst review that can take several days. The easiest way to establish an AFS record is a prior firearm purchase from a California dealer. You can also file a Firearm Ownership Report through the California Firearms Application Reporting System (CFARS) to add existing firearms to the system.19State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Ammunition Purchase Authorization Program
If Your Purchase Is Denied
If DOJ denies your DROS application, you’ll get a letter from the Bureau of Firearms in about two weeks explaining the reason and telling you how to obtain a copy of the record behind it.20State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Bureau of Firearms
If you think the denial rests on bad information, start by requesting your California criminal record through a Request for Live Scan form on the DOJ website. Review it, find the incorrect or missing court information, and contact the court that handled the case to send corrected dispositions to DOJ. If the denial is based on a federal prohibition, such as an out-of-state conviction or a military dishonorable discharge, you can appeal directly to the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System using the NICS Transaction Number in your denial letter.20State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Bureau of Firearms Records-based denials are fixable, but the fix takes time, and you can’t buy a firearm until it’s resolved.