Do You Have to Register a Gun in Massachusetts?

You do have to register a gun in Massachusetts, in practical terms, even though the state does not keep one central registry with that name. Massachusetts requires a firearms license before you can possess any gun, and it requires every acquisition, private sale, transfer, inheritance, loss, and theft to be reported to the Department of Criminal Justice Information Services through an online transaction portal. Together, those two requirements amount to registration.

Get the License Before You Get the Gun

You cannot legally possess a firearm in Massachusetts, even inside your own home, without a state-issued license. You apply through the police department where you live, and the process includes a background check, fingerprinting, and a state-approved firearms safety course.¹

Two licenses cover civilian ownership:

A Firearm Identification (FID) Card covers non-large-capacity rifles and shotguns. It lets you buy, possess, and transport those weapons.
A License to Carry (LTC) is required for handguns, large-capacity firearms, and stun guns, and it is the only license that permits concealed carry of a handgun.²

Either license costs $100 for applicants 18 and older, with a reduced $25 fee for FID applicants under 18 and no fee at all for applicants 70 or older. The license is valid for six years. First-time LTC applicants also sit for an interview with the licensing authority.¹

Police chiefs have statutory discretion to deny an LTC if they consider the applicant “unsuitable,” in addition to the mandatory denial of anyone who qualifies as a prohibited person.³ Denials can be appealed in district court.

One narrow exception exists at the front end: antique firearms manufactured in or before 1899 do not require a license, as long as the weapon is not designed or redesigned to fire conventional ammunition.²

How Firearms Actually Get Registered

Registration in Massachusetts runs through the Massachusetts Gun Transaction Portal. You file an E-FA-10, the Electronic Firearms Transaction form, for private sales, individual transfers, inherited firearms, and any gun you bring in from out of state. Paper forms are no longer accepted.⁴

To complete the form you need the firearms license information for both parties to the transaction along with a full description of the firearm: make, model, serial number, and caliber.⁵ Print or save the completed form and receipt when you file. The portal does not let you retrieve them later, and you will want that documentation if a question ever arises about when or how you acquired the firearm.

Deadlines Depend on How You Got the Gun

The reporting window is different for each situation. Missing the window triggers penalties that escalate with each violation, so the timing matters.

Buying From a Licensed Dealer

When you buy from a licensed Massachusetts dealer, the dealer handles the reporting. You need a valid FID or LTC to complete the purchase, and the dealer verifies your license at the point of sale. The transaction is recorded at that moment. Nothing further is required from you.

Private Sales Between Individuals

Both the buyer and the seller must report a private sale through the E-FA-10 portal at or before the time of the transaction.² Private sellers are capped at four firearm sales per calendar year; beyond that, you need a dealer’s license.⁴

Before you hand over a firearm in a private sale, verify the buyer’s license. The Gun Transaction Portal generates a License Validation Certificate the buyer can give you. Selling to someone who is not lawfully licensed in Massachusetts is illegal, and checking the certificate is the simplest way to protect yourself.⁵

Moving to Massachusetts With Firearms

New residents have 60 days from the date they establish residency to register every firearm they brought with them through the E-FA-10 portal.⁶ You also need a valid Massachusetts license to legally possess those guns in the state, so applying for an FID or LTC should happen as soon as you arrive.

One boundary to know before you pack: Massachusetts bans certain semiautomatic weapons outright, including guns that qualify as copies or duplicates of specifically banned assault weapons. A firearm that was legal where you lived before may be illegal here regardless of registration.⁷

Inheriting a Firearm

If you inherit a gun through an estate, you have 60 days from taking possession to register it in the E-FA-10 portal.⁶ You need the appropriate Massachusetts license to legally possess the inherited weapon: an LTC for a handgun, an FID card for a non-large-capacity rifle or shotgun.

Non-residents who inherit firearms located in Massachusetts have a more complex situation. Federal law permits someone who lawfully inherits a firearm to transport it home if the gun is legal to possess there, with the firearm unloaded and locked in a container that is not easily accessible to vehicle passengers during transport. Work with the estate’s attorney to satisfy both Massachusetts law and the laws of your home state before moving anything.

Reporting a Lost or Stolen Firearm

Report any lost or stolen firearm through the electronic firearms registration system within seven days to both your licensing authority and the Department of Criminal Justice Information Services. Failure to report can also suspend or permanently revoke your firearms license.⁸

What Happens if You Don’t Register or Report

Massachusetts treats licensing violations and reporting violations as separate offenses with different penalty structures. Understanding which one your situation falls into matters, because the consequences run in very different directions.

Possessing a Firearm Without a License

Carrying a firearm outside your home or business without a valid license is a felony with a mandatory minimum sentence of 18 months. The statutory range runs from 18 months to five years, and the law explicitly bars any reduction below the 18-month minimum, probation, parole, or work release until that time is served.⁹

Possessing a firearm at home without the correct FID card or LTC is also a criminal offense. Massachusetts does not have a “keep it in the house” exception for unlicensed owners.²

Failing to Register a Firearm You Acquired Outside a Dealer

If you acquire a firearm outside a licensed dealer and fail to register it as required under Section 128B, a first offense carries a fine of $500 to $1,000. A subsequent offense jumps to up to 10 years in state prison.¹⁰ That escalation from a fine-only first offense to potential state prison on the second is one of the sharpest jumps in the state’s firearms code.

Failing to Report a Transaction, Loss, or Theft

Separate penalties apply when you fail to report a sale, transfer, loss, or theft through the required channels:

First offense: fine of up to $1,000.
Second offense: fine of up to $7,500 or up to six months of imprisonment, or both.
Third or subsequent offense: fine of up to $10,000 or one to five years of imprisonment, or both.⁸

A failure to report also gives the licensing authority grounds to suspend or permanently revoke your firearms license, which effectively bars you from possessing any firearm in Massachusetts going forward.⁸

Non-Residents Visiting or Passing Through

Non-residents cannot legally possess a firearm in Massachusetts without a Non-Resident Temporary License to Carry. The application costs $100, requires a firearms safety course certificate for first-time applicants, and is valid for one year with no grace period for renewal.¹¹ If you are only transporting firearms through the state without stopping, the federal Firearm Owners’ Protection Act offers some protection, but only if the firearms are unloaded, locked in a container out of passengers’ reach, and you are traveling between two states where you can legally possess them.

1
Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Apply for or Renew a Firearms License
2
Mass.gov. Firearms License and Transaction Frequently Asked Questions
3
General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts General Laws Part I, Title XX, Chapter 140, Section 131
4
Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Record a Private Firearms Sale or Registration
5
Massachusetts Department of Criminal Justice Information Services. Massachusetts Gun Transaction Portal
6
Mass.gov. 501 CMR 19.00 Registration of Firearms
7
Mass.gov. Frequently Asked Questions About the Assault Weapons Ban Enforcement Notice
8
Mass.gov. Mass. General Laws c.140 Section 121B
9
General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts Code Chapter 269 Section 10
10
General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 140 Section 128B
11
Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Application for Non-Resident Temporary License to Carry Firearms