NFATCA Report: V23N4
By Jeffrey Folloder
ATF eForms for All! Making the NFA Application Process Stress-Free
When functioning properly, the U.S. Department of Justice Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ eForms system (eforms.atf.gov) has proven to be quite fast and efficient in processing NFA Forms for FFL/SOT users. It is not uncommon for FFL/SOT users to report Form 3 (Application for Tax-Exempt Transfer of Firearm and Registration to Special Occupational Taxpayer) approvals in as little as 2 hours. More importantly, eForms reduces errors by directing the user to select from pre-populated answers in various drop-down boxes during the application process. This also provides increased speed and turnaround efficiency. Non-FFL users have been patiently awaiting returned access to the eForms system for the filing of Form 1 (Application to Make and Register a Firearm) and Form 4 (Application for Tax Paid Transfer and Registration of Firearm). ATF has generally released the availability of Form 1 to all users (FFL/non-SOT, individual, trust, corporation, LLC, etc.), and the results are quite well-received in the National Firearms Act (NFA) community.
The first question that is usually asked about why a non-FFL would want to register with eForms is: Why? Quite simply, the answer is speed. Especially in the case of creating a lawful short-barreled rifle or shotgun. A non-FFL can purchase an SBR or SBS from a dealer, complete a Form 4, send it off and expect to wait 6 to 9 months for the NFA Division. Or the non-FFL can create a Form 1 application via the eForms system to build its own SBR or SBS and expect to have that process approved in as little as 2 weeks! This appears to be one of those situations where the term “no-brainer” seems particularly appropriate. Why would anyone intentionally wait more than they have to?
The first step in utilizing eForms is to register as an eForms user. Anyone who has registered for anything online should feel comfortable with the registration process that begins here: eforms.atf.gov/EForms/faces/userProfile/userRegistration.jspx. All of the fields with an asterisk are required entries, and certain fields will be automatically populated. The execution of the “Register”...
This article first appeared in Small Arms Review V23N4 (April 2019) |
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