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Hello,
I have a few guns that were bought by and are registered to my ex-husband (I live in Seattle, WA). He moved to a different state and is planning to stay there for good.
Is it possible for me to sell his guns?
What other options to I have for what to do with it? I have a shotgun and a small revolver, and possibly another revolver that I know he had, but I can't locate anymore.

Thanks!
Yes you can sell the guns. As long as they were not previously stolen you don't have to ask anyone. They are community property.
 
We have a scottish employee, probably green card, maybe the tech visa, and he does own firearms. Don't think he has naturalized...
 
In your situation I would take them to a local gun shop with a good reputation and put them up for sale on consignment. That way the gun shop has an interest in getting you the best price possible, because they get a cut of the sale price. It would be good to know what they should sell for before you do that. Realize you will end up with less money that way, but you also get good exposure and the gun shop does all the work for you.
 
Hello,
I have a few guns that were bought by and are registered to my ex-husband (I live in Seattle, WA). He moved to a different state and is planning to stay there for good.
Is it possible for me to sell his guns?
What other options to I have for what to do with it? I have a shotgun and a small revolver, and possibly another revolver that I know he had, but I can't locate anymore.

Thanks!
Guns are NOT registered in Washington. You can own/possess them by virtue of your being a resident. You can no longer legally sell them face to face except through an FFL, and since you live in King County I'd not even think about going against that stupid Bloom burg law. You could post them in the "for sale" section here making it clear you will ONLY sell them by meeting at a gun store willing to do the Bloomburg Transfer now required. Meet the putatuive buyer there at an agreed upon time. Don't leave the store until you see the new buyer is gone down the road. Take ONLY cash. Make the transfer in the presence of the FFL you choose. Let HIM handle all the paperwork, that's what you pay him to do. With Seattle's new stupid gun tax, I'd find a dealer outside of Seattle, Maybe up toward Kenwood, Woodenville, Juanita, etc. Call about, you should be able to find one to do the FFL bit for about $35. Over 50, keep looking. $25 might even be doable for long guns, as handguns are more complicated.

One more good idea..... though listingthem here is great, I've done it and it works pretty well. There is a website called Gun Broker. It is a sort of eBay for firearms. You will have to register, no worries, they are trustworthy. I've used them for years. Lurk on there for a while to get an idea of what guns like yours are actually selling for. Current transactions. Recently completed transactions. When you are ready to sell one, you will need a set of really sharp, clear, well lit photos. Rotten photos guarnatee low prices. Place your item reasonably priced, let the buyers bid the number up. Don't start TOO low, folks will think its a dog. Start at 40 to 60% of the price you expect. Once sold, you will have to ship it to an FFL the buyer will designate, GunBroker have excellent information on current laws, how to ship, list, bid, etc. "Not intended for legal advice", but they keep up to date and are pretty safe to rely upon. Long guns cah ship USPS, registered (I think it is) bot for sure insured. No markings on the box (but guess what else could be inside a box shaped like that?) Handguns I beleive must go UPS/FedEx, as stupidpostal regs prohibit handguns except directlhy from an FFL. Some FFL's will ship for you via USPS Flat RAte (cheap) and charge a small fee.. $25?. Ask. That $25 pluc the ten bucks for the FRB save a whole lot over UPS FedEx priority overnihgt, which is stupid on their part. Both have had major cases of their people stealiing handguns being shipped that way.

One thing I would do... contact your Es, and ask him to provide you with a bill of sale for all of the guns. If you write up a list of brand, calibre if known, and serial number, typed onto a single page, and ask him to declare he has deeded them all to you "for consideration" , sign, and preferably have him notarise it at his local bank then if any change of mind comes later, you are protected. If he stiffed you with a pile of debt, he will consider that he "owes you", and likely do this no problem. If he's enough of a rat to abandon you and leave you with his debt, he may well change his mind later and pull something. With that paper, you are guanarteed to be the owner. No issues with the new Washington transfer law from him to yhou, as there is a clear exemption for close family members.
 
Keep them. Store them someplace safe and get some firearms training.
You might need them someday.
Hands down, the best recommendation thus far....plus, they're somewhat likely to increase in value over time. Lube them down and lock them up for the future. Despite what many liberals imagine, they are perfectly safe when properly secured.
 
That's not true, don't believe everything you hear.





^^^This

Longer answer:

Below is the typical verbiage when referring to ownership, possession, etc. of firearms by immigrants:

18 U.S.C. § 922 : US Code - Section 922: Unlawful acts

(5) who, being an alien -
(A) is illegally or unlawfully in the United States; or
(B) except as provided in subsection (y)(2), has been admitted to the United States under a nonimmigrant visa (as that term is defined in section 101(a)(26) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(26)));

RCW 9.41.171
Alien possession of firearms—Requirements—Penalty.

It is a class C felony for any person who is not a citizen of the United States to carry or possess any firearm, unless the person: (1) Is a lawful permanent resident; (2) has obtained a valid alien firearm license pursuant to RCW 9.41.173; or (3) meets the requirements of RCW 9.41.175.
[2009 c 216 § 2.]

RCW 9.41.175
Alien possession of firearms—Possession without license—Conditions.

(1) A nonimmigrant alien, who is not a resident of Washington or a citizen of Canada, may carry or possess any firearm without having first obtained an alien firearm license if the nonimmigrant alien possesses:
(a) A valid passport and visa showing he or she is in the country legally;
(b) If required under federal law, an approved United States department of justice ATF-6 NIA application and permit for temporary importation of firearms and ammunition by nonimmigrant aliens; and
(c)(i) A valid hunting license issued by a state or territory of the United States; or
(ii) An invitation to participate in a trade show or sport shooting event being conducted in this state, another state, or another country that is contiguous with this state.
(2) A citizen of Canada may carry or possess any firearm so long as he or she possesses:
(a) Valid documentation as required for entry into the United States;
(b) If required under federal law, an approved United States department of justice ATF-6 NIA application and permit for temporary importation of firearms and ammunition by nonimmigrant aliens; and
(c)(i) A valid hunting license issued by a state or territory of the United States; or
(ii) An invitation to participate in a trade show or sport shooting event being conducted in this state, another state, or another country that is contiguous with this state.
(3) For purposes of subsections (1) and (2) of this section, the firearms may only be possessed for the purpose of using them in the hunting of game while such persons are in the act of hunting, or while on a hunting trip, or while such persons are competing in a bona fide trap or skeet shoot or any other organized contest where rifles, pistols, or shotguns are used. Nothing in this section shall be construed to allow aliens to hunt or fish in this state without first having obtained a regular hunting or fishing license.
[2009 c 216 § 4.]


Bottom line if you want to sell them, sell them.

Washington did away with the whole Alien Firearm License busniess a few years back. Turned out the law overlooked a rather critical detail> WSP cannot access the NICS to do the required backgrund check, and so were not processing requests for some time, and a signficant back log arose. SOmeone sued, and the Supreme COurt of Washington, I believe it was, decided the requiring of a permit that could not be gotten was not OK, and thus did away with the law requiring the permit. I believe they decided federal law was good enough... as long as somene has lawful permanent resident status (green card) federal law is OK with purchasing, provided residency and identification requirements are met, and the BGC from NICS comes back OK.
 
There was a lot of good replies on here. There was a lot of crap as well.

There is no gun registry here in Washington. Period. End of story.

Do not... DO NOT... DO NOT... under any circumstances call any law enforcement. They are not on your side. Their only goal is to make you a criminal and suck you into their "system".

Do not take them or transport them to any Gun Store or anywhere else. Not at least till you have a well thought out (100% Verified Legal) plan.

Talk to your divorce attorney and see if they can provide guidance or direct you to someone who can. Get everything in writing. Mis-handling this situation this could land you in jail.

Good luck.
 
There was a lot of good replies on here. There was a lot of crap as well.

There is no gun registry here in Washington. Period. End of story.

Do not... DO NOT... DO NOT... under any circumstances call any law enforcement. They are not on your side. Their only goal is to make you a criminal and suck you into their "system".

Do not take them or transport them to any Gun Store or anywhere else. Not at least till you have a well thought out (100% Verified Legal) plan.

Talk to your divorce attorney and see if they can provide guidance or direct you to someone who can. Get everything in writing. Mis-handling this situation this could land you in jail.

Good luck.


The Director of Licensing in WA receives records of handgun sales transferred through a ffl with buyers id and handgun serial. If law enforcement checks a handgun against this record, and they do, the name on record should match the person in possession of the handgun if it was transferred since 12/14. These records have been kept for years but have become important since the new bc law.
 
The Director of Licensing in WA receives records of handgun sales transferred through a ffl with buyers id and handgun serial. If law enforcement checks a handgun against this record, and they do, the name on record should match the person in possession of the handgun if it was transferred since 12/14. These records have been kept for years but have become important since the new bc law.


http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/politics-government/election/article25885201.html
 


I like how the news story reports that there is no registration in WA but the state keeps records of all handgun transfers done through a ffl and le can access it. If they check the record and a handgun was transferred after 12/14 and the name didn't match the person in possession then I think they would have a problem. Of course there is an exemption for relatives.
 
Last Edited:
The Director of Licensing in WA receives records of handgun sales transferred through a ffl with buyers id and handgun serial. If law enforcement checks a handgun against this record, and they do, the name on record should match the person in possession of the handgun if it was transferred since 12/14. These records have been kept for years but have become important since the new bc law.
but those records before Bloomie's law are not necessarily accurate. There was, then, no way of "updating" when Charlie sold off his six shooter. The new owner had no way of tying his new states as owner to my old record of purchase. Even today, if I sell my old handgun to Charlie thorugh an FFL, there is still no way to tie that back to my purchase ten years ago. Or, I can sell it on GunBroker, shop to an FFL in South Dakota, and THAT new owner's status never comes back to modify Washington's record of my purchase ten years back.

What they are trying to do, certainly, is figure out how to build a complete database. Good luck on that (no, actuall, a pox on their houses for trying, and may failure dog them eternally) They would have to pass aoms new regs to first build a searchable database by name of owner and gun serial number, listing every sale on record. No funds. DoL are already months behind bringing things current as they are. The massive rise in handgun purchases these past five years in particular has created quite the crisis.. no space, no computer capacity, no more space to store new records, and not enough desk space of dweebs to put behing them. Last I heard they were near a year behind, and dreading the impact of Bllomie's law. THEN they'd have to commence data entry from every one of those tens of thousands of records of sale, many with multiple sales on one form (I've filled out all five spaces more than once). So far, those sheets hav merely been stuffed into drawers and boxes.... catalogued only by date. And maybe counthy.
THEN they'd have to pass another rule or law and make mandatory sales subsequent to purchase, so they have a current accurate list of who owns what, and what is owned by whom. So that, when I sell my six shooter on Gun Broker and ship it to SOuth Dakota, I now must report the sale to CoL. Funy thing, when I sell a CAR out of state, even with the tight system for managing al that data, the folks in South Dakota nay or may not report my having sold it to Washington DoL. Even when an FFL in Vancouver, turning in the fresh White Form to DoL and Clark County completes the sale there is no certain mechanism for that new owner to supercede my name as owner, left on the record from when I bought it ten years ago. Which COULD give rise to hot water for me, if the gun is used in a crime, manufacturer traces to dealer, FFL tags me as first retail buyer, DoL finds the form (unlikely but possible) for my purchase.... they could well still come round to me, asking for the gun and "where were you on the night of.....": not having found the SECOND record of when I sold it to Charlie last spring. They might hold me in suspicion unless I can produce some paperwork tagging Charlie as the guy I sold it to.
Strange and incomplete system. Best thing is to scrap it, as I have noe yet heard of one crime solved by that system. Not searchable, for starters. Not updatable, for seconds. And, the best part, NO private sales from Pre Bloomie Days wlll be recorded... good reason to retain any such items so acquired. No record. And cash don't talk.
 
Last I heard if you have a green card the ATF says its OK. However there may state laws. Contact your local PD.
Cops are NOT lawyers, and very few of them actually KNOW the law. Some especislly in that silly sity you now call home, would delight in dreaming up some poppycock excuse to come "inspect" them, and further dream up some excuse to "take them for safekeeping until this is sorted out". Coppera are the LAST folks I'd be asking for legal advice, ESPECIALLY any in most of King County, and most assuredly NOT Seattle PD.. home of the cops who love to bust folks on gun violations.
 
but those records before Bloomie's law are not necessarily accurate. There was, then, no way of "updating" when Charlie sold off his six shooter. The new owner had no way of tying his new states as owner to my old record of purchase. Even today, if I sell my old handgun to Charlie thorugh an FFL, there is still no way to tie that back to my purchase ten years ago. Or, I can sell it on GunBroker, shop to an FFL in South Dakota, and THAT new owner's status never comes back to modify Washington's record of my purchase ten years back.

What they are trying to do, certainly, is figure out how to build a complete database. Good luck on that (no, actuall, a pox on their houses for trying, and may failure dog them eternally) They would have to pass aoms new regs to first build a searchable database by name of owner and gun serial number, listing every sale on record. No funds. DoL are already months behind bringing things current as they are. The massive rise in handgun purchases these past five years in particular has created quite the crisis.. no space, no computer capacity, no more space to store new records, and not enough desk space of dweebs to put behing them. Last I heard they were near a year behind, and dreading the impact of Bllomie's law. THEN they'd have to commence data entry from every one of those tens of thousands of records of sale, many with multiple sales on one form (I've filled out all five spaces more than once). So far, those sheets hav merely been stuffed into drawers and boxes.... catalogued only by date. And maybe counthy.
THEN they'd have to pass another rule or law and make mandatory sales subsequent to purchase, so they have a current accurate list of who owns what, and what is owned by whom. So that, when I sell my six shooter on Gun Broker and ship it to SOuth Dakota, I now must report the sale to CoL. Funy thing, when I sell a CAR out of state, even with the tight system for managing al that data, the folks in South Dakota nay or may not report my having sold it to Washington DoL. Even when an FFL in Vancouver, turning in the fresh White Form to DoL and Clark County completes the sale there is no certain mechanism for that new owner to supercede my name as owner, left on the record from when I bought it ten years ago. Which COULD give rise to hot water for me, if the gun is used in a crime, manufacturer traces to dealer, FFL tags me as first retail buyer, DoL finds the form (unlikely but possible) for my purchase.... they could well still come round to me, asking for the gun and "where were you on the night of.....": not having found the SECOND record of when I sold it to Charlie last spring. They might hold me in suspicion unless I can produce some paperwork tagging Charlie as the guy I sold it to.
Strange and incomplete system. Best thing is to scrap it, as I have noe yet heard of one crime solved by that system. Not searchable, for starters. Not updatable, for seconds. And, the best part, NO private sales from Pre Bloomie Days wlll be recorded... good reason to retain any such items so acquired. No record. And cash don't talk.


Actually le has used the "not registration" records to solve crimes, a notable case of a drive by murder north of Seattle a couple years ago. They only knew the caliber of the weapon but as it was not common in a handgun took a chance and searched these records and bingo, a recent local purchase of a 30 carbine pistol. Got a suspect and conviction with the rest of their evidence. Outstanding police work. Notice I always refer to the date 12/14 as the date that matters, when the bc law took affect.
 
Actually le has used the "not registration" records to solve crimes, a notable case of a drive by murder north of Seattle a couple years ago. They only knew the caliber of the weapon but as it was not common in a handgun took a chance and searched these records and bingo, a recent local purchase of a 30 carbine pistol. Got a suspect and conviction with the rest of their evidence. Outstanding police work. Notice I always refer to the date 12/14 as the date that matters, when the bc law took affect.


Had not heard of that incident and follow in. Yes, that is a proper use of that system. But, had the gun been purchased in Vancouver, they'd have dead ended pretty quickly. And nice work by LE. They could almost as easily, and evvectively, gone to all the local gun stores and asked to see their sales records... but again, if the gun had been bought in Wenatchee.... the state records are still not in a searchable format. If ALL that would ever be used for were situations like this one, I'd say fine. But you and I and the rest of us know it can, and likely will, be used "otherwise" and not to our best interests. For that reason I'd oppose any changes to the system other than trashing it. As I said, LE in Seattle could just as easily chatted up the local gun stores. If the gun had been purchased three years ago in the same place, dead end would have been certain by either of those methods. With only the calibre, BATF could not have helped....

which goes to show if a guy nas nefarious intent, buying a gun in the most common round out there (say, nine) would serve to build a lmuch larger haystack, making the finding of that one needle many times less likely. Thank God this pervert was stupid as well as morally corrupt.
 
That's not true, don't believe everything you hear.





^^^This

Longer answer:

Below is the typical verbiage when referring to ownership, possession, etc. of firearms by immigrants:

18 U.S.C. § 922 : US Code - Section 922: Unlawful acts

(5) who, being an alien -
(A) is illegally or unlawfully in the United States; or
(B) except as provided in subsection (y)(2), has been admitted to the United States under a nonimmigrant visa (as that term is defined in section 101(a)(26) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(26)));

RCW 9.41.171
Alien possession of firearms—Requirements—Penalty.

It is a class C felony for any person who is not a citizen of the United States to carry or possess any firearm, unless the person: (1) Is a lawful permanent resident; (2) has obtained a valid alien firearm license pursuant to RCW 9.41.173; or (3) meets the requirements of RCW 9.41.175.
[2009 c 216 § 2.]

RCW 9.41.175
Alien possession of firearms—Possession without license—Conditions.

(1) A nonimmigrant alien, who is not a resident of Washington or a citizen of Canada, may carry or possess any firearm without having first obtained an alien firearm license if the nonimmigrant alien possesses:
(a) A valid passport and visa showing he or she is in the country legally;
(b) If required under federal law, an approved United States department of justice ATF-6 NIA application and permit for temporary importation of firearms and ammunition by nonimmigrant aliens; and
(c)(i) A valid hunting license issued by a state or territory of the United States; or
(ii) An invitation to participate in a trade show or sport shooting event being conducted in this state, another state, or another country that is contiguous with this state.
(2) A citizen of Canada may carry or possess any firearm so long as he or she possesses:
(a) Valid documentation as required for entry into the United States;
(b) If required under federal law, an approved United States department of justice ATF-6 NIA application and permit for temporary importation of firearms and ammunition by nonimmigrant aliens; and
(c)(i) A valid hunting license issued by a state or territory of the United States; or
(ii) An invitation to participate in a trade show or sport shooting event being conducted in this state, another state, or another country that is contiguous with this state.
(3) For purposes of subsections (1) and (2) of this section, the firearms may only be possessed for the purpose of using them in the hunting of game while such persons are in the act of hunting, or while on a hunting trip, or while such persons are competing in a bona fide trap or skeet shoot or any other organized contest where rifles, pistols, or shotguns are used. Nothing in this section shall be construed to allow aliens to hunt or fish in this state without first having obtained a regular hunting or fishing license.
[2009 c 216 § 4.]


Bottom line if you want to sell them, sell them.

She didn't say she had a green card just she was not a citizen...
 
She didn't say she had a green card just she was not a citizen...
I am quite certain she mentioned in a post well after the original that she came here with temporary status, legal, then later was able to get her Green Card. Don't have time just now to go back and reread the whole thread to find it. but myh recollection is quite strong on that.. else I'd not have made such an issue of it.
 

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