You don’t have to register most guns in California in the strict sense of the word, but the state records ownership so completely through other channels that the practical answer is yes for almost every firearm you acquire or bring into the state. Dealer sales are logged automatically. New residents, people inheriting firearms, and anyone building a gun must file reports with the Department of Justice on tight deadlines. The only category subject to formal registration is assault weapons.1State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Frequently Asked Questions Which obligation applies to you depends on how the firearm came into your hands.
Buying From a Licensed Dealer
When you buy a firearm from a California dealer, the recording happens for you. The dealer submits a Dealer Record of Sale (DROS) to the Department of Justice during the mandatory ten-day waiting period, listing your personal information along with the firearm’s make, model, caliber, and serial number.2State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Regulations: DROS Entry System This covers handguns and long guns alike. There is no separate registration form to file after the sale.
The DROS fee is $31.19 per transaction, collected by the dealer at purchase.3State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Regulations: Dealer Record of Sale (DROS) Fee (Emergency) It funds the background check and the ownership entry. Keep your receipt, but the state database is what establishes the record.
Buying or Selling Privately
California does not allow direct private transfers between individuals. If neither party is a licensed dealer, the sale, loan, or transfer must still go through one.4California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 27545 Both buyer and seller appear in person at the dealer, complete DROS paperwork, and the buyer sits out the same ten-day waiting period and background check as a retail customer.
You’ll pay the DROS fee plus the dealer’s handling charge, which varies by shop. Transferring a firearm without routing it through a licensed dealer can be charged as a misdemeanor or a felony depending on the circumstances.
Moving to California With Firearms
If you move to California and bring guns with you, the state classifies you as a personal firearm importer. You must report every firearm within 60 days of arrival.5California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 27560 (2025) The duty applies to handguns, rifles, and shotguns.
The filing is the New Resident Firearm Ownership Report (BOF 4010A), submitted either through the California Firearms Application Reporting System (CFARS) at cfars.doj.ca.gov or by mail to the Bureau of Firearms in Sacramento.6Legal Information Institute. Cal. Code Regs. Tit. 11, 5511 – Online Reporting with CFARS The processing fee is $19 per firearm.7California Department of Justice. California Code of Regulations Title 11, Division 5 – Fees You will need your California ID, your Firearm Safety Certificate number, and accurate make, model, caliber, barrel length, color, and serial number for each gun.8California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 31615
Missing the 60-day window is a misdemeanor. With aggravating circumstances, the offense can be punished by up to one year in county jail or state prison and a fine of up to $1,000.9Justia. California Penal Code 27500-27590 – Crimes Relating to Sale, Lease, or Transfer of Firearms Sixty days passes faster than most new residents expect, and the deadline is enforced.
Gifts, Inheritance, and Family Transfers
Some family transfers can skip the dealer, but not the paperwork. The exception covers transfers between parents and children, and between grandparents and grandchildren.10California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 27875 Siblings, cousins, aunts, and uncles don’t qualify; those transfers go through a dealer like any other private sale.
Firearms received by inheritance or court order follow a parallel path. The recipient files a Report of Operation of Law or Intra-Family Firearm Transaction (BOF 4544A) with the DOJ and must hold a valid Firearm Safety Certificate before the transfer is legally complete.8California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 31615 The $19 processing fee applies.
Firearms You Build Yourself
Building a firearm in California is legal only within narrow limits, and the paperwork comes before the build. You apply to the Department of Justice through CFARS for a unique serial number, pass a background check, and once approved, engrave the assigned number onto the frame or receiver.6Legal Information Institute. Cal. Code Regs. Tit. 11, 5511 – Online Reporting with CFARS
Possessing an unserialized self-manufactured handgun carries up to one year in county jail, a fine up to $1,000, or both. For an unserialized rifle or shotgun the jail maximum is six months. Each unserialized firearm is a separate offense, so a collection compounds quickly. Enforcement in this area has been active.
Assault Weapons: The One True Registration
Assault weapons are the single category where California actually uses the word “registration.” The state has opened and closed registration windows over the years as the legal definition has expanded. The most recent window, for firearms newly classified under expanded feature-based tests, closed on January 1, 2022.11California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 30900
If you missed a window, you generally cannot register the firearm now. The remaining options are to modify it so it no longer meets the assault weapon definition, transfer it to a licensed dealer, or surrender it to law enforcement. Possessing an unregistered assault weapon is a wobbler: prosecutors can charge it as a misdemeanor carrying up to 364 days in jail, or as a felony carrying 16 months to three years in county jail and a fine up to $10,000. Not knowing about the deadline is not a defense.
Registered assault weapons also carry ongoing duties. They must be stored in a locked container or with a locking device, kept separate from ammunition, and transported unloaded in a locked container.
What’s Exempt
Not every firearm triggers these obligations. Antique firearms, generally those manufactured before January 1, 1899, are exempt from most of California’s transfer and reporting requirements.1State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Frequently Asked Questions The federal definition at 18 U.S.C. ยง 921(a)(16) controls, and it also covers replicas of pre-1899 firearms that use ignition systems like matchlock or flintlock.
Curio or relic rifles and shotguns over 50 years old, as defined in federal regulations, are exempt from the private party transfer requirement.1State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Frequently Asked Questions Federally licensed collectors can import qualifying firearms under federal rules.12eCFR. 27 CFR 478.118 – Importation of Certain Firearms Classified as Curios or Relics The exemption does not cover curio or relic handguns, and it does not override the assault weapon rules no matter how old the firearm is.
If a Gun You Own Is Lost or Stolen
A separate duty applies regardless of how you came to own the firearm: California requires you to report a lost or stolen gun to local law enforcement within 48 hours of the time you knew or should have known it was missing. The obligation runs independently of any registration or reporting status. Beyond the legal exposure for failing to report, the record also matters if the firearm is later traced from a crime scene back to you.