How to Gift a Gun to a Family Member in Colorado

To gift a gun to a family member in Colorado, you first need to know whether that family member fits the state’s definition of “immediate family.” If they do, you can hand the firearm over directly, no dealer visit, no background check. If they don’t, Colorado treats the gift like any other private transfer: the two of you must go to a federally licensed firearms dealer, and the recipient must pass a background check through the Colorado Bureau of Investigation before the gun changes hands.1Justia. Colorado Code 18-12-112 – Private Firearms Transfers – Sale and Purchase – Background Check Required – Penalty – Definitions

Who Counts as Immediate Family

Colorado’s family exemption is broader than most people expect. Under the statute, a bona fide gift or loan is exempt from the background check requirement when it goes to any of the following relatives:1Justia. Colorado Code 18-12-112 – Private Firearms Transfers – Sale and Purchase – Background Check Required – Penalty – Definitions

  • Spouse
  • Parent
  • Child
  • Sibling
  • Grandparent
  • Grandchild
  • Niece or nephew
  • First cousin
  • Aunt or uncle

A father gifting a shotgun to his adult daughter, an aunt giving a rifle to her nephew, a grandmother passing a handgun to a grandchild who is old enough to receive one: all qualify. In-laws, stepchildren not legally adopted, cousins beyond first, and family friends do not. If your recipient is outside the list, plan on the dealer route.

When You Still Have to Use a Dealer

Even within a family, three situations pull the transfer back into dealer territory:

The recipient isn’t on the immediate-family list. A gift to a stepson you never adopted, a second cousin, or your child’s spouse is a private transfer under Colorado law, and private transfers require a background check through an FFL.

The recipient lives in another state. Federal law prohibits a private person from directly transferring a firearm to someone they know or have reason to believe lives in a different state, even a close relative.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts Colorado’s family exemption doesn’t override that. The gun has to be sent or delivered to a licensed dealer in the recipient’s home state, where they pick it up after a background check and ATF Form 4473 under that state’s rules.

You want a dealer to buy the handgun for a young adult family member. Federally licensed dealers cannot sell handguns to anyone under 21. So you cannot walk into a gun store and buy a handgun as a gift for your 19-year-old son through a dealer transaction. A private gift of a handgun from you to that 19-year-old is lawful under federal law if you already own the firearm and he is an immediate family member, but the dealer route is closed until he turns 21.

Confirm the Family Member Can Legally Possess a Firearm

The family exemption only excuses the background check. It doesn’t excuse gifting a gun to someone who is barred from owning one. If you knowingly hand a firearm to a prohibited person, that’s a separate and more serious offense, family or not.

Federal law under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g) bars firearm possession by anyone who:2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts

  • Has been convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison
  • Is a fugitive from justice
  • Is an unlawful user of, or addicted to, a controlled substance
  • Has been involuntarily committed to a mental institution or adjudicated mentally unfit
  • Is subject to a qualifying domestic violence restraining order
  • Has been convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence
  • Has been dishonorably discharged from the military
  • Has renounced U.S. citizenship
  • Is unlawfully present in the United States

Colorado adds its own prohibition on possession by anyone convicted of a felony, or of attempt or conspiracy to commit a felony.3Justia. Colorado Code 18-12-108 – Possession of Weapons by Previous Offenders The state also has an extreme risk protection order (ERPO) law: a court can bar a person from possessing firearms for up to 364 days when a family member, household member, or law enforcement officer shows the person poses a significant risk. Someone under an active ERPO cannot lawfully receive a gifted firearm.

If you have any real doubt about a relative’s eligibility, the safest move is to run the transfer through a dealer even though you don’t have to. The background check will surface disqualifiers you might not know about.

Age Rules for Handguns

Federal law prohibits anyone from transferring a handgun to a person they know, or reasonably believe, is under 18.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts There are narrow exceptions for temporary use with written parental consent, such as hunting, target practice, and safety courses, but an outright gift of a handgun to a child under 18 isn’t one of them.

Long guns are treated differently. A rifle or shotgun can be gifted to a family member who is at least 18, either privately (if they’re on the immediate-family list) or through a dealer.

Gift vs. Straw Purchase

A common scenario: you want to buy a new gun specifically to give to a relative. That’s fine, as long as the money and the decision are yours. It becomes a federal crime the moment the arrangement flips — when the relative gives you cash and asks you to buy the gun for them because they can’t or don’t want to do it themselves. That’s a straw purchase, not a gift.

ATF Form 4473 asks whether you are the “actual transferee/buyer” of the firearm. If you are buying with your own money to give as a genuine gift, the answer is yes; you are the actual buyer. If someone else supplied the money or directed the purchase, the answer is no, and signing the form anyway is a federal offense.4Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Firearms Transaction Record – ATF Form 4473

Congress raised the stakes in 2022. A straw purchase conviction under 18 U.S.C. § 932 carries up to 15 years in federal prison, and up to 25 years if the buyer knew or had reason to believe the firearm would be used in a felony, terrorism, or drug trafficking.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 932 – Straw Purchasing of Firearms

How a Dealer Transfer Works, If You Need One

When the family exemption doesn’t fit and you have to use an FFL, the process is short. You and the recipient go to the dealer together. The dealer runs the recipient’s information through CBI, which checks both federal (NICS) and state databases for disqualifiers.6Colorado Bureau of Investigation. Firearms FAQs Most results come back within minutes. If approved, the dealer completes Form 4473, both parties show ID, the recipient answers the eligibility questions, and the firearm changes hands. The dealer keeps the form.

Expect two charges: the dealer’s service fee and CBI’s background check fee. Amounts vary by shop, so call ahead. Ask for a copy or receipt when you’re done; if the gun is ever traced, that paperwork shows you did it right.

If Your Family Member Lives Out of State

An interstate gift, even to a sibling or a parent, must be shipped or delivered to a licensed dealer in the recipient’s state. They complete the paperwork and background check there.

Shipping rules matter here. Private individuals cannot mail handguns through the U.S. Postal Service; handguns go via a private carrier like UPS or FedEx, which have their own notification and packaging requirements.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1715 – Firearms as Nonmailable Long guns can go through USPS, unloaded and with the carrier notified. If you’re driving the firearm across state lines to hand it off at the destination FFL, federal law requires the gun to be unloaded and stored in a locked container outside the passenger compartment.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 926A – Interstate Transportation of Firearms

Storage and Documentation After the Gift

Once the firearm belongs to your family member, Colorado’s secure storage law applies to them. State law requires firearm owners to store guns so that unsupervised juveniles and any ineligible household member cannot access them, using a trigger lock, cable lock, or locked container. Failure is a class 2 misdemeanor.9Justia. Colorado Code 18-12-114 – Secure Firearm Storage Required – Penalty – Exceptions Including a lock or a small safe with the gift is a practical way to help the recipient comply from day one, especially if children live in the home.

For an exempt family transfer, no dealer keeps a record. That doesn’t mean you should have none. A short written note listing both names, the date, and a description of the firearm (make, model, caliber, serial number) is a smart precaution. If the gun is ever traced back to you, that record shows when it left your hands and to whom.

Penalties If You Skip a Required Check

Transferring a firearm without a required background check is a class 1 misdemeanor in Colorado for the person handing it over; receiving one in violation of the law is a class 2 misdemeanor for the recipient.10Justia. Colorado Code 18-12-112-5 – Firearms Transfers by Licensed Dealers – Sale and Purchase – Background Check Required – Penalty – Definitions Under the sentencing structure that took effect March 1, 2022:11Justia. Colorado Code 18-1.3-501 – Misdemeanors Classified – Penalties

  • A class 1 misdemeanor carries up to 364 days in jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.
  • A class 2 misdemeanor carries up to 120 days in jail, a fine of up to $750, or both.

Transferring to someone you know is prohibited from possession, or crossing into straw purchase territory, moves the exposure from state misdemeanor to serious federal felony. For a straightforward family gift, the rules are simple: confirm the relative fits the immediate-family list, confirm they can legally own a gun, and keep a record of what you handed over.