There is no process to register a gun in Mississippi because the state does not have a firearm registry. No state agency, county office, or local department records who owns which handgun, rifle, or shotgun, and no law requires you to report a purchase, sale, or transfer. If you legally own a firearm in Mississippi, you are already in compliance with state registration requirements, because there are none to meet.
That answer covers the vast majority of guns owned in the state. A narrow federal exception applies to certain items regulated under the National Firearms Act, and separate federal paperwork applies whenever you buy from a licensed dealer. Neither of those is a Mississippi registration, but both come up often enough that it helps to know where the lines are.
Mississippi Has No Firearm Registry
You are not required to record ownership of a firearm with the state, a county, or any local agency. Mississippi does not maintain a database linking guns to their owners, and there is no obligation to notify the government when you buy, sell, give away, or inherit a firearm. This applies whether the gun came from a licensed dealer, a private seller, a family member, or a gun show.
The state’s approach reflects a long-standing protection of gun rights. Article 3, Section 12 of the Mississippi Constitution affirms the right to keep and bear arms. 1Mississippi Secretary of State. Mississippi Constitution – Article 3 Bill of Rights There is no purchase permit, no waiting period, and no state background check layered on top of federal law. If you are trying to find the office where you register a handgun after buying it, that office does not exist.
The Federal Exception: NFA Items
Federal law requires registration for a narrow category of weapons regulated under the National Firearms Act. These include suppressors (silencers), short-barreled rifles with barrels under 16 inches, short-barreled shotguns with barrels under 18 inches, machine guns, and destructive devices. If you own one of these or want to make one, you register the item with the ATF and pay a $200 tax stamp.
The form depends on what you are doing. Buying a manufactured suppressor or short-barreled rifle from a dealer goes on ATF Form 4. Building one yourself goes on ATF Form 1. Both require fingerprints, a photograph, and a background check, and processing often runs several months. Mississippi does not add any state-level restrictions on NFA items beyond what federal law requires, so once the ATF approves the form and issues the tax stamp, the item is legal to possess in the state.
Ordinary handguns, rifles, and shotguns are not NFA items and are not registered with anyone.
Buying From a Licensed Dealer: Paperwork, Not Registration
People sometimes call the paperwork at a gun store “registering” the gun. It is not registration. It is a federal background check tied to the sale, and no ownership record is filed with the state.
Every purchase through a federally licensed dealer requires you to complete ATF Form 4473, a questionnaire that collects your personal information and asks about criminal history, drug use, mental health adjudications, and other disqualifying factors. Lying on the form is a federal felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. 2Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. ATF Form 4473 – Firearms Transaction Record
The dealer then runs your information through the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), which screens criminal records, restraining orders, and other disqualifiers. Most checks come back in minutes. If the system returns a delay, federal law allows the dealer to complete the transfer after three business days without a definitive response, though many dealers wait longer as a matter of store policy. 3Federal Bureau of Investigation. About NICS
The completed Form 4473 stays with the dealer, not the state. It is a transaction record the dealer must keep on file, not a registration you can look up or update.
Private Sales Between Individuals
Mississippi allows private firearm sales between individuals with no background check, no paperwork, and no government involvement. As long as both buyer and seller are legally allowed to own firearms, the transaction is legal. 4Justia. Mississippi Code 97-37-103 – Definition There is no bill of sale requirement, though keeping a simple written record with the buyer’s name, date, and a description of the firearm is sensible for your own protection.
Federal limits still apply. You cannot sell or transfer a firearm to anyone you know or have reason to believe is prohibited from possessing one. Prohibited persons include convicted felons, anyone subject to a domestic violence restraining order, people convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence, fugitives, unlawful drug users, and anyone who has been involuntarily committed to a mental institution. 5Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Identify Prohibited Persons
Cross-state sales are different. A private seller cannot legally transfer a firearm directly to a resident of another state. The gun must go through a federally licensed dealer in the buyer’s home state, which will run a standard NICS check before releasing it.
Buying a gun on behalf of someone who cannot legally purchase one themselves is a straw purchase and a federal crime. Under 18 U.S.C. § 932, penalties run up to 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, and up to 25 years if the firearm is later used in a felony, an act of terrorism, or a drug trafficking crime. 6Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Don’t Lie for the Other Guy
Carrying: No Permit Required Either
If you came looking for registration because you want to carry the gun you own, Mississippi does not require a permit for that either. Since 2016, any person at least 18 years old who can legally possess a firearm may carry a pistol, revolver, or stun gun, concealed or openly, without a permit. 7Mississippi Legislature. HB1346 As Introduced – 2016 Regular Session No application, no class, no notification.
Mississippi still issues optional concealed carry permits through the Department of Public Safety for two reasons: to carry in some locations that are off-limits to permitless carriers, and to gain reciprocity in other states that recognize Mississippi permits. The standard permit is “shall issue” to applicants who meet the statutory requirements, including being at least 21 (or 18 if active-duty military), a U.S. citizen or legal resident, and free of felony convictions or other disqualifying conditions such as involuntary commitment or chronic substance abuse. 8Giffords Law Center. Concealed Carry in Mississippi An enhanced endorsement, which requires an eight-hour certified training course, unlocks additional locations such as courthouses outside active courtrooms and college campuses. 9Legal Information Institute. Mississippi Administrative Code 31-1-15.1 – Enhanced Conceal and Carry Endorsement
None of this is registration. The permit is tied to you, not to a specific firearm.
If You Cannot Legally Possess a Firearm
The whole framework above assumes you are legally allowed to own a gun. If a felony conviction stripped that right, ownership is not a paperwork problem you can solve by registering. It is a federal and state prohibition, and possession is a new offense.
Restoration is possible but narrow. At the federal level, 18 U.S.C. § 925(c) authorizes the Attorney General to grant relief from federal firearms disabilities, and the Department of Justice is building a formal application process. 10U.S. Department of Justice. Federal Firearm Rights Restoration Under Mississippi law, the state firearms prohibition tied to a felony conviction can be lifted through a gubernatorial pardon or a state certificate of rehabilitation. 11Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. State Laws and Published Ordinances – Mississippi Neither route is quick. If you are in that situation, speak with a Mississippi firearms attorney before acquiring anything, because a misstep is a new felony charge for unlawful possession.