How to Sell a Gun in Indiana: Private Sales, Dealers, and Penalties

You can sell a gun in Indiana privately without a background check, a permit, or any government paperwork, but you are still legally responsible for who ends up with the firearm. Sell to someone who cannot lawfully possess a gun and you face felony charges, even in a handshake transaction. The rules shift once a licensed dealer, an out-of-state buyer, or a regulated item like a suppressor enters the picture.

Private Sales Between Indiana Residents

Indiana does not require private sellers to run a background check, use a licensed dealer, or keep records. The same restrictions that apply to a gun store apply to you: selling to a prohibited person is just as illegal in a parking lot as it is at a retail counter.¹

You cannot transfer a handgun to anyone under 18. The one exception is a parent or legal guardian transferring a handgun to their own child. If a licensed dealer is involved instead of a private seller, the federal floor is higher: 21 for a handgun, 18 for a rifle or shotgun.²

Indiana also prohibits selling a handgun to someone who is intoxicated.

Who Cannot Legally Buy From You

Under Indiana law, the following people cannot possess a handgun:

Anyone convicted of a felony
Anyone adjudicated as mentally defective or committed to a mental institution, including involuntary commitments and findings of insanity in criminal proceedings — voluntary commitments do not count³
Anyone convicted of domestic battery, including misdemeanor convictions⁴
Anyone under 18 (with the parent/guardian exception)
Anyone who is intoxicated
Anyone adjudicated dangerous under Indiana’s risk-based firearm seizure process

Federal law adds more categories. People subject to qualifying domestic violence protection orders cannot possess firearms or ammunition, and violating that ban carries up to ten years in federal prison.⁵ Federal law also bars unlawful drug users, people under felony indictment, dishonorably discharged veterans, and anyone who has renounced U.S. citizenship.⁶

Vetting the Buyer

There is no database a private seller can check and no form to file. Asking to see a driver’s license confirms the buyer’s age and Indiana residency. Many sellers also ask to see an Indiana handgun license. The state no longer requires one to carry (permitless carry took effect July 1, 2022), but Indiana still issues the license for free, and a person holding one has already passed a background check.⁷

Trust your gut. If something about the buyer seems off, walk away. That instinct is not just courtesy: a seller who knew or should have known the buyer was dangerous can face a civil negligent entrustment lawsuit if the gun is later used to hurt someone.

Selling Through a Licensed Dealer

Handing the sale to a federally licensed dealer (FFL) shifts the compliance burden off you. The buyer fills out ATF Form 4473, and the dealer runs a background check through the National Instant Criminal Background Check System. Indiana imposes no waiting period, and if NICS does not return a result within three business days, the dealer may proceed with the transfer, though nothing forces them to.⁸

Dealer transfer fees typically run from $20 to $75. Specialty items, high-value firearms, or extended storage may cost more, and the fee is separate from any background check or state charges.

Consignment

Many sellers use consignment. You leave the gun with a dealer who lists it, handles the 4473 and NICS check when a buyer appears, and takes a cut. One catch surprises people: if the firearm does not sell and you want it back, the dealer must run a NICS check on you before returning it.⁹

Selling to an Out-of-State Buyer

Federal law prohibits a private seller from transferring a firearm directly to a resident of another state. The sale must route through a licensed dealer in the buyer’s home state. You ship the firearm to that dealer, the buyer completes Form 4473 and passes NICS there, and the dealer releases the gun.⁶

Two narrow federal exceptions apply: firearms transferred through a will or intestate inheritance, and temporary loans or rentals for lawful sporting purposes. Everything else goes through an FFL.

Shipping

Your shipping options are limited. USPS accepts unloaded rifles and shotguns from non-licensees, but not handguns; only FFLs and government agencies can mail handguns. FedEx and UPS restrict firearm shipments to licensed dealers and approved shippers, so a private individual generally cannot walk into either carrier’s storefront and ship a gun. In practice, most private sellers hand the firearm to a local FFL, who ships it to the receiving dealer.

Writing a Bill of Sale

Indiana imposes no recordkeeping requirement on private sellers, but skipping documentation is a bet you do not need to take. If a gun you sold shows up at a crime scene, a bill of sale is the fastest proof that you transferred it lawfully and no longer owned it.

A solid bill of sale includes:

Full names and addresses of buyer and seller
Firearm make, model, caliber, and serial number
Sale date and price
A statement from the buyer affirming they are legally eligible to possess a firearm
Signatures of both parties

Some sellers add an “as-is” clause disclaiming any warranty on condition or performance. Indiana does not require notarization. Keep a copy.

Selling a Suppressor or Other NFA Item

Suppressors, short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns, and other items regulated under the National Firearms Act travel a separate path, even though Indiana permits ownership of them.

p>A private seller transferring an NFA item to another individual must file ATF Form 4. The buyer provides fingerprints on FBI Form FD-258, passport-style photographs, and a law enforcement certification. The transfer cannot happen until the ATF approves the form.¹⁰

As of January 1, 2026, the federal transfer tax on NFA items dropped from $200 to $0. The registration and approval requirements did not change: the paperwork, fingerprints, photographs, and background check are still mandatory. Only the fee went away. The ATF will not approve the transfer of an NFA firearm to a non-licensee who lives in a different state than the seller.¹⁰

Handling Firearms From an Estate

An executor or personal representative may possess the decedent’s registered firearms during probate without that possession counting as a transfer. Before probate closes, file the appropriate ATF paperwork to move the firearms to their new owners.

Transfers to a named beneficiary go on ATF Form 5, which is tax-exempt. Transfers to someone who is not a beneficiary, or when no beneficiary wants the firearm, use ATF Form 4 and follow the standard NFA transfer process. Either application must include proof of your appointment as executor, a death certificate, the will if one exists, and any other documentation supporting your authority.¹¹

These NFA-specific steps apply only to items registered under the National Firearms Act. Ordinary rifles, shotguns, and handguns in an estate can pass under Indiana’s normal private sale rules, though the recipient must still be legally eligible to possess firearms.

Penalties for Selling to the Wrong Person

Indiana

Knowingly selling a handgun to someone you know cannot legally have one, or to someone you know intends to use it in a crime, is a Level 5 felony. That means one to six years in prison, an advisory sentence of three years, and a fine up to $10,000.¹¹²

If the buyer uses the handgun to commit murder, the charge escalates to a Level 3 felony, which carries 3 to 16 years.¹

Federal

Federal charges stack on top of state penalties. Making a false statement on ATF Form 4473, or knowingly selling to a prohibited person, carries up to 10 years in federal prison. Willfully dealing in firearms without a federal license carries up to five years.¹³ That last one matters for anyone selling often enough to look like an unlicensed dealer. The ATF has not published a bright-line number; they weigh the totality of the activity, including volume, frequency, and profit motive.

A straw purchase, where someone buys a gun on behalf of a prohibited person or a person planning to use it in a crime, carries up to 15 years, or 25 years if the firearm was meant for a violent crime, terrorism, or drug trafficking.¹⁴ That charge targets the fraudulent buyer, but a private seller who knowingly participates can face conspiracy charges alongside them.

Civil

Even without a criminal charge, a seller who hands a firearm to someone they knew or should have known was dangerous can be sued for negligent entrustment if the gun is used to injure someone. Courts have found liability where the seller had actual knowledge of the buyer’s propensity for violence or illegal conduct, and have rejected these claims where nothing about the buyer signaled danger. If you have doubts about the person in front of you, the safe move is to end the sale.

1
Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 35-47-2-7 – Machine Gun; Prohibited Sales or Transfers of Ownership
2
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Minimum Age for Gun Sales and Transfers
3
Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 35-47-2-1.5 – Unlawful Carrying of a Handgun
4
Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 35-47-4-6 – Unlawful Possession of a Firearm by a Domestic Batterer
5
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Protection Orders and Federal Firearms Prohibitions ATF I 3310.2
6
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts
7
Indiana State Police. Permitless Carry Website Messaging
8
Federal Bureau of Investigation. About NICS
9
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Federal Firearms Licensee Quick Reference and Best Practices Guide
10
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. NFA Handbook – Chapter 9 – Transfers of NFA Firearms
11
ATF eRegulations. 27 CFR 479.90a – Estates
12
Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 35-50-2-6 – Class C Felony; Level 5 Felony
13
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 924 – Penalties
14
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 932 – Straw Purchasing of Firearms