To transfer a gun in Missouri between two state residents, you need to confirm the buyer is legally allowed to own a firearm, verify their identity and age with a Missouri ID, hand over the gun along with a signed bill of sale, and keep your copy indefinitely. Missouri requires no permit, no registration, and no background check for a private transfer between residents. The rules change the moment the buyer lives in another state, and getting any of this wrong can expose you to federal felony charges.
Confirm the Buyer Can Legally Own a Firearm
Missouri’s transfer statute, § 571.060, makes it a class E felony to knowingly give, sell, lend, or deliver a firearm to a prohibited person. It’s also a class A misdemeanor to recklessly transfer any firearm to someone who is intoxicated at the time of the exchange.1Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 571.060 – Unlawful Transfer of Weapons The word “knowingly” matters. You don’t have to run a background check, but you can’t close your eyes to warning signs either.
Under Missouri law, a person cannot possess a firearm if they have been convicted of a felony, are a fugitive from justice, are habitually intoxicated or in a drugged condition, or have been adjudged mentally incompetent.2Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 571.070 – Possession of Firearm Unlawful for Certain Persons
Federal law under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g) adds more categories, and all of them apply in Missouri:
- Anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison
- Fugitives from justice
- Unlawful users of controlled substances or anyone addicted to them
- Anyone adjudicated as mentally defective or committed to a mental institution
- Undocumented immigrants and most nonimmigrant visa holders
- Anyone dishonorably discharged from the military
- Anyone who has renounced U.S. citizenship
- Anyone subject to a qualifying domestic violence restraining order
- Anyone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence
Under 18 U.S.C. § 922(d), transferring a firearm to someone you know or have reasonable cause to believe falls into any of these categories is a federal offense.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts
Two of these federal categories trip people up. A simple misdemeanor assault conviction involving a spouse, ex-partner, or co-parent triggers a lifetime federal firearms ban, as does an active restraining order with a credible-threat finding. And although Missouri legalized recreational marijuana in 2022, federal law still classifies regular marijuana users as prohibited persons under § 922(g)(3). The Department of Justice rescheduled marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III in April 2026, and ATF has posted a draft revised Form 4473 that would remove the marijuana reference, but the revised form isn’t final and the underlying criminal statute hasn’t changed. Anyone in that situation should get legal advice before buying or possessing a firearm.
Check the Buyer’s Age
Age limits for private sales aren’t the same ones posted at a gun store. For an unlicensed private seller, federal law prohibits transferring a handgun to anyone under 18. There is no federal age floor for private long gun transfers.4Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Minimum Age for Gun Sales and Transfers Missouri adds that transferring any firearm to someone under 18 without the consent of a custodial parent or guardian is a class A misdemeanor.1Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 571.060 – Unlawful Transfer of Weapons The practical result: 18 is the floor for a private handgun transfer, and a long gun can go to a minor only with parental permission.
Verify ID and Write a Bill of Sale
Ask to see the buyer’s Missouri driver’s license or state ID before anything else. This confirms their age, their identity, and their Missouri residency in one step. If they can’t produce a valid Missouri ID, the deal shouldn’t go forward as a private in-state transfer.
Missouri doesn’t legally require a bill of sale, but writing one is the single most important thing you’ll do. It’s your only proof that you no longer own the gun. If that firearm turns up at a crime scene two years from now, ATF can trace it to you as a previous owner, and a dated, signed document showing it left your hands is what ends the conversation.
A solid bill of sale should include:
- Full legal names and addresses of both buyer and seller
- Date of the transaction
- Firearm make, model, caliber, and serial number
- Purchase price, or a note that the gun was gifted
- Signatures of both parties
Some sellers also record the buyer’s driver’s license number on the document. Both parties should keep a copy indefinitely.
Make the Exchange
With ID verified and the bill of sale drafted, the physical handoff is straightforward. Both parties confirm the serial number on the gun matches the one written on the paperwork. Both sign and date the document. The gun changes hands. Each person keeps a copy.
Where you meet matters. Handing a gun to a stranger at your home gives them your address and puts you in a bad spot if things go wrong. A well-lit public location in daylight is the standard advice. Many Missouri police departments maintain parking areas with surveillance cameras for private transactions, though some exclude firearms from their safe-exchange policies, so check with your local department first. At a minimum, bring someone with you and meet somewhere with foot traffic.
Once the exchange is complete, you’re done. Missouri has no state registration system, no notification requirement, and state agencies are specifically barred from compiling databases of firearms owned by individuals. The signed bill of sale is the entire record.
When the Buyer Lives Out of State
Everything above assumes both parties are Missouri residents. The moment someone from another state is involved, federal law takes over. Under 18 U.S.C. § 922(a)(5), it is illegal for an unlicensed person to transfer a firearm to someone they know or have reasonable cause to believe lives in a different state.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts
The gun must go through a Federal Firearms Licensee. You ship or deliver the firearm to an FFL in the buyer’s home state. That dealer runs the buyer through the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, completes the federal paperwork, and releases the gun only after the check clears. Transfer fees commonly fall in the $25 to $75 range and are typically paid by the buyer. Skipping the FFL on an interstate transfer is a federal crime that can result in prison time and a permanent loss of firearm rights.
Gifts and Inherited Firearms
You can give a firearm as a gift to another Missouri resident without an FFL, following the same rules as a private sale. The recipient must be legally eligible, the age rules still apply, and a bill of sale listing the price as $0 protects both parties. The gift has to be genuine: your money, no reimbursement, and a recipient who can lawfully own the gun. If someone else is paying and you’re just the person at the counter, that’s a straw purchase, not a gift.
Inherited firearms get a specific carve-out. Under 18 U.S.C. § 922(a)(3), a person who lawfully inherits a firearm from someone in another state may receive it without going through an FFL, provided the heir can legally possess the gun in their own state.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts The heir still can’t be a prohibited person. If the estate includes items regulated under the National Firearms Act, such as suppressors or short-barreled rifles, the executor has to work with ATF on transfer paperwork before the heir takes possession.
Watch for Straw Purchase Red Flags
A straw purchase happens when one person acquires a firearm on behalf of someone else, often because the real recipient can’t pass a background check or wants no paper trail. Under 18 U.S.C. § 932, this carries up to 15 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. If the firearm is later used in a felony, an act of terrorism, or drug trafficking, the maximum rises to 25 years.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 932 – Straw Purchasing of Firearms
As the seller, watch for a buyer who asks you not to write anything down, insists on paying cash with unusual urgency, or mentions picking the gun up “for a buddy.” If any of that comes up, walk away.
Consider a Voluntary Background Check
Missouri doesn’t require private sellers to run a background check, but nothing stops you from asking an FFL to process the transfer for a fee. The dealer runs the buyer through NICS the same way they would for a retail sale. If you’re selling to someone you don’t know, this is the single best protection against liability under § 571.060. It adds maybe 30 minutes and a small fee, and you get documented confirmation the buyer cleared a federal check before the gun left your hands. Given that knowingly selling to a prohibited person is a felony, that’s cheap insurance.
Keep Your Records
Store your copy of the bill of sale somewhere secure and keep it permanently. ATF traces start with the manufacturer and work forward through each known sale, and years from now, that single sheet of paper may be what separates you from a firearm you no longer own. If you later learn the buyer may have been a prohibited person, contact local law enforcement.