Iowa does not require a bill of sale for a private firearm transfer, and no state agency keeps a registry of who owns what.1Iowa Legislature. Iowa Code Chapter 724 – Weapons Writing one anyway is the single best thing a seller can do. Without a dated, signed record, you have no way to prove you no longer possessed a firearm if it later shows up at a crime scene, in an insurance claim, or in a dispute over who owned it when.
Is a Bill of Sale Required in Iowa
No. Since July 1, 2021, Iowa’s permitless purchase law has let residents buy a handgun from another resident without showing a Permit to Acquire or Permit to Carry.2Iowa Department of Public Safety. Weapon Permits There is no state form, no filing, no reporting requirement, and no mandatory background check for a private sale between Iowans.
That absence of paperwork is exactly why a written bill of sale matters. Your copy is the only document that exists showing the firearm left your hands on a specific date and went to a specific person. Iowa also does not require you to report a lost or stolen firearm, so if something happens to the gun after you sell it, nothing but your paperwork separates you from the next owner’s actions.
Sales from a federally licensed dealer still require either a valid Permit to Acquire, a Permit to Carry, or a National Instant Criminal Background Check at the counter.3Iowa Legislature. Iowa Code Chapter 724 – Weapons, Section 724.15 The private-sale rules below do not apply to dealer transactions.
What to Put in the Bill of Sale
A workable bill of sale does two jobs: it identifies the people and it identifies the gun. Skip detail on either side and the document proves very little later.
Buyer and Seller
Write both parties’ full legal name and current home address exactly as they appear on a state-issued ID. Add each person’s date of birth and driver’s license number. If the buyer voluntarily shows a Permit to Acquire or Permit to Carry, record the permit number and expiration date. You are not required to ask for one, but a permit means a county sheriff has already verified the buyer’s eligibility, and recording the number gives you a second layer of proof you acted in good faith.
The Firearm
List the manufacturer, model, and caliber or gauge. The manufacturer and model are usually engraved on the slide or barrel; the caliber is typically stamped near the breech or on the side of the barrel.
Then the serial number. This is the most important line on the document. The serial number is stamped into the frame or receiver and is the only thing that distinguishes this specific firearm from every other one of the same make and model. Copy every character exactly as it appears on the metal. A single transposed digit can make the document useless for an insurance claim or a law enforcement inquiry. Have the other party read the number back against the firearm itself before anyone signs.
Transaction
Record the sale price, the date, and the payment method. If the firearm comes with magazines, a holster, a case, or any other accessories, list each one. Both parties sign and print their names. Each keeps an original.
Who You Can Legally Sell To
Iowa prohibits anyone under eighteen from acquiring a pistol or revolver, and federal law makes it illegal to transfer a handgun in a private sale to anyone the seller knows or has reasonable cause to believe is under eighteen.3Iowa Legislature. Iowa Code Chapter 724 – Weapons, Section 724.154Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts The twenty-one-year-old floor you may have heard about applies only to purchases from licensed dealers, not to private sales.
For rifles and shotguns, Iowa bars selling or giving a long gun to a minor, with one exception: a parent, guardian, or spouse who is at least eighteen may let a minor possess a rifle or shotgun for a lawful use.5Iowa Legislature. Iowa Code Chapter 724 – Weapons, Section 724.22 Federal law sets no minimum age for private long gun transfers.6Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Minimum Age for Gun Sales and Transfers
Age is only part of the eligibility question. It is a Class D felony in Iowa to transfer a firearm to a person you know or reasonably should know is legally barred from possessing one.7Iowa Legislature. Iowa Code Chapter 724 – Weapons, Section 724.16 A Class D felony carries up to five years in prison and a fine between $1,025 and $10,245.8Iowa Legislature. Iowa Code 902.9 – Maximum Sentence for Felons Federal law lists the categories of people who cannot possess firearms, including felons, fugitives, unlawful drug users, people subject to qualifying domestic restraining orders, and people convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts
A private seller has no access to a background check system. That is the practical reason many sellers still ask to see a Permit to Carry or Permit to Acquire even though the law does not demand it. A current permit means a sheriff already ran the check.
Also watch for a straw purchase, where someone buys a gun for a person who cannot legally buy one. A federal conviction under 18 U.S.C. ยง 932 carries up to fifteen years in prison and a $250,000 fine, and twenty-five years if the firearm is later used in a felony, terrorism, or drug trafficking.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 932 – Straw Purchasing of Firearms A buyer who seems unfamiliar with the gun they want, who is on the phone with someone else during the transaction, or who immediately hands it off to a third party is reason enough to call off the sale.
Meeting the Buyer
Pick a public, well-lit place. Many Iowa police departments allow firearm transactions in their parking lots, and some have designated safe-exchange zones. A public setting cuts off later claims that the sale was coerced or fraudulent.
Before any money or gun changes hands, check the buyer’s government-issued photo ID. Compare the name and address on the ID against what the buyer wrote on the bill of sale. If the buyer presents a Permit to Acquire, confirm it has not expired. A Permit to Acquire is valid for five years from the date of issuance.10Iowa Legislature. Iowa Code Chapter 724 – Weapons, Section 724.20
Both parties sign and date the bill of sale at the same time. Each keeps an original. Hand over the firearm only after the paperwork is signed and payment is settled.
When a Bill of Sale Isn’t Enough
Three situations take the transaction outside the scope of a simple private-sale document.
Out-of-state buyers. Federal law bars a private individual from transferring a firearm directly to someone who lives in another state.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts If your buyer lives in Nebraska, Missouri, or anywhere other than Iowa, the firearm has to be shipped to a Federal Firearms Licensee in the buyer’s state, and the FFL runs the background check and handles the paperwork on that end. Transfer fees typically run $25 to $75. The only exceptions are bequests through a will and temporary loans for lawful sporting purposes.
NFA items. Short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns, suppressors, and machine guns fall under the National Firearms Act and cannot be transferred between private parties on a bill of sale alone. Each transfer needs ATF registration, an approved Form 4, and a $200 transfer tax that has not changed since 1934.11Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. National Firearms Act Machine guns manufactured after May 19, 1986 cannot be transferred to civilians at all.
Dealing as a business. Selling a few guns out of your own collection is legal without a license. If you are regularly buying and reselling firearms with the main objective of earning a profit, federal law treats you as engaged in the business of dealing firearms, and you need a Federal Firearms License before the next sale.12Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Definition of Engaged in the Business as a Dealer in Firearms There is no fixed sales count that triggers the rule; the ATF looks at frequency, profit motive, and how you acquired the inventory.
After the Sale
Your copy of the bill of sale is the only proof you no longer own the firearm. Iowa does not require you to report the transfer to anyone and does not require you to report lost or stolen firearms either, so nothing else will exist on paper. Keep the document somewhere permanent. A fireproof safe, a locked filing cabinet, or a scanned digital backup all work. If the gun ever resurfaces in a context you want nothing to do with, that signed page is what you reach for.