A Michigan firearm bill of sale is a short written record of a private gun transfer that identifies the buyer, the seller, the weapon, the price, and the date. The state does not publish a mandatory bill of sale form, but since February 13, 2024, every private firearm sale in Michigan — handgun or long gun — also requires a background check and a state sales record, and your bill of sale works alongside those forms as your personal proof the transaction was lawful.1University of Michigan Institute for Firearm Injury Prevention. Background Check One-Pager
What Belongs on the Bill of Sale
The document should leave no ambiguity about who sold what to whom. Include the full legal names of both parties as they appear on state-issued ID, residential addresses, and driver’s license numbers. Those details tie the paper to verifiable people if ownership is ever questioned.
Describe the firearm precisely: manufacturer, model name, caliber or gauge, and the serial number stamped on the frame or receiver. Record the exact purchase price and the date of the sale. “One rifle” tells you nothing a year from now; “Ruger 10/22, .22 LR, serial number XXXXXXXX” tells you everything.
Both parties sign and date. Michigan does not require notarization, but a notary’s acknowledgment carries more weight if the document is ever challenged, because a neutral third party has confirmed the signers’ identities. Notary fees in Michigan are modest.
The State Forms You Must Complete Alongside It
A bill of sale is for your own records. Michigan law separately requires a background check and an official sales record for every private firearm transfer, and which form you use depends on whether the buyer holds a valid Concealed Pistol License.
Buyers Without a CPL
A buyer who does not have a current CPL must get a License to Purchase (form RI-010A) from any Michigan police department or sheriff’s office before the sale.2Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 28.422 The agency runs a background check to confirm eligibility under state and federal law. The license is valid for 30 days; if the sale isn’t completed in that window, the buyer needs a new one.
After the sale, the buyer fills in the firearm details, both parties sign, and the buyer returns two copies of the license to the issuing agency within 10 days.2Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 28.422 The seller may keep one copy as a personal record.
Buyers With a CPL
A buyer with a valid CPL (or a MCOLES certification for law enforcement) skips the License to Purchase for handgun transactions and instead uses the Pistol Sales Record, form RI-060.3Michigan State Police. RI-060 Pistol Sales Record It asks for the buyer’s CPL number, the seller’s information, and a complete description of the handgun including serial number. The seller keeps one copy, the buyer keeps one, and the third copy goes to law enforcement within 10 days of the sale, in person or by first-class or certified mail.
Pistols vs. Long Guns: A Key Filing Difference
The 2024 law made background checks universal, but the filing requirements differ. For pistol sales, the law enforcement copy of the sales record must be submitted within 10 days. For long guns, the sales record does not need to be submitted to local law enforcement; the statute requires forwarding a copy only “if the firearm is a pistol.”4Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 28.422a
That does not mean you can skip the background check for a rifle or shotgun. The buyer still needs a License to Purchase or valid CPL, and the seller should still complete and keep the sales record. You just don’t file the third copy with the sheriff’s office for a non-pistol sale. Keep your own copy alongside the bill of sale either way.
Who You Can Legally Sell To
A buyer must be at least 18 years old to obtain a License to Purchase in Michigan.2Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 28.422 Because that license is the gateway to any private firearm sale, 18 is effectively the floor for private transactions in the state.5Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Minimum Age for Gun Sales and Transfers
Beyond age, federal law bars several categories of people from possessing firearms, and it is illegal under both federal and Michigan law to sell a firearm to someone you know is prohibited.6Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 750.223 Prohibited persons under federal law include anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison, anyone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence, anyone subject to a qualifying restraining order, fugitives with an active warrant, unlawful users of or those addicted to a controlled substance, anyone adjudicated as mentally defective or committed to a mental institution, and anyone dishonorably discharged from the military.7ATF. Identify Prohibited Persons
The License to Purchase background check is designed to catch these disqualifiers. Your bill of sale is the backup that shows you followed the process and sold in good faith.
Penalties for Cutting Corners
The consequences depend on which requirement is skipped.
- Selling without complying with the License to Purchase process is a misdemeanor punishable by up to 90 days in jail, a fine up to $100, or both.6Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 750.223
- Failing to file the sales record properly is a state civil infraction with a maximum fine of $250.4Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 28.422a
- Forging information on a license application is a felony punishable by up to 4 years in prison, a fine up to $2,000, or both.2Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 28.422
- Knowingly selling to a prohibited person is a separate criminal offense under Michigan law.6Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 750.223
The $250 civil infraction sounds minor. The real exposure comes if the gun turns up at a crime scene and you have no paper trail showing you sold it lawfully.
Practical Steps to Protect Yourself
Ask the buyer for a valid Michigan driver’s license or state ID and compare the name and address to the License to Purchase. If anything doesn’t match, stop the sale. Photocopy the ID and attach it to your copy of the bill of sale.
Keep your records indefinitely. Federal law doesn’t require private sellers to retain anything, but firearms can surface in investigations decades later, and there is no statute of limitations on murder. Hold onto the bill of sale, the state sales record, and the copy of the buyer’s ID for as long as you can.
Remember the use tax. Buyers in private firearm transactions owe Michigan’s 6% use tax on the purchase price.8State of Michigan. Sales and Use Taxes Use tax applies whenever tangible property is bought without sales tax collected at the point of sale, which is every private transfer. The bill of sale, with the price written on it, is the record you need to report and pay it.
One Boundary: Out-of-State Buyers
None of the above covers a sale to someone who lives in another state. Federal law generally prohibits an unlicensed person from transferring a firearm to a resident of a different state. If the buyer lives outside Michigan, the firearm must be shipped to a federally licensed dealer in the buyer’s home state, where the buyer completes an ATF Form 4473 and passes a NICS background check before taking possession. Narrow exceptions exist for temporary loans for lawful sporting purposes and for firearms inherited through a will or estate.