Shipping firearms

Over at VFTP, Tam posts about her anticipation of a problem shipping an antique firearm. She was pleasantly surprised.

Coincidentally, I received a call today from a gentleman who is buying a couple of modern firearms from an out of state individual, and wanted to know if the guns could be shipped directly to me, or if they would have to be shipped thru an FFL holder on the other end.

The Federal Firearms Regulations Reference Guide (ATF P 5300.4) says:

B8) May a nonlicensee ship a firearm through the U. S. Postal Service?
A nonlicensee may mail a shotgun or rifle to a resident of his or her own state or to a licensee in any state. Handguns are not mailable. A common or contract carrier must be used to ship a handgun. A nonlicensee may not transfer any firearm to a nonlicensed resident of another state. The Postal Service recommends that long guns be sent by registered mail and that no marking of any kind which would indicate the nature of the contents be placed on the outside of any parcel containing firearms.

(B9) May a nonlicensee ship a firearm by carrier?
A nonlicensee may ship a firearm by carrier to a resident of his or her own state or to a licensee in any state. A common or contract carrier must be used to ship a handgun. In addition, Federal law requires that the carrier be notified that the shipment contains a firearm and prohibits common or contract carriers from requiring or causing any label to be placed on any package indicating that it contains a firearm. [18 U. S. C. 922( a)( 2)( A) and 922( e), 27 CFR 178.31]

The buyer, the seller, and the transferring FFL holder are also required to abide by any applicable statutes or regulations of the respective states or localities. For example, because of the extra requirements of the California DOJ, I won't transfer a gun in or out of California, even to or from another FFL holder.

If I haven't said it lately, let me go on record now. I thank God I live in Kentucky. Firearms law isn't perfect here, but according to The Brady Campaign's 2007 ranking of 49th (tied with Oklahoma), we're getting close.