What Are the Legal Ways to Sell a Gun in Florida?
Florida owners have four common selling routes: a licensed online buyer, a local gun shop, an eligible private buyer, or consignment through a licensed business. Where you can sell depends on the firearm, your authority to sell, and the recipient’s eligibility. Federal law, including 18 U.S.C. §922, distinguishes transactions involving licensed businesses from transfers between unlicensed people.
A local shop and an online licensed buyer can both purchase a firearm into their own inventory. Consignment is different: the business offers the firearm for sale on your behalf, and an end buyer ultimately purchases it. The comparison below separates those arrangements without assuming one route suits every seller.
| Selling route | Who buys the firearm? | Practical advantage | Important trade-off |
|---|---|---|---|
| Licensed online buyer | The licensed business itself | You do not have to find an individual end buyer. | Shipping, inspection, and the buyer’s purchase terms affect completion. |
| Local gun shop | The shop, for an outright purchase | In-person discussion and no carrier shipment for an in-person delivery. | Acceptance and valuation depend on the business and firearm. |
| Private-party sale | Another eligible Florida resident for an intrastate sale | You negotiate directly with the buyer. | Recipient restrictions and applicable county rules remain; interstate private sales use a different route. |
| Consignment | An end buyer through the licensed consignee | You can wait for an end-buyer sale rather than accept an outright purchase offer. | Sale timing, fees, and return conditions depend on the arrangement and applicable law. |
An outright purchase offer and a consignment estimate are not interchangeable figures. Compare the expected proceeds, costs, responsibilities, and uncertainty of completion before choosing a route.
Do I Have to Go Through a Dealer to Sell a Gun in Florida?
Not every ordinary private sale between Florida residents must go through a dealer. Florida Statutes §790.065 regulates specified dealer sales, while federal recipient restrictions and constitutionally authorized county provisions still apply to private transactions.
How does a private-party sale work in Florida?
A private sale starts with establishing which legal route applies, not simply agreeing on a price. For an ordinary Florida transaction, the relevant questions run in this order:
- Establish that you own the firearm or have authority to sell it, including any estate authority.
- Determine whether the recipient is an eligible Florida resident or whether an interstate or licensed-buyer route applies under 18 U.S.C. §922.
- Identify any county public-access-sale requirement and arrange the required licensed processing before completing a covered transaction.
- Complete the lawful transfer and retain an appropriate record. A voluntary receipt is prudent documentation, not a substitute for required checks or a statewide filing form.
When do Miami-Dade or Broward County rules apply?
Miami-Dade and Broward have five-day waiting-period and criminal-history-check provisions for qualifying sales, not every private transfer within their borders. The Florida Constitution’s county authority concerns sales for money or other valuable consideration when part of the transaction occurs on property to which the public has a right of access.
Miami-Dade County Code §21-20.18 includes offers, negotiations, payment, and delivery within its transaction definition. Public-access property can be privately owned; gun shows and flea markets are examples. The provision excludes defined antique firearms and requires five full days, excluding weekends and legal holidays, between sale and delivery for covered transactions.
For covered transactions, its background-check provision requires the specified licensed processing and documented approval. Its exemptions include prescribed concealed-weapons-permit holders, actively certified law-enforcement, correctional, and correctional-probation officers, and sales to licensed importers, manufacturers, or dealers.
Broward County Code §18-96 likewise uses a qualifying-sale/public-access trigger and counts 120 cumulative hours, excluding weekends and legal holidays. Section 18-97 requires the covered criminal-history check and documented approval through the specified licensed process. Section 18-98 exempts Florida concealed-weapon-permit or license holders when purchasing. Miami-Dade’s additional exemptions should not be assumed to apply in Broward.
A county exemption does not erase independently applicable federal or state dealer requirements. Florida’s general firearm preemption in §790.33 also does not cancel this express constitutional county authority.
What buyer restrictions still apply?
Florida Statutes §790.065(13) generally sets the purchase age at 21, with specified rifle-and-shotgun exceptions for qualifying law-enforcement officers, correctional officers, and servicemembers. A purchaser’s age rule is not automatically the selling owner’s age rule. Under 18 U.S.C. §922(d), a seller also cannot transfer to someone the seller knows or has reasonable cause to believe is a prohibited recipient.
Florida Statutes §790.065(1)(b) exempts valid concealed weapon or firearm license holders from the state background-check procedures specified in that subsection. However, federal law still generally requires a background check when purchasing a firearm from a federally licensed dealer. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) conducts these checks through its Firearm Purchase Program, and Florida concealed carry licenses do not qualify as an alternative to the federal background-check requirement. Separately, §790.0655(2)(a) exempts qualifying license holders from Florida’s mandatory waiting period.
To identify the firearm before considering an offer, start with a photo or call (775) 432-6006. Appraisal carries no obligation to sell.
Do I Need a License to Sell My Own Guns in Florida?
Selling personal firearms does not automatically make you a firearms dealer. 18 U.S.C. §921(a)(21)(C) and (a)(22) distinguish dealing as a regular course of trade or business, predominantly to earn a profit through repetitive purchase and resale, from occasional hobby transactions and sales of all or part of a personal collection.
The federal question concerns the activity’s purpose and character. Maintaining a personal collection and later selling it is not the same undertaking as repeatedly acquiring firearms for profitable resale as a regular business. Federal licensing requirements under 18 U.S.C. §922(a)(1)(A) still apply when the activity meets the business standard.
How many guns can I sell before I need a license?
The cited federal statute provides no fixed number of firearm sales that automatically makes a seller a dealer or guarantees an exemption. The nature, repetition, purpose, and profit intent of the activity matter. A collection’s size alone does not settle the question, and a personal-collection exclusion does not remove the rules governing each recipient and transfer.
For recurring purchase-and-resale activity, obtain advice about the actual business facts rather than relying on a numerical shortcut. For firearms already in your collection, a free appraisal can help you understand what you have without committing to a sale.
Can I Sell My Gun to a Gun Store or Licensed Firearms Buyer?
Yes. A licensed gun store or firearms buyer can purchase your firearm if it accepts the item and the transaction complies with applicable law. Under 27 C.F.R. §478.125(e), the dealer records the acquisition and identifying information about the firearm and its source.
The dealer is the purchaser in an outright purchase. You do not become the retail Form 4473 purchaser merely because the dealer buys your firearm. FDLE’s retail purchase process, including a consumer’s Form 4473 and dealer-submitted background check, describes a different direction of transfer.
Before visiting a shop, ask whether it purchases that firearm type, what identification it needs, and whether an appointment is necessary. Clarify whether the business is proposing an outright purchase, consignment, or processing a sale to someone else.
Cash My Guns is a federally licensed firearms buyer that receives and inspects firearms at a licensed facility before completing a purchase. Its Sell Your Gun service is a direct-purchase route. You can request a free appraisal before deciding whether to sell.
Can I Sell a Gun Online From Florida?
Yes, but an online agreement does not replace the applicable transfer requirements. Under 18 U.S.C. §922, the recipient’s residence and license status remain important whether contact begins online, by telephone, or in person. Advertising and negotiating a sale are separate from lawfully delivering the firearm.
Can I sell a gun to someone in another state?
An interstate sale to an unlicensed buyer generally requires a licensed-dealer transfer route. 27 C.F.R. §478.30 generally prohibits direct dispositions between unlicensed residents of different states, subject to specified exceptions. A sale directly to an appropriately licensed dealer is different from selling to a private person who will receive the firearm through a dealer.
27 C.F.R. §478.96(c) permits certain in-person dealer sales of rifles and shotguns to nonresidents when the relevant conditions are met. That provision does not authorize a private seller’s direct interstate handoff to another unlicensed person. Genuine bequests and intestate succession have their own exception; ordinary family gifts do not acquire it merely because the recipient is related.
Can I ship a gun out of Florida?
A Florida owner can use a lawful shipment to an eligible licensed recipient, but federal transfer rules and carrier acceptance are separate questions. UPS firearm-shipping policy and FedEx firearm-shipping policy impose their own licensee and agreement conditions. A prepaid label alone is not permission for every shipment. For specialized items, review the category-specific transfer and transport guidance before arranging shipment.
Cash My Guns supplies a prepaid insured label through its approved outright-purchase process. Review how the purchase process works and send the firearm’s details for appraisal before arranging shipment.
What Does It Cost to Transfer a Gun in Florida?
FDLE charges $5 per transaction, not per firearm, and the dealer collects it from the buyer under rule 11C-6.009(4). A seller selling to a dealer does not pay it. Florida Administrative Code rule 11C-6.009(4)–(6) makes the processing fee nonrefundable and allows multiple firearms in one transaction to use one check. A separate later transaction can require another check.
The FDLE charge is not a universal fee imposed on an owner simply selling directly to a dealer. Nor does it establish the dealer’s full price for processing a private-buyer transfer. Specialized National Firearms Act (NFA) taxes are a separate issue.
| Cost Component | Amount or basis | Scope |
|---|---|---|
| FDLE check processing | $5 per covered transaction | Multiple firearms in that transaction do not automatically multiply the charge. |
| Dealer transfer or service charge | Business-set | Ask whether the charge is per firearm, per transaction, or for another service. |
| Cash My Guns incoming purchase shipment | Incoming shipping costs and the federal transfer fee are covered through Cash My Guns’ process | Applies to an outright purchase. |
| Specialized NFA tax | Separate category-dependent rules | Do not include it in an ordinary dealer service-fee estimate. |
A dealer’s service charge is not a universal federal government transfer tax. To compare an offer with your firearm’s assessed value, get a free appraisal before choosing a selling route.
Is There a Waiting Period When Selling a Gun in Florida?
For a covered retail purchase, Florida Statutes §790.0655 requires three days, excluding weekends and legal holidays, or completion of the required records checks, whichever is later. The statute concerns the interval between purchase and delivery to the consumer, not a universal delay before an owner may sell to a dealer.
Florida’s statutory purchase definition involves payment or other consideration to a retailer. Its exemptions include qualifying concealed-weapons-license holders and firearm trade-ins. The current definition of qualifying license holders includes specified law-enforcement, correctional, and correctional-probation officers and servicemembers. Certain rifle or shotgun purchasers qualify through the statute’s hunter-safety or exempt-hunter provisions; those exemptions have their own conditions.
Constitutionally authorized county rules remain separate. Miami-Dade and Broward apply their five-day provisions to qualifying public-access sales with their respective exemptions, not every private transfer in the county.
A waiting-period exemption is not necessarily a background-check exemption. FDLE’s decision-status guidance distinguishes an approval from a check still pending records research. Three days’ passage does not guarantee a covered firearm can be delivered.
An appraisal is a separate step from the transfer. You can find out what the firearm is worth while considering the route that fits your circumstances.
How Do I Transport a Gun to a Dealer in Florida?
Florida Statutes §790.25(4)(a) permits a person aged 18 or older to transport a lawfully possessed handgun inside a private vehicle when it is securely encased or otherwise not readily accessible for immediate use. That paragraph does not authorize carrying the handgun on the person.
Florida’s definitions in §790.001(14)–(15) explain securely encased and readily accessible. The enclosure examples include a glove compartment, whether locked or not, and a closed container requiring its lid or cover to be opened. The cited vehicle provision does not impose a universal unloaded-and-locked-case requirement. Under section 790.25(4)(b), a rifle or shotgun can be carried anywhere in a private vehicle when it is carried for a lawful use.
Vehicle transport, carrying into a building, and carrier shipment are different questions. Separately applicable restrictions on people, places, and conduct remain. For temporary storage, §790.174 addresses loaded firearms and circumstances in which a minor is likely to gain access; it is not an identical storage rule for every firearm.
For an unfamiliar firearm or uncertain condition, get qualified help before handling or moving it. Call to discuss the proposed sale before arranging delivery.
How Do I Sell an Inherited Gun in Florida?
If you have inherited a firearm in Florida, you can keep it or sell it without registering it with the state. Receiving a firearm through an estate is not itself unlawful, and section 790.335 means Florida has no registration form, fee, or deadline for it. What matters before a sale is whether the firearm has passed to you or is still estate property. Ownership, recipient eligibility, and authority to sell still matter, and ordinary probate records are separate from firearm registration.
Receiving a lawful inheritance and selling estate property are not necessarily the same event. Restricted firearms need separate review even when other estate firearms follow an ordinary sale route.
Who may sell firearms that are still estate property?
The estate’s personal representative has duties and powers concerning property under Florida Statutes §733.608 and §733.612(21), subject to applicable will and court restrictions. Being a relative or expected beneficiary alone does not establish authority to sell.
Section 733.604 separately addresses estate inventories and valuations. A firearms sale may therefore require estate documentation even though Florida has no ordinary ownership-registration filing. The personal representative or estate attorney should confirm the actual appointment, ownership, and restrictions before the sale.
Where can I sell a whole or partial gun collection?
Collection owners can compare a licensed buyer, local dealer, lawful individual sales, and licensed consignment. The personal-collection exclusion in 18 U.S.C. §921 remains relevant, but each recipient and transfer still has to qualify.
Cash My Guns can arrange freight or shipping-container pickup for large collections. Direct pickup may also be available where the collection’s size, value, and circumstances justify it; it is not universal doorstep service. A partial collection can be considered without a commitment to sell the rest. Separating the firearms you wish to keep from those you are considering selling makes the inquiry clearer.
What if the estate includes a registered NFA firearm?
Under 27 C.F.R. §479.90a, an authorized estate representative may possess a National Firearms Act (NFA) firearm registered to the decedent during probate without that custody being treated as a transfer. The registered-estate procedure does not establish a route for registering an already unregistered firearm or prove a particular person’s authority to act.
For a lawful beneficiary using that registration procedure, the representative submits the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Form 5 application no later than the close of probate and obtains approval before distribution. NFA requirements remain fully applicable to machine guns and destructive devices.
For estate suppressors, short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns, and any other weapons, ATF’s October 9, 2026 guidance now provides nationwide nonenforcement of the covered NFA registration and transfer-approval requirements. ATF continues to accept voluntary NFA forms. Form 5 is therefore not a universally enforced federal prerequisite for these four categories. Estate authority, recipient restrictions, and Florida law still require separate review before distribution.
For a collection inquiry, send your list or call (775) 432-6006. Estate authority and any restricted-firearm status should be clarified before shipment.
Are There Firearms That Require a Different Process in Florida?
General information, not legal advice.
Yes. Florida sellers still need category-specific guidance, but ATF’s October 9, 2026 announcement changed federal enforcement for suppressors (silencers), short-barreled rifles (SBRs), short-barreled shotguns (SBSs), and “any other weapons” (AOWs). Effective that day, ATF stopped enforcing specified NFA registration, prior making and transfer approval, tax-stamp, and related requirements for those four $0-tax categories.
The policy applies nationwide, not only to plaintiffs in Silencer Shop Foundation v. ATF. ATF’s open letter distinguishes the party-specific injunction from DOJ’s broader enforcement policy. This is not a repeal of the NFA. ATF still accepts voluntary registration and transfer applications, including Form 4. Machine guns and destructive devices remain subject to the NFA and its $200 making and transfer taxes, with any applicable exemptions.
Other federal controls remain. For a dealer’s transfer to an unlicensed buyer, Form 4473, required background checks, and transaction records still apply. Prohibited-recipient and interstate-transfer restrictions also remain. Businesses manufacturing, importing, or dealing in the covered items must continue paying applicable special occupational taxes.
SBRs and SBSs have an additional distinction: ATF is temporarily not enforcing the dealer-transfer approval provision in 18 U.S.C. §922(b)(4) while it develops a replacement process. However, individuals must still obtain the required ATF approval through Form 20 before interstate transport of an SBR or SBS, even if it is unregistered.
Florida law remains separate. Florida Statutes §790.221 restricts SBRs, SBSs, and machine guns, with an exception for lawful federal ownership and possession. ATF expressly declines to decide whether possession under its nonenforcement policy satisfies state-law exceptions. The policy alone therefore does not establish that an unregistered SBR or SBS qualifies under Florida law. Section 790.221 does not list suppressors, but other applicable laws still matter. Section 790.222 also retains Florida’s separate bump-fire-stock prohibition.
ATF’s updated guidance also warns that enforcement can resume and that unregistered items are not automatically grandfathered if circumstances change. Before relying on the policy for an unregistered item, obtain Florida-specific firearms-law advice. Contact Cash My Guns to confirm whether it can accept the particular firearm and transaction before arranging a sale or shipment.
Can I Sell Ammunition in Florida?
Ordinary private ammunition sales in Florida are not subject to a general statewide ammunition-background-check mandate, but recipient and ammunition-type restrictions still apply. Federal law, including 18 U.S.C. §922(d), and Florida’s §790.23 restrict transfers or possession involving prohibited persons. Florida Statutes §790.31 separately regulates specified ammunition categories.
The ordinary-sale answer is not permission to sell every type to any person. Restrictions concerning minors, including §790.17, also require separate consideration.
Cash My Guns purchases factory-sealed bulk ammunition or ammunition included with a firearm collection. That acceptance scope does not promise acceptance of loose or reloaded ammunition. For ammunition within the stated scope, use the ammunition inquiry form. You can sell ammunition and firearms in the same transaction. They ship in separate boxes.
How Do I Know What My Gun Is Worth Before Selling It?
Start with the exact firearm, not only its general model name. Identification establishes what you own; appraisal considers what that particular firearm may be worth. Condition, variant, markings, originality, and documented provenance can distinguish examples that initially look similar.
Completed sales provide evidence of what a buyer actually paid. An asking price records what a seller hoped to receive, and an unsold listing does not establish a completed transaction. Comparisons are more useful when the firearm’s variant and condition are genuinely comparable.
An appraisal and a purchase offer also serve different purposes. An offer reflects the proposed transaction and buyer’s terms; it should not be treated as a guaranteed retail resale price. Photographs and available records help an appraiser assess the firearm without requiring you to identify every technical detail first.
Cash My Guns offers Free Gun Appraisal & Identification with no obligation to sell. You can use the assessment to consider a sale, keep the firearm, or decide which parts of a collection to retain.
How Does Selling to Cash My Guns From Florida Work?
Cash My Guns purchases firearms directly through a process that includes appraisal, an offer, insured incoming shipping, licensed-facility inspection, and acceptance of the purchase. Payment follows inspection and acceptance; submitting photographs alone does not complete a sale.
- Send details and photographs. Provide the information available about the firearm and any relevant collection or estate context. Identification and appraisal are free and carry no obligation to sell.
- Review the offer. A purchase offer is not binding until the firearm has been received and examined. An offer, once made, is held open for 72 hours.
- Arrange the approved shipment. Cash My Guns supplies a prepaid insured label for an outright purchase and covers incoming shipping costs and the federal transfer fee through its process. Firearms using that process are insured at appraised value while in transit.
- Allow receipt and inspection. The firearm is received and examined at a Cash My Guns licensed facility before the purchase is completed.
- Complete the accepted purchase. Cash My Guns issues a bill of sale when the purchase is completed. Payment follows inspection and acceptance of the purchase.
Transit insurance is different from a guaranteed purchase price. The Cash My Guns purchase terms describe the transaction’s conditions.
To begin with identification rather than a commitment, get a free appraisal or speak with the team at (775) 432-6006.
Frequently Asked Questions About Selling a Gun in Florida
The remaining questions concern records, family transfers, timing, and what happens when a planned sale does not finish. The answer depends on the transaction rather than one checklist for every Florida seller.
What paperwork do I get when I sell a gun in Florida?
No standard statewide filing form is required for an ordinary private sale under the Florida framework discussed here. A private receipt is different from dealer acquisition records under 27 C.F.R. §478.125(e) or an estate inventory under Florida §733.604. Cash My Guns issues a bill of sale at completed purchase. Keeping records is useful, but a receipt does not establish every legal element of the transaction or provide universal immunity.
Can I sell a gun to someone in another state?
Yes, when the applicable transfer requirements are satisfied. For a Florida resident selling to an unlicensed out-of-state buyer, the transfer generally must be completed through a federally licensed firearms dealer (FFL) in the buyer’s state of residence. A Florida resident may also sell directly to an appropriately licensed out-of-state firearms dealer, subject to applicable federal and state laws. If you are moving, check the firearm possession and transport rules at your destination as well. If you are moving, check the rules at your destination state as well.
Can I give or sell a gun to a family member in Florida?
Yes. If your family member lives in Florida and can lawfully own a firearm, you can give or sell it to them directly, without a dealer, unless a county rule applies to the sale. A relative under 21 cannot purchase a firearm under section 790.065(13). If the relative lives in another state, the transfer goes through a licensed dealer in their state under 18 U.S.C. §922, unless the firearm passes to them by bequest or intestate succession.
Is my gun on record with the state, and does that matter?
Florida Statutes §790.335 does not establish a general registry for ordinary lawfully owned firearms. Dealer, investigative, estate, and specialized federal records are different, and the statute preserves specified recordkeeping exceptions. Absence from a general state registry does not establish ownership or eligibility to sell. ATF’s October 9 policy changes enforcement for specified NFA categories; it does not erase existing federal registration records or settle Florida possession requirements.
How long does selling a gun in Florida take?
A private sale between two Florida residents can be completed the day you agree it, unless a county rule applies. The three-day waiting period under §790.0655 applies to a buyer purchasing from a dealer, not to the seller. A sale to Cash My Guns runs on shipping and inspection instead: once the firearm is inspected and you accept, payment is submitted for processing the same business day.
What happens if a dealer transfer or consignment sale does not go through?
A failed sale does not guarantee an immediate lawful return. The ATF dealer guide’s consignment-return requirements and Florida rule 11C-6.009(17) require checks for covered returns to an unlicensed owner. The dealer must establish the applicable procedure; a return cannot be promised to an ineligible recipient. Return shipping and receiving-dealer charges depend on the actual terms, not a universal rule stated here.
For help identifying what you have, start with a free appraisal or call (775) 432-6006. Cash My Guns also publishes guidance on how to sell a gun by state.
