Background Checks Required at Some Gun Shows

Misbar discovered that President Biden said, “If you walk into a store and you buy a gun, you have a background check. But you go to a gun show, you can buy whatever you want and no background check.” According to the New York Times, this is not exactly true. Licensed firearms dealers at gun shows are required to look up potential buyers in a background check system before a sale is approved. However, private sellers are not required to perform such background checks, and some do sell guns at gun shows. 

According to the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, what separates a private citizen from a dealer is Federal law. The law requires a Federal firearms license if you are engaged in the business as a firearms dealer, manufacturer or importer. However, this does not apply to a person “who makes occasional sales, exchanges, or purchases of firearms for the enhancement of a personal collection or for a hobby, or who sells all or part of his personal collection of firearms.” 

Therefore, if you have a license to sell guns, even at a gun show, you will need to do a background check on the buyer. However, if you are a private citizen without a license selling at a gun show, you do not need to do a background check in many states. But, there are exceptions: thirteen states and the District of Columbia require universal background checks at the point of sale for all sales and transfers of all classes of firearms, whether they are purchased from a licensed dealer or an unlicensed seller.