You can legally own a short-barreled shotgun in most states, but only after registering it with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives under the National Firearms Act. That means picking the right ATF form, submitting fingerprints and a photo, passing a background check, paying any tax due, and waiting for the approved tax stamp before you take possession or cut a single inch of barrel. First, though, confirm your state actually allows civilian ownership. Roughly eight do not, and no federal paperwork overrides a state ban.
What Counts as a Short-Barreled Shotgun
Federal law defines a short-barreled shotgun as a shoulder-fired, smooth-bore weapon with a barrel under 18 inches, or any weapon made from a shotgun with an overall length under 26 inches or a barrel under 18 inches.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 5845 – Definitions A permanently attached muzzle device counts toward barrel length only if it’s welded, high-temperature silver soldered, or blind pinned with the pin welded over.2Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. National Firearms Act Handbook A barrel that measures even a hair under 18 inches without registration puts you in possession of an unregistered NFA firearm.
States That Ban Short-Barreled Shotguns
Federal registration does not override state law. Roughly eight states prohibit short-barreled shotguns entirely: California, New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Hawaii, Delaware, Rhode Island, and Minnesota, which allows limited exceptions for firearms designated as curios and relics. Possessing a federally registered SBS in one of those states is a state crime regardless of your tax stamp. Check the law of every state where you plan to keep or carry the firearm before you file anything.
Who Cannot Own an NFA Firearm
The ATF runs a background check on every applicant, and federal law bars several categories of people from possessing any firearm. That includes anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison, anyone subject to certain domestic violence restraining orders, anyone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence, fugitives, unlawful users of controlled substances, anyone adjudicated as mentally defective or committed to a mental institution, anyone dishonorably discharged from the military, and certain non-immigrant aliens.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts A disqualifying record will get the application denied and may trigger further investigation.
Form 1 or Form 4: Which Registration You Need
Which ATF form you use depends on whether you’re making a short-barreled shotgun or buying one.
File ATF Form 1 (Form 5320.1) if you plan to build the SBS yourself, for example by shortening the barrel of a standard shotgun you already own. You must have the approved form in hand before doing any work on the gun.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 5822 – Making
File ATF Form 4 (Form 5320.4) if you’re buying an SBS that’s already registered to a dealer or manufacturer. The seller files the form on your behalf.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 5812 – Transfers
Both forms require the manufacturer, model, serial number, gauge, barrel length, and overall length.6Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. ATF Form 5320.4 – Application to Transfer and Register NFA Firearm (Tax-Paid)
The Tax Stamp
Under current federal law, the transfer tax for a short-barreled shotgun is $0. The $200 rate now applies only to machineguns and destructive devices.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 5811 – Transfer Tax Form 1 applications still require a tax payment by statute before approval.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 5822 – Making Whatever the amount, the approved form with its stamp is your proof of lawful registration. Keep digital and physical copies.
Fingerprints and Photograph
Every individual applicant, and every “responsible person” on a trust application, must submit two completed FBI FD-258 fingerprint cards.8Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Background Checks for Responsible Persons (Final Rule 41F) A local police department or private fingerprinting service can do them, usually for free to about $35. You’ll also need a 2-by-2-inch passport-style photo taken within six months of applying.9Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. ATF Form 5320.1 – Application to Make and Register NFA Firearm
Engraving (Form 1 Only)
If you’re making the SBS yourself, you have to permanently engrave the firearm before or at the time of making. Required markings are your name (or the trust’s name), city, state, serial number, gauge, and model, placed on the barrel, frame, or receiver.10Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. National Firearms Act Handbook The engraving must be at least .003 inches deep and the print no smaller than 1/16 of an inch tall, measured from the flat surface of the metal.11ATF eRegulations. 27 CFR 479.102 – How Must Firearms Be Identified? Professional engraving typically costs $20 to $125. If the shotgun already has a serial number, keep it.
Registering Individually or Through a Trust
You can register the firearm in your own name or through a gun trust. The trust route lets you name multiple trustees who can each legally possess the SBS without you being present. With individual registration, no one else can use the firearm unless you’re there.
Trusts also make estate planning cleaner. When a trust-registered owner dies, the firearm passes to the successor trustee or beneficiary through a tax-exempt process on ATF Form 5, without probate entanglement.
The cost is paperwork. Every “responsible person” on the trust must submit fingerprints and a photo each time the trust applies for a new NFA item. The ATF defines a responsible person broadly to include anyone with the power to direct the trust’s management or the authority to possess, transport, or transfer the firearm on the trust’s behalf, which can reach settlors, trustees, and sometimes beneficiaries.8Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Background Checks for Responsible Persons (Final Rule 41F) More people on the trust means more paperwork per filing, so keep it lean.
Filing and Wait Times
The ATF’s eForms portal is the fastest way to file. You complete the form online, pay any tax, upload your photo, and mail the fingerprint cards separately. Paper submissions are still accepted.
The ATF then runs your information through the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System.12Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. ATF and FBI Formalize Appeals Process for Certain National Firearms Act Applicants As of early 2026, the ATF reports average processing of about 36 days for eForms Form 1, roughly 10 days for individual eForms Form 4 transfers, and about 26 days for trust-based Form 4 applications.13Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Current Processing Times These numbers move with application volume, so check before filing.
When approval comes, you receive a tax stamp digitally through eForms or as a physical copy. For Form 1 filers, that stamp is the green light to start the modification. Cutting a barrel or assembling an SBS before approval means you’ve made an unregistered NFA firearm, a federal crime carrying up to ten years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.14Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 5871 – Penalties
Living With a Registered SBS
Keep a copy of the approved tax stamp with the firearm. There’s no rule requiring the original, but a legible copy proves your registration if you’re questioned.
Storage and Who Can Touch It
Only the registered owner, or the named responsible persons on a trust, can legally possess the firearm. Handing your SBS to someone else, even briefly, even for safekeeping, is treated as a transfer requiring ATF approval.15Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Open Letter to All Federal Firearms Licensees Providing Firearm Storage If other people in your household can open the safe, you have a constructive possession problem. A locked container with keys or a combination held only by you (or your named trustees) solves it.
Crossing State Lines
Moving a short-barreled shotgun across state lines requires prior written ATF approval on Form 5320.20. That applies to a permanent move and to a weekend trip alike.16Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Application to Transport Interstate or to Temporarily Export Certain National Firearms Act (NFA) Firearms File in duplicate, wait for approval, and remember that the destination state’s own law still governs. Federal approval doesn’t legalize the firearm in a state that bans SBS ownership.
Inheritance and Getting Out of the Registry
When a registered owner dies, the executor holds the firearm and arranges the transfer. The ATF allows a reasonable period, generally before probate closes, to handle it.17Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Transfers of National Firearms Act Firearms in Decedents’ Estates A lawful heir can receive the firearm tax-free on ATF Form 5, still subject to ATF approval and a background check.18Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Application for Tax Exempt Transfer and Registration of Firearm (ATF Form 5) Two traps: the executor cannot drop the firearm off with a dealer for consignment or storage, because that itself is an unauthorized transfer, and any unregistered NFA firearm found in an estate cannot be registered after the fact. Unregistered items are contraband, and the executor should contact the local ATF office to surrender them.
If you want out of the registry entirely, you can permanently modify the firearm so it no longer meets the NFA definitions: install a barrel of 18 inches or more and make sure the overall length is at least 26 inches. Once the work is done, contact the ATF’s NFA Division for the specific removal steps.19Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. National Firearms Act (NFA) Handbook Until the ATF confirms removal, treat the firearm as a registered NFA item.