The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives announced that it will stop enforcing federal National Firearms Act prior-approval, registration, tax-stamp, and related requirements for short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns, silencers, and certain other firearms.
The nationwide policy took effect immediately and extends beyond the parties protected by a federal court ruling in Texas.
The change does not repeal the National Firearms Act or eliminate every federal restriction on the covered firearms. Machine guns and destructive devices remain fully subject to the NFA, including the $200 making and transfer taxes. Gun Control Act requirements, including dealer paperwork and background checks, also remain in place, and state and local laws continue to apply.
Texas Court Ruling Triggered Nationwide Shift
The policy follows an August 5 ruling by U.S. District Judge James Wesley Hendrix in the Northern District of Texas, San Angelo Division, in the consolidated cases Silencer Shop Foundation v. ATF and Jensen v. ATF.
Congress reduced the NFA making and transfer taxes to $0 for most covered firearms through Section 70436 of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which became law on July 4, 2025. The tax reduction took effect January 1, 2026. Machine guns and destructive devices retained the $200 tax. Federal regulations issued earlier this year reflected those changes.
Hendrix concluded that once the taxes were reduced to zero, the challenged registration, transfer, and making provisions could no longer be supported by the taxing power Congress relied upon when it enacted the NFA in 1934. The court also determined the provisions could not instead be upheld under the Commerce Clause because Congress had not relied on that authority when adopting the statute.
The court did not decide the plaintiffs’ Second Amendment claims.
Its injunction was also not nationwide. Hendrix limited relief to the plaintiffs and, where applicable, their agencies, political subdivisions, members, and customers. Texas was among 15 plaintiff states in the litigation.
ATF said its October 9 guidance followed Attorney General Todd Blanche’s announcement that the Department of Justice would not appeal the decision and that the department would use enforcement discretion to apply the new policy uniformly.
“The direction from the President, Congress, and the courts is clear,” ATF Director Robert Cekada said in the agency’s release.
What Changes — And What Does Not
Under ATF’s October 9 letter, individuals will no longer be required by the agency to obtain NFA approval before making or transferring short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns, silencers, or firearms classified as “any other weapon” under federal law.
ATF will also stop requiring those items to be entered into the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record under the new enforcement policy.
Registration remains available voluntarily. ATF said it will continue accepting Form 1 applications to make or register covered firearms, Form 3 and Form 4 applications involving transfers or registrations, and Form 2 notices from manufacturers.
Several federal requirements remain.
Federal firearms licensees must still complete Form 4473 paperwork, conduct National Instant Criminal Background Check System checks when required, maintain transaction records, and comply with other applicable Gun Control Act provisions. People prohibited from possessing firearms remain prohibited from possessing the covered items.
Individuals transporting short-barreled rifles or short-barreled shotguns across state lines should also continue filing Form 20 applications, ATF states.
ATF acknowledged another complication involving dealer transfers of short-barreled rifles and shotguns. The Gun Control Act separately requires authorization for those transfers, while the existing approval mechanism relied on the NFA process. ATF said it is developing new forms and regulations and, in the meantime, will not enforce that particular authorization provision.
State Laws Still Matter
The federal policy does not override state or local restrictions.
ATF warned that many jurisdictions restrict possession of some NFA firearms and may provide exceptions only when an item is registered or possessed in compliance with federal law. The agency advised firearm owners and dealers to review applicable state law before acquiring or transporting an unregistered item.
ATF also cautions that an unregistered firearm covered by the current policy would not automatically be grandfathered if the legal circumstances later change. Federal law generally does not provide a mechanism for later registration of an already unregistered NFA firearm, although the attorney general has limited authority to establish an amnesty period.
The development follows other recent legal changes involving ATF enforcement. The Dallas Express previously reported that Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton secured a victory against a Biden-era ATF rule expanding when private firearm sellers could be considered “engaged in the business” of dealing firearms.
The October 9 policy does not extend to machine guns. The Dallas Express has also previously covered enforcement efforts targeting machine-gun conversion devices, commonly known as switches, which remain subject to federal machine-gun restrictions.
