Suppressor wait time?

• Dec 27, 2019

• #1

Moorvogi

Firearm Advocate

Dec 28, 2014

855

Anyone know the current ACTUAL wait time for an individual application/stamp? I've asked around locally and they say 2 months to 4 years. I've checked the ATF website but wasn't sure if thats "real" or not.

Figure it's like the time-frames for a MD W&C permit hahha "up to 90 day" but takes MUCH less once you apply.

 

• Dec 27, 2019

• #2

Ammo Jon

Ultimate Member

Mar 3, 2008

20,970

Mine took 90 days

 

• Dec 27, 2019

• #3

M

mtlcafan79

Ultimate Member

Sep 11, 2008

1,281

PG

The short 90 days approvals from the summer are over. People are getting stamps back from February through April-ish of this year right now. If you bought something now I'd expect to wait a year and be happy when it comes in early before that.

Places to check on wait times:

https://www.nfatracker.com/nfa-transfer-time-tracking/

https://www.capitolarmory.com/support/atf-form4-approvals-dates.html

https://www.silencershop.com/atf-wait-times

https://www.reddit.com/r/NFA/comments/e4le11/december_2019_approval_megathread/

 

• Dec 27, 2019

• #4

Sundazes

Throbbing Member

MDS Supporter

Nov 13, 2006

21,535

Arkham

mtlcafan79 said:

The short 90 days approvals from the summer are over. People are getting stamps back from February through April-ish of this year right now. If you bought something now I'd expect to wait a year and be happy when it comes in early before that.

Places to check on wait times:

https://www.nfatracker.com/nfa-transfer-time-tracking/

https://www.capitolarmory.com/support/atf-form4-approvals-dates.html

https://www.silencershop.com/atf-wait-times

https://www.reddit.com/r/NFA/comments/e4le11/december_2019_approval_megathread/

Click to expand...

This

 

• Dec 27, 2019

• #5

DaemonAssassin

Why should we Free BSD?

Jun 14, 2012

23,991

Political refugee in WV

10-16 months, depending on a lot of variables.

 

• Dec 27, 2019

• #6

Inspector1489

Ultimate Member

May 27, 2016

1,416

FL panhandle

FWIW, a friend in TX applied Jan 2019, approved last week.

 

• Dec 27, 2019

• #7

C

Clippers69

Member

Mar 7, 2011

59

Suppressor wait time

I applied in late February of this year and just got it mid-December. It took about 10 months. My last suppressor took about the same amount of time a couple of years ago. I talked to some who had rifle suppressors and they took about 4-5 months. Mine were for handguns so that might be the reason for the long time period to be approved.

 

• Dec 27, 2019

• #8

Caeb75

Full fledged member

Sep 19, 2007

1,054

Aberdeen

The long and short of ot is that it takes as long as it takes. The only gauge we have is how long the current batch of approvals has taken. Just because one that came back today took 4 months there is no guarantee that one submitted today wont take a year.

The only way to find out how long your submission will take is to submit an application and see how long it takes. In 20+ years in the NFA game I have had approvals as fast as 60 days and as long as 14 months. Unfortunately that is the best info anyone can give you.

 

• Dec 27, 2019

• #9

E

ed bernay

Active Member

Feb 18, 2011

184

I submitted the application for an individual on Dec 3, 2018 and my stamp was received at my dealer on Dec 2, 2019.

 

• Dec 28, 2019

• #10

L

lazarus

Ultimate Member

Jun 23, 2015

13,723

ed bernay said:

I submitted the application for an individual on Dec 3, 2018 and my stamp was received at my dealer on Dec 2, 2019.

Click to expand...

What are you complaining about, didn’t even take a year.

 

• Dec 29, 2019

• #11

Pinecone

Ultimate Member

MDS Supporter

Feb 4, 2013

28,175

There is a LONG running thread in the NFA section about current BATF wait times - https://www.mdshooters.com/showthread.php?t=23516

 

• Dec 29, 2019

• #12

BossmanPJ

Ultimate Member

Feb 22, 2013

7,059

Cecil County

I turned in my stamp March 28 on a rimfire can. Still haven’t heard anything.

 

• Dec 29, 2019

• #13

OMCHamlin

Ultimate Member

BANNED!!!

May 17, 2017

1,115

The Cumberland Plateau

I waited just about a year for my Hybrid 46, and JUST in time for Ralph "Blackface" Northam to threaten to steal it from me...

 

• Dec 29, 2019

• #14

Surt

Banned

BANNED!!!

Aug 2, 2019

193

ed bernay said:

I submitted the application for an individual on Dec 3, 2018 and my stamp was received at my dealer on Dec 2, 2019.

Click to expand...

I had a friend submit about the same time and get approved to pick up the cans about two weeks ago. Almost identical timelines.

 

• Jan 22, 2020

• #15

Sealion

Ultimate Member

MDS Supporter

May 19, 2016

2,711

Balto Co

I bought on 4/20/2018. ATF signed/stamped it on 3/14/2019. I got it shortly after that.

 

• Jan 22, 2020

• #16

BossmanPJ

Ultimate Member

Feb 22, 2013

7,059

Cecil County

BossmanPJ said:

I turned in my stamp March 28 on a rimfire can. Still haven’t heard anything.

Click to expand...

Update. Picked my can up yesterday.

 

• Jan 22, 2020

• #17

L

lazarus

Ultimate Member

Jun 23, 2015

13,723

BossmanPJ said:

Update. Picked my can up yesterday.

Click to expand...

Huh. Maybe there is hope I might get mine back in April May then. Rather than waiting till late summer

 

• Feb 9, 2020

• #18

L

Lousy Shot

Banned

BANNED!!!

Feb 4, 2020

134

Maryland at the Bay

I think there are but two guys up at the ATF who do the background checks for suppressors, and they alternative weeks or months off for vacation. I can't believe the background check for a suppressor is any more strenuous than the instant check for a rifle you can take home the same day, or even the seven day waiting period in Maryland for a handgun. The ATF certainly is not running your fingerprints through a manual check. I have never seen a narrative of what it is the ATF does to approve a suppressor stamp. Has anyone? Is there a URL?

 

• Feb 11, 2020

• #19

L

lazarus

Ultimate Member

Jun 23, 2015

13,723

Lousy Shot said:

I think there are but two guys up at the ATF who do the background checks for suppressors, and they alternative weeks or months off for vacation. I can't believe the background check for a suppressor is any more strenuous than the instant check for a rifle you can take home the same day, or even the seven day waiting period in Maryland for a handgun. The ATF certainly is not running your fingerprints through a manual check. I have never seen a narrative of what it is the ATF does to approve a suppressor stamp. Has anyone? Is there a URL?

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It is somewhat more involved as they run against a few other databases, not just NICS. But there is a reason it is so much faster for electronic than paper. It takes time to enter the data off the paper form, check for accuracy, run the actual checks, file the information that needs to be, then mail the approval and tax stamp to your FFL.

Not sure their current numbers, but last few years it was somewhere between 40 and 50 examiners for the whole nation.

Not sure this exact volumes, but you are talking several thousand NFA background checks needed per month across all NFA requests. So several dozen per day, per examiner. If paper takes 30 minutes to work versus 5 for electronic (I have no clue what it is), they can get 6x more extrinsic done in the same amount of time.