Do I have to wait 30 days to buy another handgun in California?

Asked by: Jared Dare  |  Last update: January 22, 2026
Score: 5/5 (35 votes)

Yes. A person is generally limited to making no more than one application to purchase a handgun within any 30-day period. Handgun transactions related to law enforcement, private party transfers, returns to owners, and other specified circumstances are exempt from the one-handgun-per-30-day restriction.

How long to wait to buy another gun in California?

In addition, you may buy only one handgun every 30 days in California (however, consignments and private party transfers are exempt from this restriction.)

How often can you buy a handgun in CA?

Appellate panel allows Californians to buy more than one gun per month. Law intended to combat 'straw purchases,' in which someone legally buys a gun, then gives it to someone else who is prohibited from possessing a firearm.

Can I buy two guns at one time in California?

A California law prohibiting individuals from buying more than one gun in a 30-day period was struck down by a federal judge Monday.

Is the 30-day waiting period overturned in California?

The “1 in 30” law, also known as the one-gun-a-month law, was a California regulation that prohibited residents from purchasing more than one handgun or semiautomatic, centerfire rifle within a 30-day period. This law has now been struck down by a federal judge and ruled unconstitutional.

2A in CA Update - 1 Gun in 30 Days & Must Be 21?

39 related questions found

How many guns can I buy in a 30-day period in California?

Is there a limit on the number of handguns that I can own or purchase? There is no limit to the number of handguns that you may own but you are generally limited to purchasing no more than one handgun in any 30-day period.

What is the 30-day law in California?

The 30-day rule does not grant squatters ownership rights, only potential tenancy rights. Squatters must follow adverse possession laws to claim legal ownership in California. Property owners must follow proper eviction procedures to remove squatters, even after 30 days of occupancy.

How many pistols can I buy in a week?

Summary of Federal Law

Federal law does not limit the number of guns a person may buy in any given time period. However, federal law does require federal firearm licensees (“FFLs”) to report multiple sales of handguns to ATF and other specified law enforcement agencies.

Does the ATF track gun purchases?

This record keeping is crucial to the crime investigation process undertaken by the ATF because the first place the agency goes to track firearm purchases is the last seller of a firearm; it is the most reliable method to discover the last bona fide purchaser of that firearm.

How many guns can a person buy in California?

As of January 1, 2024, no person is allowed to purchase more than one firearm, which includes completed frames and receivers and firearm precursor parts, within any 30-day period. Starting January 1, 2025, all private party transactions except with some exemptions will be subject to the 1-in-30 restriction.

Can I keep a gun in my car in CA?

Pursuant to California Penal Code section 25610, a United States citizen over 18 years of age who is not prohibited from firearm possession, and who resides or is temporarily in California, may transport by motor vehicle any handgun provided it is unloaded and locked in the vehicle's trunk or in a locked container.

Do you need a background check every time you buy a gun in California?

Subject to certain narrow exceptions, California law generally requires all firearm sales or transfers to be completed through a licensed firearms dealer, pursuant to a background check and other requirements.

How many rounds can a handgun hold in CA?

Penal Code 32310(c) goes on to make it a crime to possess a large capacity magazine, regardless of the date it was acquired. A “large-capacity magazine” means any ammunition-feeding device with the capacity to hold more than 10 rounds.

Why do you have to wait 10 days after buying a gun?

Waiting period laws require gun buyers to wait a specified period before completing a purchase. These policies create a buffer of time for a person in suicidal crisis, a cooling-off period that can be the difference between life and death.

What are the rules for firearm purchases in California?

Generally, it is illegal to sell, loan or transfer any firearm to a person under 21 years of age. (Pen. Code, §§ 27505 and 27510.) As of January 1, 2020, you must be at least 21 years of age to purchase a semiautomatic centerfire rifle (unless you have a law enforcement or military exemption).

When did the California 10 day waiting period start?

California has had a gun purchase waiting period for decades, with the 10-day version going into effect in 1996. A previous attempt to overturn it, Silvester v. Becerra, made it all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court but was not heard, and so the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision upholding the wait period stood.

Does the ATF know how many guns you own?

ATF does not maintain a federal gun registry, therefore, records are not kept on the sales of firearms, private sales or information on individual purchasers,” an ATF spokesperson told ABC News.

Will ATF come to your house?

The ATF often comes into contact with law-abiding gun owners, and many gun owners find them at their doorstep. Whether it is part of a lost or stolen gun investigation, a private sale of a firearm gone wrong, or suspicious activity—no one wants the ATF to visit them at their home.

Does the government know how many guns I own?

In the US yes and no, When you buy a gun from a licensed dealer they are required to keep a paper record of the sale, and if police or the government want to look through them they have that right. However there is no federal database or registry of firearms owners, this is in fact forbidden by federa…

What is the 26 pistol rule?

A firearm, as defined by 26 U.S.C. 5845(a)(4), is made when a handgun or other weapon with an overall length of less than 26 inches, or a barrel or barrels of less than 16 inches in length, is assembled or produced from a weapon originally assembled or produced only as a rifle.

Can you only buy one gun every 30 days?

March 11 (Reuters) - A California law barring the purchase of more than one gun in a 30-day period was struck down on Monday by a federal judge who said it failed a test for state laws laid out in the 2022 U.S. Supreme Court ruling expanding gun rights.

What is the 1 in 30 law in California?

2023, ch. 246) – Firearms: purchase. Effective January 1, 2025: Eliminates an existing private party transaction exemption from the prohibition on more than one firearm purchase within a 30-day period.

What is the 72 hour rule in California?

In California, you must receive your final paycheck immediately if you get terminated or resign with at least 72 hours' notice. If you quit without notice, then your employer has 72 hours to give you your final paycheck.

What is the 50% law in California?

The “Fifty Percent Law” (50% Law), as defined in Education Code Section 84362 and California Code of Regulations Section 59200 et seq., requires each district to spend at least half of its current expense of education each fiscal year for salaries and benefits of classroom instructors.

What is the 7th day rule in California?

If an employee does work for more than six days in a row, the first eight hours worked on the seventh day must be compensated at 1.5x the normal hourly wage. Any time worked beyond the first eight hours must be compensated at 2x the normal hourly wage.