Recently, a friend of the family passed away, and his wife wanted to sell off his firearms. I was thinking that a simple power of attorney for the purpose of selling the guns would be sufficient to sell them, as Illinois requires the seller to have a FOID card.
Does that sound right?
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Go through a local gun store with an FFL to manage the paperwork and the proper channels to properly transfer guns to those who can lawfully own a gun. The FFL will know what the proper steps are to transfer guns properly.
I agree, go to a local gunstore near you, or atleast in IL. Here in MI its pretty simple
I went to the Illinois state police website, and they do not require an FFL to facilitate private sales. Just that both parties have a FOID card.
I have made private sales in IL without any issue (I think 3 or 4 maybe). All I have done is require that the buyer show me his FOID card. Then (with his knowledge) I call the State Police office to verify the FOID is still valid. And if it is, I then write up a simple bill of sale with contact info for both parties (including his FOID card number), and signatures of both parties. Be sure to include the firearm make, model and serial number. I also request permission to take a photo of the FOID card. This item would not necessarily be a show stopper for me. But nobody has refused yet. FFL’s require it, so any reputable buyer wouldn’t think the request was unusual.
In all but one case, I felt 100% comfortable selling to the individual. Either because I know them personally, or had a solid referral. There was one time that I was selling to someone I might describe as a stranger, or more accurately a ‘personally unknown’. In that case, I required the sale to take place at my local police department, where they have a secure location for individuals to complete just about any kind of legal transaction (FB Marketplace, etc.) in complete safety. The buyer was 100% on board with the idea, and things went just fine. It also made it easier to validate his FOID card, since I could just take it to the PD counter and ask them. (Smallish department, with helpfully staff.)
I live in Illinois and I have not done a private sale in a while but the I am under the impression that private sales have to go thru a dealer under the new law passed a while ago.
Which law would it be?
Private sell can be done without dealer. It just need to be verified and approved by ISP (Illinois State Police).
In this case the tricky part is selling a firearm of deceased person. All other terms of private sale don’t change.
It was part of law that banned certain guns and magazine capacities. It is still going thru the courts, hopefully it gets replead in the near future. I suggest ask your dealer they should know or the Illinois State police. Personally if you selling a gun to a perfect stranger, rather then someone you know, you are better off going to a dealer so no blowback goes to you.
Going through FFL is always the safest option… especially in this case, because you never know if you actually are allowed to sell this firearm.
Anyway… I’m still not sure if there’s any Law that prevents private sell in IL. Of course you are not able to sell HC mag and rifle… but these are limitations only, nothing that doesn’t allow you legally sell to private person without FFL.