California Penal Code regarding Private Party Transfers (PPT)

[Librarian]

A number of posts and threads regarding PPT show some misinformation. This is intended as a reference to the state of PC in (March, 2013 and) into 2022


Penal Code regarding California “Private Party Transfer”

Firearms sales via Private Party Transfer must follow all the rules a sale directly from a dealer must follow.

Proof of identity and age

26815.

No firearm shall be delivered:
(a) Within 10 days of the application to purchase, or, after notice by the department pursuant to Section 28220, within 10 days of the submission to the department of any correction to the application, or within 10 days of the submission to the department of any fee required pursuant to Section 28225, whichever is later.
(b) Unless unloaded and securely wrapped or unloaded and in a locked container.
(c) Unless the purchaser, transferee, or person being loaned the firearm presents clear evidence of the person’s identity and age to the dealer.

For handguns, handgun safety certificate (unless the buyer is exempt)

26840.

No dealer may deliver a handgun unless the person receiving the handgun presents to the dealer a valid handgun safety certificate. The firearms dealer shall retain a photocopy of the handgun safety certificate as proof of compliance with this requirement.

For handguns, proof of residency

26845.

(a) No handgun may be delivered unless the purchaser, transferee, or person being loaned the firearm presents documentation indicating that the person is a California resident.

Handgun safety demonstration

26850.

(a) Except as authorized by the department, no firearms dealer may deliver a handgun unless the recipient performs a safe handling demonstration with that handgun.

CA FFLs are obligated to handle PPTs.

ARTICLE 2. Grounds for Forfeiture of License [26800. - 26915.]
( Article 2 added by Stats. 2010, Ch. 711, Sec. 6. )

26825.

A licensee shall agree to and shall act properly and promptly in processing firearms transactions pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 28050).

PPT Fees must be posted

26875.

A licensee shall post conspicuously within the licensed premises a detailed list of each of the following:
(a) All charges required by governmental agencies for processing firearm transfers required by Section 12806, Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 28050), and Article 3 (commencing with Section 28200) of Chapter 6.
(b) All fees that the licensee charges pursuant to Section 12806 and Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 28050).

PPT Fee listing must be accurate

26880.

A licensee shall not misstate the amount of fees charged by a governmental agency pursuant to Section 12806, Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 28050), and Article 3 (commencing with Section 28200) of Chapter 6.

One handgun in 30 days does not apply.

ARTICLE 1. Crimes Relating to Sale, Lease, or Transfer of Firearms [27500. - 27590.]
( Article 1 added by Stats. 2010, Ch. 711, Sec. 6. )

27535.

(a) No person shall make an application to purchase more than one handgun within any 30-day period.
(b) Subdivision (a) shall not apply to any of the following:
...
(8) Any transaction conducted through a licensed firearms dealer pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 28050).

Unlicensed persons MUST use a CA FFL for transfers (except intrafamilial transfer, and, until Jan 1 2014, long guns 50 years old and older)

ARTICLE 1. Crimes Relating to Sale, Lease, or Transfer of Firearms [27500. - 27590.]
( Article 1 added by Stats. 2010, Ch. 711, Sec. 6. )

27545.

Where neither party to the transaction holds a dealer’s license issued pursuant to Sections 26700 to 26915, inclusive, the parties to the transaction shall complete the sale, loan, or transfer of that firearm through a licensed firearms dealer pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 28050).

Definition of terms

ARTICLE 3. Submission of Fees and Firearm Purchaser Information to the Department of Justice [28200. - 28250.]
( Article 3 added by Stats. 2010, Ch. 711, Sec. 6. )

28200.

As used in this article, the following words have the following meanings:
(a) “Purchase” means the purchase, loan, or transfer of a firearm.
(b) “Purchaser” means the purchaser or transferee of a firearm or the person being loaned a firearm.
(c) “Sale” means the sale, loan, or transfer of a firearm.
(d) “Seller” means, if the transaction is being conducted pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 28050), the person selling, loaning, or transferring the firearm.

DROS information provided to PPT buyer or seller on request

28210.
..
(f) If the transaction is a private party transfer conducted pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 28050), a photocopy of the original shall be provided to the seller or purchaser by the dealer, upon request. The dealer shall redact all of the purchaser’s personal information, as required pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 28160 and subdivision (a) of Section 28165, from the seller’s copy, and the seller’s personal information from the purchaser’s copy.

The Roster does not apply to PPT

32110.

Article 4 (commencing with Section 31900) and Article 5 (commencing with Section 32000) shall not apply to any of the following:
(a) The sale, loan, or transfer of any firearm pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 28050) of Division 6 in order to comply with Section 27545.

http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/fa...er=5.&article=
CHAPTER 5. Procedure For a Private Party Firearms Transaction [28050. - 28070.]
( Chapter 5 added by Stats. 2010, Ch. 711, Sec. 6. )

28050.

(a) A person shall complete any sale, loan, or transfer of a firearm through a person licensed pursuant to Sections 26700 to 26915, inclusive, in accordance with this chapter in order to comply with Section 27545.
(b) The seller or transferor or the person loaning the firearm shall deliver the firearm to the dealer who shall retain possession of that firearm.
(c) The dealer shall then deliver the firearm to the purchaser or transferee or the person being loaned the firearm, if it is not prohibited, in accordance with Section 27540.
(d) If the dealer cannot legally deliver the firearm to the purchaser or transferee or the person being loaned the firearm, the dealer shall forthwith, without waiting for the conclusion of the waiting period described in Sections 26815 and 27540, return the firearm to the transferor or seller or the person loaning the firearm. The dealer shall not return the firearm to the seller or transferor or the person loaning the firearm when to do so would constitute a violation of Section 27500, 27505, 27515, 27520, 27525, 27530, or 27535. If the dealer cannot legally return the firearm to the transferor or seller or the person loaning the firearm, then the dealer shall forthwith deliver the firearm to the sheriff of the county or the chief of police or other head of a municipal police department of any city or city and county, who shall then dispose of the firearm in the manner provided by Sections 18000, 18005, and 34000.
(Added by Stats. 2010, Ch. 711, Sec. 6. Effective January 1, 2011. Operative January 1, 2012, by Sec. 10 of Ch. 711.)

28055.

(a) For a sale, loan, or transfer conducted pursuant to this chapter, the purchaser or transferee or person being loaned the firearm may be required by the dealer to pay a fee not to exceed ten dollars ($10) per firearm.
(b) No other fee may be charged by the dealer for a sale, loan, or transfer of a firearm conducted pursuant to this chapter, except for the applicable fees that may be charged pursuant to Sections 23690 and 28300 and Article 3 (commencing with Section 28200) of Chapter 6 and forwarded to the Department of Justice, and the fees set forth in Section 31650.
(c) The dealer may not charge any additional fees.
(d) Nothing in these provisions shall prevent a dealer from charging a smaller fee.
(Added by Stats. 2010, Ch. 711, Sec. 6. Effective January 1, 2011. Operative January 1, 2012, by Sec. 10 of Ch. 711.)

28060.

The Attorney General shall adopt regulations under this chapter to do all of the following:
(a) Allow the seller or transferor or the person loaning the firearm, and the purchaser or transferee or the person being loaned the firearm, to complete a sale, loan, or transfer through a dealer, and to allow those persons and the dealer to preserve the confidentiality of those records and to comply with the requirements of this chapter and all of the following:
(1) Article 1 (commencing with Section 26700) and Article 2 (commencing with Section 26800) of Chapter 2.
(2) Article 1 (commencing with Section 27500) of Chapter 4.
(3) Article 2 (commencing with Section 28150) of Chapter 6.
(4) Article 3 (commencing with Section 28200) of Chapter 6.
(b) Record sufficient information for purposes of Section 11106 in the instance where a firearm is returned to a personal firearm importer because a sale or transfer of that firearm by the personal firearm importer could not be completed.
(c) Ensure that the register or record of electronic transfer shall state all of the following:
(1) The name and address of the seller or transferor of the firearm or the person loaning the firearm.
(2) Whether or not the person is a personal firearm importer.
(3) Any other information required by Article 2 (commencing with Section 28150) of Chapter 6.
(Amended by Stats. 2011, Ch. 745, Sec. 47. Effective January 1, 2012.)

28065.

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a dealer who does not sell, transfer, or keep an inventory of handguns is not required to process private party transfers of handguns.
(Added by Stats. 2010, Ch. 711, Sec. 6. Effective January 1, 2011. Operative January 1, 2012, by Sec. 10 of Ch. 711.)

28070.

A violation of this chapter by a dealer is a misdemeanor.
(Added by Stats. 2010, Ch. 711, Sec. 6. Effective January 1, 2011. Operative January 1, 2012, by Sec. 10 of Ch. 711.)

[Librarian]

See also the Information Bulletin 2001 FD-01, "Subject: REQUIREMENT FOR DEALERS TO CONDUCT PRIVATE PARTY TRANSFERS / ALLOWABLE FEES"

Firearms dealers are required to conduct private party transfers pursuant to Penal Code section 12071(b)(5). Dealers may not limit the days or hours in which private party transfers are conducted.

[Librarian]

And there is one thing I can't seem to find.

At one time, I believe there was a statement in PC that PPT must be requested in writing. Anybody remember where that is? Or if it's still there?

[kemasa]

Yes, it is supposed to be in writing. It is still there. I have it listed as being in the Code of Regulations 4033.

Also, a FFL does not have to do a handgun PPT if they don't sell handguns.

[Librarian]

Originally Posted by kemasa

Yes, it is supposed to be in writing. It is still there. I have it listed as being in the Code of Regulations 4033.

Also, a FFL does not have to do a handgun PPT if they don't sell handguns.

Right -

§ 4033. Criteria for Processing Section 28050 Transactions.


(a) All dealers shall process a section 28050 transaction upon the request of the transferor. All such requests shall:

(1) Be in writing and contain all of the terms of the transaction, and

(2) Be signed by the transferor and the transferee.

(b) Except as otherwise provided in Penal Code sections 28050 through 28070, a dealer shall process a section 28050 transaction in the same manner as if it were a dealer retail sale.

Years back, tried to figure out what satisfies "contain all of the terms of the transaction"; never came up with anything. No dealer has ever asked me for anything written (but I have never been a seller).

How about

Date: _________
I, _________, seller, wish to sell a
[ handgun | rifle | shotgun ] [make, model, caliber, serial number]
to _________, buyer, in a PC 28050 transaction.

Seller /s/
Buyer /s/

What's the legal for 'price is none of your business'? Used to be something like 'For one dollar and other valuable considerations, ' but I seem to recall the 'one dollar' line being deprecated as not sufficient.

ETA but that may be a misunderstanding - the code sections cited for 4033 are these - Note: Authority cited: Section 28060, Penal Code. Reference: Sections 26700, 26710, 26825, 27535, 27545, 28100, 28160, 28165, 28210 and 28215, Penal Code. . All of those are 'Dealers must submit DROS' or related to the info submitted; I begin to think the meaning of 4033 is less 'make a written request' than 'DROS just like any other dealer transaction'.

The other handguns thing is already in the first post, 28065

Another reg -

§ 4034. Dealer Fees.


All dealers shall display on the business premises where it can easily be seen, a schedule of fees for processing section 28050 transactions and, prior to processing, the dealer shall notify the parties of the specific fee(s) to be charged for the transaction. The dealer may also require payment of all fees prior to initiating a section 28050 transaction.

Thanks!

[kemasa]

There was a thread in which a form was generated. One had the CalGuns info on it and the other did not.



I am not sure of who created it, but the phone number at the bottom should be updated, as well as the CA PC sections should be updated.

[Florida]

This is very helpful. Thank you.

[Keoni510]

Would it be possible for the seller's FFL to deliver to a buyer's FFL if they are located, for example, from NorCal and SoCal respectively? Or are PPT restricted to being done at one FFL only?

Feel free to PM me input to keep thread clean...unless worthy for other people's knowledge.

Thanks to all in advance.

[Librarian]

Originally Posted by Keoni510

Would it be possible for the seller's FFL to deliver to a buyer's FFL if they are located, for example, from NorCal and SoCal respectively? Or are PPT restricted to being done at one FFL only?

Feel free to PM me input to keep thread clean...unless worthy for other people's knowledge.

Thanks to all in advance.

This part of PC suggests "no" -

28050.

(a) A person shall complete any sale, loan, or transfer of a firearm through a person licensed pursuant to Sections 26700 to 26915, inclusive, in accordance with this chapter in order to comply with Section 27545.
(b) The seller or transferor or the person loaning the firearm shall deliver the firearm to the dealer who shall retain possession of that firearm.

If the dealer accepting the gun from the transferor would ship the gun to another dealer, s/he would not "retain possession of that firearm".

[kemasa]

It addition, the FFL needs to get a signature of the seller on the DROS form. If you ask the CA DOJ they say no as well. Some might say otherwise, but ...

[grego31]

Quote:
Firearms dealers are required to conduct private party transfers pursuant to Penal Code section 12071(b)(5). Dealers may not limit the days or hours in which private party transfers are conducted.

Just wondering if this is still valid considering that you are no longer able to log onto the new DROS system very early or very late in the day.

[kemasa]

The limits apply to when the dealer is open, as well it implies that the limit applies to restrictions specifically for PPTs when they are open, meaning that if the dealer is open, they have to do PPTs.

This means that you can not demand the FFL do the transfer at midnight.

A FFL could have the person fill out the DROS worksheet and submit it later, when the system is operating.

[Librarian]

The words 'private', 'party' and 'transaction' all have common meanings.

But in California, the phrase "private party transaction (PPT)" has a specific meaning.

A California PPT occurs when

a California resident

goes to a CA FFL

to sell any gun - used or new is not relevant -

to another CA resident.

Use of a CA FFL is required by law, as noted in this thread, and the CA-resident part is implemented in the DROS software.

Since a resident of a state other than California is unlikely to have CA ID, a gun from out of state is unlikely to be eligible for a CA PPT.

That means the transfer would be treated as an interstate transfer, and the FFL is able to charge whatever fee is reasonable to the business, and the Roster would apply to handgun transactions.

[kemasa]

It WAS an old thread.