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I purchased at online auction an antique (pre 1899) single shot rifle. I was contacted today by the auction house they said that the company contacted the Dept. of Justice and spoke with "operator 211". They were told my valid and in force Curio and Relic (C&R) license and my Certificate of Eligibility (COE) are not sufficient to transfer an antique firearm to me. "Operator 211" told him that because the firearm could accept a cartridge it could not be transferred to me unless it was transferred via a "regular" FFL holder (not a C&R holder).
As I am sure you know, this is completely false. A pre-1899 antique requires no license what-so-ever for transfer. I merely sent along my C&R paperwork to ease concerns of an out of state vendor concerned about the continuing vague nuances with our ever changing and increasingly draconian California regulations and statutes. And I also suffered through a prior incident almost exactly like this, when I attempted to explain the workings of these licenses and certificates to an out-of-state firearms seller. That seller called DOJ and was told that if the firearm could be altered to fire a modern cartridge it had to be transferred via a regular FFL holder. Clearly at least portions of DOJ staff are ill-informed of the effect of the licenses and certificates they regulate.
Have any of you had a similar issue with DOJ misinformation?
As I am sure you know, this is completely false. A pre-1899 antique requires no license what-so-ever for transfer. I merely sent along my C&R paperwork to ease concerns of an out of state vendor concerned about the continuing vague nuances with our ever changing and increasingly draconian California regulations and statutes. And I also suffered through a prior incident almost exactly like this, when I attempted to explain the workings of these licenses and certificates to an out-of-state firearms seller. That seller called DOJ and was told that if the firearm could be altered to fire a modern cartridge it had to be transferred via a regular FFL holder. Clearly at least portions of DOJ staff are ill-informed of the effect of the licenses and certificates they regulate.
Have any of you had a similar issue with DOJ misinformation?
