Importation fee ? through local FFL

[Tyson]

Hello all, I am pleased to have found this great forum for those of us in California.

Now to my question. I called my local FFL to to confirm I could order two lowers (new purchases)to them for the transfer for only the one paperwork charge, and I can. They also informed me I would be paying a 50/gun "Importing fee". This would add another 100 to a 300 dollar order. I transferred my handgun through them this last July with only the DROS fees, nothing else. Is this a new charge or has this always been in place for long guns ? I am considering taking my transfer elsewhere if possible to avoid the charge. If I ordered through them (the lowers), would I escape the Importing fee ?

Thanks all.

[SPaikmos]

I think most FFLs will add a fee for their services when you have stuff shipped to them. It's to encourage you to buy from their inventory, and to not use them as a clearing house for internet deals. Unless you're buying lowers in bulk or have an FFL that charges reasonable fees, it's probably more worth it for you to buy it directly from them.

[Mssr. Eleganté]

All FFLs charge a transfer or importation fee in addition to the DROS fee when you order a gun from somebody else and transfer it through the FFL. That's the only way they can make any money on the deal. You are paying them for the time and hassle of processing the transfer.

When you buy a gun directly from your local FFL they won't charge this fee because they have already included their markup in the price of the gun. You will still have to pay the DROS fee though.

When two California residents go to a dealer together in person to transfer a firearm between them then California law caps the transfer fee at $10 plus DROS fees.

The fee that dealers charge to transfer a firearm that you buy from somebody else and have shipped to the dealer varies a lot from dealer to dealer. Some charge $20 plus DROS while others charge $200 plus DROS. Some seem to change their fees from day to day or depending on who the customer is, so shop around.

[tenpercentfirearms]

Hello all, I am pleased to have found this great forum for those of us in California.

Now to my question. I called my local FFL to to confirm I could order two lowers (new purchases)to them for the transfer for only the one paperwork charge, and I can. They also informed me I would be paying a 50/gun "Importing fee". This would add another 100 to a 300 dollar order. I transferred my handgun through them this last July with only the DROS fees, nothing else. Is this a new charge or has this always been in place for long guns ? I am considering taking my transfer elsewhere if possible to avoid the charge. If I ordered through them (the lowers), would I escape the Importing fee ?

Thanks all.

I call it a transfer fee. If they did your transfer for just DROS only, they either were running a sale or someone screwed up. The only time I don't charge people for transfers is when I am the FFL for the Friends of NRA or for other charity events or if we are pretty close friends.