Federal Firearm Rights Restoration Frequently Asked Questions
About the application
Coming soon.
The application fee for restoration of firearm rights is $30. However, there may be additional fees associated with the application process, e.g. fingerprints, criminal records, etc. Fees may vary by jurisdiction, so please contact your local servicing agency to determine the actual cost.
Applicants may request a waiver or modification of the application fee. Each applicant shall set forth the reasons why a waiver or modification should be granted. The application fee may be waived or reduced because of indigency. More information about the waiver process will be made available soon.
You MUST obtain your fingerprints AFTER you submit the first part of your e-application, and you receive the QR code via email. Fingerprints must then be obtained through a participating United States Post Office. Click on this link and enter your zip code to find the closest servicing post office near you.
Once you have initiated the e-application, you will have 30 days to complete and submit it. If you do not submit a completed e-application in 30 days, you will have to start the application process over. Because of this time constraint, you are encouraged to collect all your required documents before you begin the e-application.
At this time, PARDON cannot provide an opportunity to recover a link and PIN. You may have to start your application again if you lose it.
Who can apply
It depends. If you were only convicted of a federal offense, then no. The Pardon Clause in Article II, Section 2, Clause 1 of the U.S. Constitution grants the President broad authority to forgive crimes, reduce sentences, or grant amnesty for federal offenses. A full pardon granted by the president removes penalties and disabilities, including a firearm disability, resulting from the federal conviction.
However, if you were convicted of a federal offense but also have a separate, independent basis for firearm prohibition, like a state conviction or a prohibiting status, you may need to seek federal firearms relief.
In criminal cases, state restoration of rights does not remove disabilities imposed by federal conviction. A state restoration of a state conviction also may not remove federal disabilities. However, if your federal firearm disability was imposed as a result of a mental health commitment or being adjudicated a mental defective and you have received relief from a lawful state or federal authority under a relief from disabilities program that meets the requirements of the NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007 (NIAA), then you are no longer prohibited under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(4).
Yes and No. If your federal firearm disability was imposed as a result of a mental health commitment or being adjudicated a mental defective, then relief may be available through a state, territory, or agency program. There are different types of programs across the United States, but generally they exist in the form of:
- a judicial petition or motion;
- an application to an agency; or
- a process described by state law.
A person is no longer prohibited under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(4) if they have received relief from a lawful state or federal authority under a relief from disabilities program that meets the requirements of the NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007 (NIAA).
However, if your state or territory does not offer relief at all, then you may apply for federal relief without having gone through your state first.
NOTE: The following jurisdictions do not offer relief (this list may be subject to change): Arkansas, Montana, New Hampshire, Wyoming, American Samoa, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Northern Mariana Islands.
The new process under 18 USC § 925(c) allows anyone who is prohibited under the Gun Control Act to submit an application for relief, including those who have been dishonorably discharged or who have incurred court-martial convictions. If an individual has already had their gun rights restored, such as through the VA’s fiduciary program, and has no other prohibitor, that person does not need to apply through the § 925(c) process.
Maybe. If someone is prohibited because of a mental health finding, the rule asks that the individual exhaust other remedies available to them before applying for relief under the § 925(c) process.
How the program works
The final rule explicitly identifies the types of statuses and prior conduct the Department will consider to be presumptively disqualified from relief. It also identifies a variety of additional factors that can be considered when deciding whether the individual is likely to pose a danger to public safety if firearms rights are restored and whether restoration is contrary to the public interest. The statements the Department made when issuing the rule name some factors that the Department may consider when determining if an applicant’s individual circumstances are extraordinary and can overcome a presumptive disqualification.
If you submit a completed e-application and it is denied, the time you have to wait to reapply depends on the reason for your denial. If you were denied based on a permanent presumptive disqualification, you will remain disqualified. If you were denied because a time-limited (5- or 10-year) presumption against you, you should wait until your time-limited presumption expires to reapply. If you were denied because you are in a certain status, you should wait until that status changes to reapply. If you were denied for other reasons, you will have a 5-year presumptive disqualifier in addition to whatever your initial firearm disability was.
A functioning firearms restoration program has not been in place for over 30 years. The Department is now reinvigorating the process to ensure a fair and commonsense approach. We are choosing a phased rollout to test the effectiveness of the online platform and internal procedures with a small group of applicants before opening the process to the public at large. We will begin by inviting individuals with a known interest in this program to apply. On November 4, 2026, we will open the application to the first 5,000 people to apply, on a first come, first served basis. The rollout phase allowing 500 individuals to apply is intended to specifically test the effectiveness of our online payment portal to collect fees. Once the Department is confident of the effectiveness of our processes, we will ensure access to the public at large.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) previously administered the restoration of federal firearm rights program. The new rule states that they no longer do so. All applications for federal firearm rights restoration must be submitted through the Office of the Pardon Attorney.
Under 18 USC 925(c), the Department is required to publish the names of those who have received relief in the Federal Register.
Other
A list of required documents can be found here.
If you believe your criminal history to be incorrect, you must first obtain a copy of your criminal history report from the FBI or the state police. Once you have identified the errors, you must dispute the errors with the relevant law enforcement agency.