Buying a Gun in Hawaii

21 for all firearms. A permit to acquire is required to obtain ownership of any firearm, and citizens, nationals and lawful permanent residents must be 21 or older to receive it (certain aliens may receive permits at 18 for rifles and shotguns for hunting). Because the permit covers purchases, gifts, inheritance and every other manner of acquisition, the age rule applies to private transfers too.

Yes, for all acquisitions. No person may acquire ownership of a firearm, by purchase, gift, inheritance, bequest or any other manner, without first obtaining a permit to acquire from the county chief of police (an heir may transfer an inherited firearm directly to a licensed dealer without a permit). A pistol or revolver permit is void unless used within 30 days and covers one transaction; a rifle or shotgun permit covers purchases for one year. Applicants must have completed, within four years before issuance, an approved hunter education course (rifles and shotguns) or an approved firearms training course (pistols and revolvers; the instructor-led option requires at least four hours of classroom instruction and two hours of firing training). The only fee is a single county fee equal to the Hawaii criminal justice data center fee.

No permit to acquire may be issued earlier than fourteen calendar days after the date of application (all firearm types); the permit must be issued or denied before the 40th day. Exceptions include dealers, law enforcement officers, and firearms already registered under § 134-3(a).

Unless licensed as a firearms manufacturer or federal dealer, no person may, in order to assemble a firearm, possess, buy, make (including with a three-dimensional printer) or obtain separately or in a kit a firearm receiver without a serial number registered with a federally licensed manufacturer or assigned under § 134-3(c), or a combination of parts from which an unserialized firearm can be readily assembled. Violation is a class C felony.