Buying a Gun in Maine

Handguns: it is a crime to knowingly transfer (sell, give, lend or otherwise provide) a handgun to a person under 18, with exceptions such as temporary transfers with a parent's written consent or for employment, target practice, hunting or safety instruction. Long guns: a non-parent may not knowingly transfer a firearm other than a handgun to a person under 16 (Class D crime), and may not sell one to a person 16 or 17 (civil violation up to $500 for a first offense); the parent's approval is an affirmative defense. These rules apply to private sellers as well as dealers.

Partly. A private seller who sells a firearm at a gun show or as a result of an advertisement (TV, radio, internet, print, or posted sign) must complete the sale through a federally licensed dealer, who runs a NICS background check on the buyer; selling in violation is a Class C crime. Sales between family members and of curios/relics between licensed collectors or antique firearms are excluded. Other private sales do not require a check. No permit to purchase is required.

72 hours for all firearms (and unfinished frames or receivers): a seller may not knowingly deliver a firearm to a buyer sooner than 72 hours after the agreement of sale; the period runs concurrently with any background-check wait. Exceptions include sales to law enforcement, corrections and licensed security officers, sales to dealers, sales between family members, curio/relic and antique firearms, and sales where no background check is required by law. Violation is a civil violation ($200-$500; $500-$1,000 for a repeat). A federal district court enjoined the law in February 2025, but the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit vacated that injunction on April 3, 2026 (Beckwith v. Frey, No. 25-1160), and the U.S. Supreme Court denied review on October 19, 2026 (No. 26-258), so the law is in effect.

Maine requires serial numbers. A person may not knowingly possess, import, transfer or offer to transfer an unfinished frame or receiver, or a firearm or frame or receiver, that has not been imprinted with a serial number by a federal firearms licensee, and may not buy a serialized frame or receiver without a background check. Exceptions include licensees, antiques, curios or relics, firearms made before 1968, permanently inoperable firearms, and a person who has had the item unserialized for no more than 48 hours and has an appointment with a licensee to have it serialized. Penalties apply beginning January 1, 2027: unlawful possession is a civil violation (fine up to $50) for a first offense, Class D for a second and Class C for a third; unlawful import, transfer or purchase is Class D (Class C for repeat); using an unserialized firearm in a Class A or B crime is Class C. Undetectable firearms are also prohibited.