Concerning Handgun Purchase Applications Submitted On Or Before September 30

FIREARM PURCHASE APPLICANTS WITH APPLICATIONS PENDING ON OCTOBER 1 WILL NOT  NEED TO OBTAIN A HANDGUN QUALIFICATION LICENSE

(PIKESVILLE, MD) – Marylanders who have submitted handgun purchase applications on or before September 30 will not be required to obtain a handgun qualification license, as required by the new law that is set to take effect on Oct. 1.   

The new law that takes effect in Maryland on October 1 states that a handgun may not be sold, rented, or transferred unless the purchaser, lessee, or transferee has a valid handgun qualification license. 

The Maryland State Police (MSP) will not enforce the requirements of the new law with respect to applicants whose applications are pending as of October 1.  It was widely understood that the new requirements would not be enforced as to applications that were pending before October 1. In light of the number of currently pending applications—resulting from the unprecedented spike in new applications in recent months—it is a fair, reasoned, and appropriate result for those who are waiting for their pending purchase applications to be processed. 

Persons who submit purchase applications on or after October 1, 2013, unless otherwise exempted by law, will be required to apply for and obtain a handgun qualification license before attempting to purchase a handgun.   

MSP is working diligently to process all pending firearm purchase applications as expeditiously as possible. A record level of firearm sales in Maryland that began last fall—and which has only intensified in recent days—has led to an unparalleled number of pending purchase applications. MSP’s Licensing Division commenced 21-hour-a-day, seven-day-a-week operations last December—more than doubling the staff in the division—in order to process the spike in applications. MSP has also used additional State Police personnel, who worked more than 24,000 hours of overtime in the past year. Despite those efforts, the number of pending purchase applications continued to grow.   


The members of MSP’s Licensing Division will continue to work diligently to process pending applications as quickly as possible, without jeopardizing public safety for speed. MSP greatly appreciates the patience of both the licensed firearms dealers holding the weapons, and Marylanders awaiting approval to receive their guns. 

Submitted:
MD. State Police