Most people in the United States know that you typically can’t just walk into a store and purchase a firearm. Instead, you likely have to go through a background check to make that purchase. Because they’re highly regulated, firearms present a challenge when a person is creating their estate plan.
For anyone who owns guns, getting a plan in place now to hand those down to beneficiaries requires careful thought. One option to pass down legally owned firearms is a firearm or gun trust.
Why is a gun trust useful?
A gun trust is a legal entity that’s created to own firearms. Many firearm owners opt to use this as an estate planning tool so they can pass their guns down to the beneficiaries of their choice. While the guns are in the trust, they can be owned and used by multiple parties.
Firearms in the United States are all classified according to the type of gun they are. Under the Gun Control Act of 1968, there are two general classifications for guns – Title I and Title II. For the most part, gun trusts are used for things designated as Title II, but they can also be used for things with a Title I designation.
Anything that has to be registered to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) is a Title II. Some firearm accessories, such as suppressors or silencers, also fall under Title II.
Establishing a gun trust ensures everything included can be passed down to the intended beneficiary without having to go through probate. The individual will have to pass all background and ATF checks, as well as paying the registration fee, in order to take possession. These trusts must be very specific and handled in a certain manner, so it behooves estate creators to work with someone familiar with these matters.