I recently made a brief video that discussed the restoration of federal firearms’ rights. The response has been literally overwhelming. Hundreds upon hundreds of calls and messages followed after I shared the video. Unfortunately, it is impossible for me to reply to each of the hundreds of messages, texts, and emails. I am hoping that the information in this blog helps anyone seeking to restore federal firearm rights.

The law that governs this process is not new. What is new is that the United States Department of Justice has finally put a working application system in place. Relief is still individualized. It is not guaranteed. In addition, a federal grant does not automatically restore firearm rights under Pennsylvania law. Anyone who is considering an application to restore federal firearm rights should therefore understand the statute. That person should also understand the Department’s presumptive disqualifiers, the records the process requires, and the separate Pennsylvania rules that may still apply.

The Gun Control Act and Federal Firearm Prohibitions

Congress implemented modern federal firearms’ regulations through the Gun Control Act of 1968. Among other provisions, the Act listed categories of people whom federal law prohibited from possessing firearms. For example, the list included anyone convicted of a crime punishable for a term exceeding one year. It also included a fugitive from justice, or an unlawful user of a controlled substance. Congress then amended the Act in 1993 and 1994. Those amendments expanded the list of those who were not permitted to possess a firearm.

Who Federal Law Prohibits Today

Those prohibited-person categories now appear primarily in 18 U.S.C. 922(g). The categories include people prohibited because of certain felony convictions. They also include fugitive status, unlawful controlled-substance use, and certain mental-health adjudications or commitments. Further groups include people with certain immigration statuses, a dishonorable military discharge, or a renunciation of United States citizenship. The statute also covers qualifying domestic violence restraining orders, and misdemeanor crimes of domestic violence. Being prohibited under federal law is what makes a person a candidate for the process discussed below. It is not, standing alone, a reason to expect relief.

Constitutional Challenges After Bruen

Some of those prohibitions have also been the subject of recent constitutional litigation. In the landmark Second Amendment case New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen, 597 U.S. 1 (2022), the Supreme Court set a historical test. The Court held that firearms regulations must be consistent with the Nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation. As a result, the government must identify a historical analogue. That decision has led to substantial litigation over whether provisions of the Gun Control Act are unconstitutional. Federal criminal defense attorneys have taken the lead. They have challenged felon-not-to-possess rules, unlawful-user-of-a-controlled-substance rules, and similar prohibitions.

Recently, for example, the Supreme Court decided United States v. Hemani on June 18, 2026. The Court held that the government’s prosecution of the defendant under 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(3) was inconsistent with the Second Amendment. The government had relied solely on his regular marijuana use, without a further showing. He had admitted to using marijuana about every other day. The Court described the decision as a narrow one. It did not decide whether the statute applies to people who are addicted, or to people who are presently intoxicated. It also did not decide whether the government could prove, in a particular case, that a person’s drug use made him a danger to himself or others. Hemani is therefore important. However, it is not a blanket rule that cannabis users may lawfully possess firearms.

The Path Congress Created to Restore Federal Firearm Rights

One provision of the Gun Control Act provided a path for an individual to seek reinstatement of his or her Second Amendment rights. The text appears at 18 U.S.C. 925(c) and states:

A person who is prohibited from possessing, shipping, transporting, or receiving firearms or ammunition may make application to the Attorney General for relief from the disabilities imposed by Federal laws with respect to the acquisition, receipt, transfer, shipment, transportation, or possession of firearms, and the Attorney General may grant such relief if it is established to his satisfaction that the circumstances regarding the disability, and the applicant’s record and reputation, are such that the applicant will not be likely to act in a manner dangerous to public safety and that the granting of the relief would not be contrary to the public interest. Any person whose application for relief from disabilities is denied by the Attorney General may file a petition with the United States district court for the district in which he resides for a judicial review of such denial. The court may in its discretion admit additional evidence where failure to do so would result in a miscarriage of justice. A licensed importer, licensed manufacturer, licensed dealer, or licensed collector conducting operations under this chapter, who makes application for relief from the disabilities incurred under this chapter, shall not be barred by such disability from further operations under his license pending final action on an application for relief filed pursuant to this section. Whenever the Attorney General grants relief to any person pursuant to this section he shall promptly publish in the Federal Register notice of such action, together with the reasons therefor.

Why That Path Did Not Work for Decades

That seems pretty straightforward, right? File a petition with the Department of Justice and seek, essentially, a firearms “pardon.” There was one catch. Congress tasked the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives with processing the applications. For more than three decades, however, Congress withheld the funding needed to do so. Annual appropriations restrictions barred the Bureau from using funds to investigate or act on these petitions.

That funding gap had real consequences for people who wanted to restore federal firearm rights. In United States v. Bean, 537 U.S. 71 (2002), the Supreme Court addressed the Bureau’s failure to act. The Court held that a failure to act was not a “denial” that courts could review under the statute. For many people, that left no practical administrative path at all. Some still pursued federal litigation in the district where they resided. That process could literally drag on for years.

How the Department of Justice Revived the Process to Restore Federal Firearm Rights

Early in the second Trump Administration, however, the Department of Justice signaled its intention to revive the 925(c) petition process. I wrote about that proposed rule when it was first announced. The Department also granted relief in a small number of individual cases before the current public program opened. Actor Mel Gibson had his federal firearm rights restored on March 31, 2025. At that time, the Department restricted the application process to a handful of applicants. The Attorney General’s notice, later published in the Federal Register, listed Mr. Gibson and nine other individuals.

The Final Rule and the Staggered Rollout

Then, in August 2026, the Department of Justice issued its final rule regarding 925(c) petitions. The Federal Register published the rule on August 20, 2026. It became effective on September 21, 2026. The rule created an application portal, instructions for applicants, and a list of presumptive disqualifiers. It also set forth a staggered rollout. That rollout limited the number of applicants who could apply in 2026, and then expanded the number in 2027. The Office of the Pardon Attorney now administers the process for people who apply to restore federal firearm rights. By contrast, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives no longer does so.

The Department’s Federal Firearm Rights Restoration program website is the official source. Use it to review current eligibility information, required documents, and the online application. As set forth on that site, the Department is staggering the rollout of the program. Applications opened to invited candidates on September 25, 2026. The Department began accepting the first 5,000 public applications on November 4, 2026. Those slots were first come, first served, for the remainder of the year.

The January 2027 Language on the Department Website

The website states that on January 4, 2027, application is open to the public. It also, confusingly, sets forth that “500 more candidates can apply and the application fee will begin.”

That wording is as unclear on the official site as it sounds. The Department’s own frequently asked questions explain the 500-applicant phase. According to that guidance, this phase will test the online payment portal. The Department has scheduled the application fee to begin at that stage. Once the Department is confident in its processes, it says it will open access more broadly. Because this program is new, those details may continue to change. Therefore, anyone who wants to restore federal firearm rights should read the current instructions on the Department’s website before starting.

Relief Is Individual and Does Not Change State Law

Restoration is neither automatic nor guaranteed. Each applicant must establish certain facts to the Attorney General’s satisfaction. Those facts are the circumstances of the prohibition, together with the applicant’s record, reputation, and subsequent conduct. The showing must be that the applicant is not likely to act in a manner dangerous to public safety. The showing must also be that granting relief would not be contrary to the public interest. Any relief the Attorney General grants removes only applicable federal firearms disabilities. It does not override independent restrictions imposed by state law.

Start by Checking Whether You Are Presumptively Disqualified

For those who want to restore federal firearm rights, the first step is to check to see if one is “presumptively disqualified.” The Department has identified several types of presumptive disqualifiers. Those types are current status, permanent, ten-year, five-year, and reapplication. You must disclose all of them in an application. You must also disclose past convictions even after an expungement, a pardon, a set-aside, or another later change.

Examples of Disqualifiers That Can Block Efforts to Restore Federal Firearm Rights

The official list is longer than any short summary. In addition, the Department may look at the conduct underlying an offense, not only the name of the charge. Some examples include:

• An individual awaiting sentencing for any crime.
• Anyone in a diversionary program in lieu of conviction.
• A fugitive from justice.
• An unlawful user of a controlled substance (except for cannabis).
• Anyone convicted of an offense involving the death of another person.
• Anyone convicted of sexual abuse.
• Anyone convicted of kidnapping.
• Anyone convicted of robbery, burglary, carjacking, or arson.
• Anyone convicted of intimate partner violence or stalking.

The current-status list also includes, among other things, a person who is incarcerated or still serving any part of a sentence. It includes a person under a qualifying restraining order. It also includes a person required to register as a sex offender for an offense that prohibits firearm possession. The Department’s rule excepts people whose only unlawful controlled-substance use is marijuana from that particular current-status presumption. That exception is a rule about how the Department screens applications. It is not a determination that cannabis use is irrelevant to federal firearm law. It should be read together with the narrow decision in Hemani discussed above.

Time-Limited Presumptions

Additionally, absent extraordinary circumstances, certain time-limited presumptions apply. Anyone with a felony narcotics conviction within the past 10 years faces a presumption against relief. So do offenses involving animal abuse, threats of violence, and domestic violence. The Department’s rule also looks at whether the person served any part of the sentence during that period, not only the date of conviction. Anyone convicted of a felony not enumerated (such as forgery or theft) within the past 5 years is also presumptively disqualified. The same is true of a person convicted of certain other assaultive or threatening misdemeanor conduct in that five-year window.

Extraordinary Circumstances and Federal Court

A presumptive disqualifier does not forbid a person from submitting an application. The Department does permit an applicant to restore federal firearm rights if the applicant can demonstrate “extraordinary circumstances.” Absent those circumstances, however, anyone who is “presumptively disqualified” will not receive relief pursuant to the Department of Justice application process. That does not foreclose seeking relief in federal court. The statute itself permits judicial review after the Attorney General denies an application. The person may file that petition in the United States District Court for the district in which the person resides. Separate constitutional challenges to an underlying prohibition, of the kind that produced Hemani, are a different kind of case. Neither path offers a guaranteed result. For people facing or considering federal criminal proceedings, counsel should evaluate those questions against the actual record and the current state of the law.

What the Application Requires to Restore Federal Firearm Rights

Individuals who are federally prohibited may submit an online application via the Department of Justice website. That includes people who hope to overcome a presumptive disqualifier by showing extraordinary circumstances. Anyone seeking to restore federal firearm rights should gather records first. Required documentation includes:

• All state arrest records for the past 25 years, or since the applicant turned 18, whichever is shorter. Those records should cover each place the applicant has lived, and any other arrest.
• For convictions, the charging document, such as the criminal information or indictment.
• The judgment of conviction.
• Docket records showing full completion of any sentence, including payment of fines and restitution.
• Where they apply, a plea agreement, the factual basis for a plea, and a presentence report.
• Mental health commitment records, when that is the basis for the prohibition. Those records include the commitment or adjudication order, related medical records, and a current certification from a licensed mental health professional.
• Misdemeanor domestic violence conviction records.
• Records relating to any state-level pardon or expungement.

Character References, Fingerprints, and the Fee to Restore Federal Firearm Rights

The Department of Justice website also instructs applicants to submit character references, an electronic fingerprint, and a $30 application fee. The current process requires three character references. A reference cannot be related to the applicant by blood or marriage. That reference must have known the applicant for at least three years. A reference also cannot currently be prohibited from possessing a firearm under federal law. The Department may contact those references and ask them to affirm specific statements under penalty of perjury. It is wise to confirm that a chosen reference is willing and able to complete that process before submitting the person’s name.

Applicants obtain electronic fingerprints after they submit the first part of the online application. A participating United States Post Office takes the fingerprints. The application fee is $30. The Department’s rollout schedule states that the fee will begin on January 4, 2027. An applicant may also request a waiver or reduction, including for economic hardship. Applicants should rely on the current instructions on the official website for fee and payment details at the time they apply.

The 30-Day Deadline and Missing Records

There is also a deadline that is easy to miss. Once an applicant starts the electronic application, the applicant generally has 30 days to complete and submit it. If the applicant misses that window, the applicant has to start the process over. If the Department later notifies an applicant that an application is incomplete, the applicant generally has 30 days to correct and resubmit it. For those reasons, it is important to gather records before opening the online form. If a required record is unavailable for reasons outside the applicant’s control, the rules provide for a sworn statement. That statement must describe the contents of the missing record and the efforts made to obtain it. An applicant cannot simply ignore missing paperwork.

Pennsylvania Records, Expungement, and State Firearm Law

Pennsylvania rules also matter for people who want to restore federal firearm rights. Some states, like Pennsylvania, may remove arrest records from public view. In most cases, the authorities destroy records after an expungement. That can make the Department’s document requirements difficult to satisfy without help. A Pennsylvania limited-access or Clean Slate record may no longer appear in a public search and still exist in official repositories. An expunged record may be much harder, or impossible, to retrieve in its original form. You may want to retain local counsel to help collect the necessary records. You will also want to gather character reference letters for submission.

Finding Records That Are No Longer Public

Two further Pennsylvania points matter just as much as finding the paperwork.

First, the Department still requires applicants to disclose past convictions even after an expungement, a pardon, or a set-aside. A record that is no longer public is not a record that an applicant may omit from a federal application. If an applicant cannot obtain a required document, the sworn-statement procedure described above is the place to explain that fact, not silence.

Pennsylvania Law Is Separate From Efforts to Restore Federal Firearm Rights

Second, a successful application to restore federal firearm rights covers only the federal disability. Pennsylvania has its own firearm restrictions under section 6105 of the Pennsylvania Crimes Code. That statute prohibits possession by people with certain convictions and by people who meet other listed criteria. It also provides its own court procedures for seeking relief in qualifying cases. In some of those cases, a full gubernatorial pardon may provide a path. In others, a person may file a petition in the court of common pleas. One of the statutory conditions can involve federal relief together with a ten-year period since the most recent qualifying conviction. That period does not count time spent incarcerated. Not every prohibition is eligible for every form of relief. A federal grant does not, by itself, authorize a person to possess a firearm in Pennsylvania.

The reverse is also true. Relief granted under Pennsylvania law does not always remove a federal prohibition. These are two separate legal questions. The person has to answer both questions before taking any action involving a firearm. A Pennsylvania conviction, pardon, or firearm charge may still intersect with federal law. People in that position should have the actual record reviewed with that distinction in mind. The same is true for people considering a pardon or other post-conviction relief.

What You Should Do If You Want to Restore Federal Firearm Rights

So what should you do if you want to restore federal firearm rights? Start by reviewing the “presumptive disqualifiers” section of the website. Next, obtain the necessary records for any arrests or convictions, and do that before you start the online application. Confirm whether any Pennsylvania record has been expunged, sealed, or removed from public view. Then plan how you will disclose what the Department requires, and how you will document what still exists. Gather three qualifying character references. Make sure they understand what the Department will ask them to affirm.

Bear in mind that this process is new. No one can estimate how long it will take, or how many applications the Department will receive in 2027. The existence of an application portal is not a promise. It does not guarantee a particular outcome, a particular timeline, or a particular effect on Pennsylvania law. I am hopeful that this blog will help anyone seeking to restore federal firearm rights. I also hope it provides clear guidance in how to proceed.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a presumptive disqualifier, and does it mean I cannot apply?

A presumptive disqualifier is a status, a conviction, or a period of recent conduct named in the Department of Justice rule. Under that rule, the Department will deny the application unless the applicant shows extraordinary circumstances. It does not bar a person from submitting an application. It does mean that, absent extraordinary circumstances, the Department does not expect to grant relief through this process. The official list is detailed. In addition, the Department may consider underlying conduct, not only the title of an offense.

If a Pennsylvania conviction was expunged or sealed, do I still have to disclose it?

Yes. The Department requires applicants to disclose past convictions even after an expungement, a pardon, a set-aside, or a similar later change. Pennsylvania may remove some records from public view. The authorities often destroy expunged records, which is why collecting documents can be difficult. The duty to disclose remains. If an applicant cannot obtain a record, the rules provide for a sworn statement explaining the missing document and the efforts made to get it.

How long do I have to finish the online application to restore federal firearm rights?

Once the applicant starts the electronic application, the applicant generally has 30 days to complete and submit it. If that period expires, the applicant has to start over. The Department encourages people to collect required documents before beginning. That is especially important for older Pennsylvania cases, where agencies may archive, seal, or withdraw records from public view.

Why does the Department of Justice website say that only 500 more candidates can apply on January 4, 2027?

The official website uses that wording, and it is confusing. According to the Department’s frequently asked questions, the 500-applicant phase is meant to test the online payment portal. The fee is set to begin at that time. Once the Department is confident in its processes, it says it will open the program more broadly. Applicants should check the live program website for the current stage of the rollout, because those details can change.

Does the Supreme Court decision in United States v. Hemani automatically restore federal firearm rights for cannabis users?

No. In Hemani, the Court held that a prosecution under 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(3) based solely on the defendant’s regular marijuana use, without a further showing, was inconsistent with the Second Amendment. The Court called the decision narrow. It left other applications of the statute undecided, including cases involving addiction, present intoxication, or individualized proof of danger. The Department’s application rule also excepts marijuana-only use from one current-status presumptive disqualifier. Neither of those developments is an automatic way to restore federal firearm rights. Neither grants permission to possess a firearm.

If my firearm rights were already restored under Pennsylvania law, do I still need to apply to the Department of Justice?

Often, yes, if a federal prohibition still applies. A state restoration, a Pennsylvania court order, or even a state pardon may not remove a disability imposed by federal law. The same is true in the other direction. A federal grant does not automatically remove a Pennsylvania prohibition under section 6105. The applicant has to examine each system on its own terms.

When does the $30 fee to restore federal firearm rights apply, and can it be waived?

The Department’s program website states that the $30 application fee will begin on January 4, 2027. Its frequently asked questions also describe a $30 fee. They say that an applicant may request a waiver or modification, including because of indigency. There may be additional costs for fingerprints and criminal-history records. Applicants should follow the fee instructions posted on the official website at the time they apply.

If you are considering an application to restore federal firearm rights, I can help. I can review your record, help assemble the required documents, and explain how Pennsylvania law may still apply. You can schedule a free consultation.

This article is for general informational purposes and is not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Legal outcomes depend on the facts and circumstances of each case.