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U.S. Department of Justice
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Criminal Justice Information Services Division

NICS

GUIDE FOR

APPEALING A

FIREARM TRANSFER

DENIAL.  

YOUR RIGHTS

AND

RESPONSIBILITIES

NTN:_______________________

If you have been denied a firearm transfer because of a record in the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), you may submit a request to appeal your denial decision. The provisions for appeals are outlined by the NICS Regulations at Title 28, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 25.10, and Subsection 103 (f) and (g) and Section 104 of the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act.

REQUESTING THE REASON FOR YOUR DENIAL

You may request the reason for your denial by writing to:

Federal Bureau of Investigation
NICS Section
Appeal Services Team, Module A-1
Post Office Box 4278
Clarksburg, WV 26302-9922

• You must include your complete mailing address in the request. You may also submit your request by facsimile or by e-mail. (See reverse side for the NICS facsimile number and e-mail address.)
  
• You must include your NICS Transaction Number (NTN) with your written request. The NTN can be obtained from the FFL.
  
• The NICS Appeal Services Team (AST) cannot initiate an appeal for you at the request of another individual without your written and signed authorization.
  
• You may submit your fingerprints, which must be rolled by a law enforcement agency, with your initial written correspondence. The submission of fingerprints with your appeal request may hasten the appeal process for you.
  
• The NICS AST will respond to your written request by providing the reason for your denial within five business days after receiving your correspondence.
  
  

�APPEALING YOUR DENIAL

� The following information outlines the steps you must� take to either challenge your record or make a claim that the record used as the basis for your denial �pertains to someone other than you.

Questions of Identity

In cases involving criminal history records, if fingerprints are not submitted with your appeal request, you may be required to submit your fingerprints to establish positive proof of your identity. If your fingerprints are required by the NICS Section and you wish to further the appeal process, you must have your fingerprints rolled by a local law enforcement agency. The law enforcement agency rolling your
fingerprints must stamp its agency name, address and telephone number on the fingerprint card and the reason fingerprinted must be marked “For NICS Purposes.”

Record Challenges

You may challenge the accuracy of the record used in the evaluation of your denial or declare that your rights to obtain a firearm have been restored, etc. If you have any additional information (e.g., court documentation) that may assist the NICS AST in correcting or updating the record, you should attach the information to your written correspondence. The NICS AST will evaluate your information
and provide you with its decision on your appeal in writing.

• If the NICS AST is unable to resolve your appeal, you will be provided information to contact the agency that created the record. For correction of the record, you must follow procedures established by the state or federal agency that maintains the original record. The FBI, as custodian of arrest information that has been submitted voluntarily by local, state and/or federal law enforcement agencies, does not have the authority to change such records unless notified to do so by an authorized criminal justice agency.

You may submit any information to the originating agency that would assist with the correcting and/or updating of your record. (This may also hasten the appeal process for you.)

SUCCESSFUL APPEAL

����If your appeal is successful, you will be notified by the NICS AST that your denial has been overturned and that you are eligible to receive a firearm. You will be issued documentation which must be presented to the FFL who initiated your background check.

In the Alternative

If you continue to experience transaction denials or lengthy delays as a result of subsequent firearm background checks, you may be eligible for entry into the NICS Section’s Voluntary Appeal File (VAF). The entry of your voluntarily-provided descriptive information with your (required) fingerprints plus any other supporting documentation may help to prevent future NICS background check denials or lengthy delays. For more information pertaining to the VAF and eligibility requirements, etc., you may contact the NICS Customer Service (number provided on the reverse of this brochure).

What Prohibits an Individual From the Transfer or Possession of a Firearm?

A deny message from the NICS indicates that either you or another individual with a similar name and/or similar descriptive features has been matched with either federally prohibitive criteria or state law.

Are you or have you been:

• Convicted in any court of a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year, or any state offense classified by the state as a misdemeanor and punishable by a term of imprisonment
  of more than two years?
  
• Under indictment or information for a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year?
  
• A fugitive from justice (the subject of an active criminal warrant)?
  
• An unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance?
  
• Adjudicated as a mental defective or involuntarily committed to a mental institution?
  
• An illegal or unlawful alien; or a nonimmigrant who fails to meet certain exceptions to possess a firearm?
  
• Dishonorably discharged from the U.S. Armed Forces?
  
• A renouncer of U.S. citizenship?
  
• Subject to a court order restraining you from harassing, stalking, or threatening your child or an intimate partner or child of such partner?
  
• Convicted in any court of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence?
  
  

NOTE: The NICS must deny firearm transfers based on applicable state law as well.

NICS Section Information:

NICS Appeal Facsimile
1-304-625-0535

Telecommunications Device for the
Deaf (TDD)
1-877-NICS-TTY

NICS Web Site
www.fbi.gov/hq/cjisd/nics/index.htm

NICS E-mail Address
a_nics@leo.gov

NICS Appeals E-Mail Address
nicsappeals@leo.gov

NICS Customer Service
1-877-444-NICS (6427)

March 2006