Federal law requires firearms dealers to obtain a license from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF), although resource limitations prevent the ATF from properly overseeing all its licensees.

Michigan does not require firearms dealers to obtain a license.

When selling a firearm in Michigan, a federally licensed firearms dealer must:

• Provide a free “brochure or pamphlet that includes safety information on the use and storage of the firearm in a home environment;”

• Ensuring that the purchaser has either a locking device or a gun case (see the section entitled Locking Devices in Michigan for details); and

• Sign a statement and require the buyer to sign a statement that the sale is in compliance with the aforementioned requirements under Michigan law.¹

A federally licensed dealer must also post a notice, conspicuously at the entrances, exits and points of sale on the premises of his or her business, stating “[y]ou may be criminally and civilly liable for any harm caused by a person less than 18 years of age who lawfully gains unsupervised access to your firearm if unlawfully stored.”²

For laws:

• Applicable to both licensed and unlicensed sellers of firearms, see the Universal Background Checks in Michigan section;

• Requiring firearms dealers to conduct a background check on the purchaser, see the Michigan Background Checks section;

• Requiring dealers and other sellers to record firearm sales and report them to law enforcement, see the Retention of Sales/Background Checks Records in Michigan  section.

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1. Mich. Comp. Laws Serv. § 28.435(1) – (4). The dealer must retain a copy of the signed statements for a minimum of six years. Mich. Comp. Laws Serv. § 28.435(5).[↩]
2. Mich. Comp. Laws Serv. § 28.435(6).[↩]