Can I give a gun to a family member in California?

"Immediate family member" means parent and child, or grandparent and grandchild (Penal Code 16720). DOJ's FAQ says the exemption "does not apply to step-children/step-parents, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, or cousins" (DOJ FAQ).

Two people who are not dealers must normally complete a firearm transfer through a licensed dealer (Penal Code 27545). Penal Code 27875(a) lifts that rule for a transfer "by gift, bequest, intestate succession, or other means" when all of these are true:

1. The transfer is infrequent. That means fewer than six transactions and no more than 50 firearms in a calendar year (Penal Code 16730).
2. It is between members of the same immediate family.
3. The recipient reports it to DOJ within 30 days of taking possession.
4. The recipient has a valid FSC (for a handgun, an unexpired Handgun Safety Certificate also works).
5. The recipient is 18 or older.

DOJ's FAQ adds that the recipient must not be in a prohibited category and the firearm must be legal to possess (DOJ FAQ).

The recipient files the report. It covers the recipient's information, how title was obtained and from whom, and a description of the firearm (Penal Code 27875(a)(3)). DOJ then checks state and federal records to confirm the recipient is not prohibited (Penal Code 27875(f)). Knowingly giving false information is a misdemeanor (Penal Code 27875(c)).

The current form, BOF 4544A, states that "a total processing fee of $19.00 must accompany this report" and asks for the recipient's FSC number (form). DOJ's reporting page says the form is for a firearm "acquired in-state as a gift from an immediate family member" (DOJ reporting page).

DOJ has proposed raising the fee to $31.00, plus $5.00 for each additional firearm on the form. The notice was published June 12, 2026, and a public hearing was set for August 17, 2026. As checked on 2026-11-10, the page still listed the rule as proposed, with no final statement of reasons posted (DOJ regulations page).

The statute requires "a valid firearm safety certificate for any firearm" (Penal Code 27875(a)(4)), and a separate section bars receiving any firearm without one (Penal Code 31615). Exemptions are listed in Penal Code 31700.

DOJ's general FAQ still describes the certificate and the report as handgun requirements and refers to a Handgun Safety Certificate (DOJ FAQ). That page has not been updated. The statute controls, and since January 1, 2015, it has required a Firearm Safety Certificate for any firearm; the current form and DOJ's reporting page also cover any firearm. The FSC practice test covers the exam.

DOJ's FAQ says a transfer between spouses or registered domestic partners is exempt from the dealer requirement, and it describes the same report and $19 fee for handguns (DOJ FAQ). As with family gifts, the FAQ's handgun-only wording is out of date. The statutes treat it as taking a firearm "by operation of law," which includes a transmutation of property under the Family Code and a firearm passing to a surviving spouse (Penal Code 16990(g), (h)). In those cases the person must obtain an FSC before taking title or possession and report to DOJ within 30 days (Penal Code 27920(a)(2)).

A permanent transfer to anyone outside the definitions above goes through a licensed dealer (Penal Code 27545). The private party transfer guide explains that process.

A firearm may be loaned for up to 30 days to a spouse, registered domestic partner, parent, child, sibling, grandparent, or grandchild, including step and adoptive relations, if the loan is infrequent and for a lawful purpose, the borrower has an FSC, and, for a handgun, the handgun is registered to the lender (Penal Code 27880).

Federal law bars a private person from transferring a firearm to another unlicensed person who lives in a different state, with exceptions for bequests, intestate succession, and temporary loans for lawful sporting purposes (18 U.S.C. 922(a)(5)). California separately requires a resident who obtains a firearm outside the state to have it delivered to a California dealer first (Penal Code 27585).

Inheritance is the exception. A California resident who acquires a firearm from an immediate family member "by bequest or intestate succession" may bring it in without the dealer step if the person has an FSC, is 18 or older, receives firearms this way only infrequently, and reports to DOJ within 30 days (Penal Code 27875(b)). The estate guide covers inherited firearms.

The family exemption lifts the dealer requirement, not other laws.

• Giving or lending an assault weapon is a felony, except as the assault weapon chapter provides (Penal Code 30600).
• Giving or lending a large-capacity magazine is a crime, with the exceptions that chapter provides (Penal Code 32310(a)).
• The handgun roster rules do not apply to a transfer that complies with an exemption to the dealer requirement, which includes the family exemption (Penal Code 32110(b)).