California · Through 2026-09-13

PEN § 27530

(a) No person shall sell or otherwise transfer ownership of a firearm that is not imprinted with a serial number imprinted by a federal licensee authorized to serialize firearms.
(b) This section does not apply to any of the following:
(1) A firearm made or assembled prior to December 16, 1968, that is not a handgun.
(2) A firearm that is a curio or relic, or an antique firearm, as those terms are defined in Section 479.11 of Title 27 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
(3) A firearm that has been entered, before July 1, 2018, into the centralized registry set forth in Section 11106, as being owned by a specific individual or entity, if that firearm has assigned to it a distinguishing number or mark of identification because the department accepted entry of that firearm into the centralized registry.
(4) The transfer, surrender, or sale of a firearm to a law enforcement agency.
(5) The sale or transfer of ownership of a firearm to a federally licensed firearms manufacturer or importer, or any other federal licensee authorized to serialize firearms.

Where this section sits in the code

Penal Code - PEN
PART 6. CONTROL OF DEADLY WEAPONS [16000. - 34400.]
TITLE 4. FIREARMS [23500. - 34400.]
DIVISION 6. SALE, LEASE, OR TRANSFER OF FIREARMS [26500. - 28490.]
CHAPTER 4. Crimes Relating to Sale, Lease, or Transfer of Firearms [27500. - 28000.]
ARTICLE 1. Crimes Relating to Sale, Lease, or Transfer of Firearms [27500. - 27595.1.]

(a) No person shall sell or otherwise transfer ownership of a firearm that is not imprinted with a serial number imprinted by a federal licensee authorized to serialize firearms.

(b) This section does not apply to any of the following:

(1) A firearm made or assembled prior to December 16, 1968, that is not a handgun.

(2) A firearm that is a curio or relic, or an antique firearm, as those terms are defined in Section 479.11 of Title 27 of the Code of Federal Regulations.

(3) A firearm that has been entered, before July 1, 2018, into the centralized registry set forth in Section 11106, as being owned by a specific individual or entity, if that firearm has assigned to it a distinguishing number or mark of identification because the department accepted entry of that firearm into the centralized registry.

(4) The transfer, surrender, or sale of a firearm to a law enforcement agency.

(5) The sale or transfer of ownership of a firearm to a federally licensed firearms manufacturer or importer, or any other federal licensee authorized to serialize firearms.

Collected 2026-09-14T05:56:33Z. Source file · JSON

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