Publications

These are management system documents utilized by ATF Laboratories. They are provided for informational purposes only.

Published/Revised: October 9, 2026

The purpose of this open letter is to notify all federal firearm licensees (FFLs) and the public of guidance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) regarding the applicability of certain provisions of National Firearms Act (NFA) to firearms that are no longer taxed pursuant to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, Pub. L. No. 119-21, 139 Stat. 72 (2025). Congress reduced the transfer and making taxes to $0 in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act for certain weapons and devices. These include short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns, silencers and “any other weapon[s]” as defined in 26 U.S.C. § 5845(e).

Published/Revised: October 9, 2026

ATF’s National Tracing Center (NTC) identifies shooters within hours of mass casualty events. It dismantles trafficking networks moving weapons to cartels and foreign criminal organizations. It gives investigators the lead they need when no other lead exists. Read the full fact sheet to learn more about how the NTC works.

Published/Revised: October 6, 2026

NICS Alert Policy memo, dated October 2, 2026. This memo provides updates to the April 2025 NICS Alert Policy memo and should be utilized to detail the new process for entering NICS alerts. While the overall process is the same, NICS alerts are now automated through ATF’s Case Management System (CMS). The CMS will guide agents through each step of the workflow process.

Published/Revised: October 2, 2026

2025 - Firearms Commerce in the United States Report

Published/Revised: October 1, 2026

This report provides detailed firearms trace data to assist law enforcement with criminal investigations. It includes statistics from Jan. 1 - Dec. 31, 2025.

Published/Revised: September 21, 2026

This report provides detailed firearms trace data to assist law enforcement with criminal investigations. It includes statistics from Jan. 1 - Dec. 31, 2025.

Published/Revised: September 21, 2026

This report provides detailed firearms trace data to assist law enforcement with criminal investigations. It includes statistics from Jan. 1 - Dec. 31, 2025.

Published/Revised: September 21, 2026

This report provides detailed firearms trace data to assist law enforcement with criminal investigations. It includes statistics from Jan. 1 - Dec. 31, 2025.

Published/Revised: September 21, 2026

Information from the 2024 Firearms Trace Data report. Data includes firearms recovered and traced in the United States and territories, sorted by age of possessor.

Published/Revised: September 21, 2026

This report provides detailed firearms trace data to assist law enforcement with criminal investigations. It includes statistics from Jan. 1 - Dec. 31, 2025.

Published/Revised: September 21, 2026

This report provides detailed firearms trace data to assist law enforcement with criminal investigations. It includes statistics from Jan. 1 - Dec. 31, 2025.

Published/Revised: September 21, 2026

This report provides detailed firearms trace data to assist law enforcement with criminal investigations. It includes statistics from Jan. 1 - Dec. 31, 2025.

Published/Revised: September 21, 2026

The purpose of this open letter is to notify all federal firearm licensees (FFLs) of guidance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) regarding modifying firearm silencers registered in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record (NFRTR). A complete silencer may be repaired, or the caliber may be changed, and such actions will not be considered a new making under the National Firearms Act (NFA), provided the action does not result in destroying the serialized “frame or receiver,” remove, obliterate, or alter required markings, or make a new firearm.

Published/Revised: September 8, 2026

This report provides detailed firearms trace data to assist law enforcement in Canada with criminal investigations. It includes statistics from January 1, 2020 - December 31, 2025, on firearms recovered and traced, firearm types, calibers, source states, time-to-crime rates, possessor age, top recovery locations and more.

Published/Revised: August 25, 2026

This report provides detailed firearms trace data to assist law enforcement in Mexico with criminal investigations. It includes statistics from January 1, 2020 – December 31, 2025, on firearms recovered and traced, firearm types, calibers, source states, time-to-crime rates, possessor age, top recovery locations and more.

Published/Revised: August 25, 2026

This report provides detailed firearms trace data to assist law enforcement in the Caribbean with criminal investigations. It includes statistics from January 1, 2025 - December 31, 2025, on firearms recovered and traced, firearm types, calibers, source states, time-to-crime rates, possessor age, top recovery locations and more.

Published/Revised: August 25, 2026

The Annual Explosives Incident Report reviews bombing and explosives-related incidents from information reported to the United States Bomb Data Center (USBDC) through the Bomb Arson Tracking System (BATS) and open-source information collected through the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), Office for Bombing Prevention (OBP), Technical Resource for Incident Prevention (TRIPwire). 

Published/Revised: August 25, 2026

The 2025 Arson Incident Report (AIR) reviews fire and arson-related incidents from information reported to the United States Bomb Data Center (USBDC) through ATF’s Bomb Arson Tracking System (BATS). 

Published/Revised: August 25, 2026

The annual Arson Incident Report (AIR) reviews fire and arson-related incidents from information reported to the United States Bomb Data Center (USBDC) through the Bomb Arson Tracking System (BATS). 

Published/Revised: August 25, 2026

Information from the 2024 Firearms Trace Data report. Data includes firearms recovered and traced in the United States and territories, sorted by age of possessor.

Published/Revised: August 3, 2026

This application for a federal firearms license (FFL) should be used to apply for all FFL types - any person(s) or entity who intend to engage in business as a firearms or ammunition importer or manufacturer, or firearms dealer, in interstate or foreign commerce; as well as those who wish to engage in curio and relic collecting activity. 

Published/Revised: July 10, 2026

ATF has issued a ruling determining that the projectiles and projectile cores used to assemble SS109/M855 cartridges are exempt from the definition of “armor piercing ammunition” under 18 U.S.C. § 921(a)(17)(B). Although SS109/M855 cartridges themselves were exempted in 1986 as primarily intended for sporting purposes, their steel‑core projectiles remained classified as armor‑piercing. ATF has now concluded that these projectiles are likewise primarily intended for sporting purposes and therefore must be included within the existing exemption. As a result, they may be manufactured, sold, and delivered in accordance with the Gun Control Act provisions applicable to ammunition under 18 U.S.C. § 921(a)(17)(A).

Published/Revised: July 2, 2026

ATF has issued a ruling determining that the BolaWrap 150, a remote non‑lethal restraint device, is not a “firearm” under the Gun Control Act (GCA) and not an “any other weapon” (AOW) under the National Firearms Act (NFA). Because the device functions as an instrument of restraint rather than an instrument of offensive or defensive combat, it does not meet the statutory definition of a firearm under 18 U.S.C. § 921(a)(3). Citing the Supreme Court’s 2025 definition of “weapon” as an instrument of combat, ATF concluded that the BolaWrap 150 is neither a firearm nor a weapon‑like device regulated under the NFA, 26 U.S.C. §§ 5845(a) and 5845(e).

Published/Revised: July 2, 2026

This report provides detailed firearms trace data to assist law enforcement in Alaska with criminal investigations. It includes statistics from January 1 - December 31, 2025, on firearms recovered and traced, firearm types, calibers, source states, time-to-crime rates, possessor age, top recovery locations and more.

Published/Revised: May 24, 2026