Non-resident dilemma

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For some reason I just now thought of this. Sorry for being long-winded.

I'll be moving from CT to VA in August. I have already acquired the VA non-resident CCP application (though I will be in VA for a long time, I don't know that I'll be there "forever," so I'm going to remain a NR for a while). Once everything is in order I'm going to submit the NR application. Everything on that end seems fine.

Where I am confused, though, is with gun purchases. According to the VSP website (http://www.vsp.state.va.us/Firearms_VFTP.shtm):

Federal law prohibits the sale or transfer of a handgun to a non-resident of the state in which the handgun is being purchased.

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So when I get to VA, I'll have a NR CCP. I obviously cannot purchase a handgun in VA since I will still be a resident of CT. What, then, are my options for actually getting a handgun in VA? So far, I have come up with these:

Those are the only two options I've come up with, but both include having a CCP for the state in which I am legally a resident--CT. I should have ample time to get one before I head down to VA, but I just wnat to make sure that my line of thinking is correct.

Thanks for any and all suggestions.

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You are a resident as soon as you move in. If your renting or buying a place in Virginia... you live here.

To prove residency... you would need to show something with your name and Virginia address. Best thing to do is turn in for state drivers license and get a Virginia license. Then your definitely a resident!!!

State code also cites that you MUST change to a Virginia OL if you live here.

http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+46.2-308
§ 46.2-308. Temporary exemption for new resident licensed under laws of another state; privately owned vehicle driver's licenses.

A resident over the age of sixteen years and three months who has been duly licensed as a driver under a law of another state or country requiring the licensing of drivers shall, for the first sixty days of his residency in the Commonwealth, be permitted, without a Virginia license, to drive a motor vehicle on the highways of the Commonwealth.

Persons to whom military privately-owned vehicle driver's licenses have been issued by the Department of Defense shall, for the first sixty days of their residency in the Commonwealth, be permitted, without a Virginia license, to drive motor vehicles on the highways of the Commonwealth.

(1976, c. 17, § 46.1-355.1; 1989, cc. 705, 727; 1994, c. 356; 2002, cc. 755, 767, 834.)



Here is a definition from a code section.

http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+38.2-1800

"Resident" means

(i) an individual residing in Virginia;

(ii) an individual residing outside of Virginia whose principal place of business is in Virginia, who is able to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Commission that the laws of his home state prevent him from obtaining a resident agent license in that state, and who affirmatively chooses to qualify as and be treated as a resident of Virginia for purposes of licensing and continuing education, both in Virginia and in the state in which the individual resides, if applicable;

(iii) a partnership duly formed and recorded in Virginia;

(iv) a corporation incorporated and existing under the laws of Virginia;

(v) a limited liability company organized and existing under the laws of Virginia; or

(vi) a foreign business entity that is not licensed as a resident agent in any other jurisdiction, and that demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Commission that its principal place of business is within the Commonwealth of Virginia.



http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+38.2-1800.1

§ 38.2-1800.1. Proof of residency.

A. For purposes of this chapter, an individual shall be deemed to be a resident of this Commonwealth provided such individual

(i) maintains his principal place of residence within this Commonwealth, or satisfies the requirements set forth in subsection B of § 38.2-1836;

(ii) declares himself to be a Virginia resident on his federal tax return; and

(iii) declares himself to be a Virginia resident for purposes of paying Virginia income tax and personal property taxes; and provided that such individual is able to document the above to the satisfaction of the Commission.

The Commission may also consider other documentation furnished by the individual, including, but not limited to, a valid current Virginia driver's license or voter registration card, as additional proof of residency.

.....Snip

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SBD (Silent But Deadly?-lol), Sounds like you're a Navy Submariner doing the old Groton to Norfolk berth shift! If you're military and living in VA under orders that counts also.

Welcome to OCDO!

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In my personal opinion, I would abide by whatever the minimum statutory lenght of time is required to establish residency in VA and then become a Virgin---ian. It is not a permanent situation and you can always go back. The firearm purchase becomes moot.

I do not know if an FFL would sell a handgun to a person listing a residence in another state , even though he/she is still a legal resident of the purchase state?
Temporary residence can create there own problems.

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LEO--thanks for the reply. I've already signed a lease agreement for an apartment in Charlottesville. So you're saying as soon as I move in (and maybe already), I'm a resident of VA? And according to the code you quoted, it sounds as if I have only 60 days to go ahead and get VA plates and a VA license. Too bad it's so expensive (in CT at least). I need to look into all that since my car and auto insurance are in my parents' names. So I guess it's not possible to live in VA for five years and remain a non-resident for that whole time. :banghead:

Thanks Bob. I'm actually not military--just a grad student. And unfortunately my handle doesn't pertain to farts--haha.

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In my personal opinion, I would abide by whatever the minimum statutory lenght of time is required to establish residency in VA and then become a Virgin---ian. It is not a permanent situation and you can always go back. The firearm purchase becomes moot.

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Yeah exactly--then all of these questions go out the door and I don't have to get a CT CCP (right now at least). I need to look into the residency thing though. For example, I went to school in NH for 4.5 years and never became a resident. It's probably different when you're an undergraduate living on the property of a school though.

I do not know if an FFL would sell a handgun to a person listing a residence in another state , even though he/she is still a legal resident of the purchase state? Temporary residence can create there own problems.

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I'm not sure on this one either.

I guess I'll just bite the bullet (money for license, plates, etc.) and go ahead and become a resident of VA. I've only been there once so far, and so far as I can tell it's a great place. Besides, five years is a long time!

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Hey Stinky... (lol)

Here's the Code, there's NO time limit for residency in VA. Here's the pertinent code section:

§ 18.2-308. Personal protection; carrying concealed weapons; when lawful to carry.
(http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+18.2-308)

D. (Effective July 1, 2007 - see Editor's notes) Any person 21 years of age or older may apply in writing to the clerk of the circuit court of the county or city in which he resides, or if he is a member of the United States Armed Forces, the county or city in which he is domiciled, for a permit to carry a concealed handgun. There shall be no requirement regarding the length of time an applicant has been a resident or domiciliary of the county or city.

You are good to go the day you move here! And here's an early Welcome to Free America! Where will you be, Northern Virginia (NOVA), Tidewater?

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SBD wrote:

LEO--thanks for the reply. I've already signed a lease agreement for an apartment in Charlottesville. So you're saying as soon as I move in (and maybe already), I'm a resident of VA? And according to the code you quoted, it sounds as if I have only 60 days to go ahead and get VA plates and a VA license. Too bad it's so expensive (in CT at least). I need to look into all that since my car and auto insurance are in my parents' names. So I guess it's not possible to live in VA for five years and remain a non-resident for that whole time. :banghead:

Thanks Bob. I'm actually not military--just a grad student. And unfortunately my handle doesn't pertain to farts--haha.

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Sucks to pay taxes again in another state for something you paid taxes on already..

You should at least switch your drivers license over. This makes things real easy for you to prove you live here. If you swap over the car tags.. cool.You just get to pay lots of taxes.

State tax on the value of the car when you get your tagsand then localtax every year until they finally abolish it!!

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Hey Stinky... (lol)

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Haha. Ok--the letters stand for "Squat Bench Deadlift."

You are good to go the day you move here! And here's an early Welcome to Free America! Where will you be, Northern Virginia (NOVA), Tidewater?

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Thanks for that info. I'll be in Charlottesville at UVa. They flew me down for a day in March and I absolutely loved everything about VA that I saw. The best part, I think, was getting to Richmond International and seeing the weather report--it was 65 that day. Back in NH (where I flew to VA from) there was 1.5 feet of snow on the ground.

You should at least switch your drivers license over. This makes things real easy for you to prove you live here. If you swap over the car tags.. cool. You just get to pay lots of taxes.

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Yeah you're right--I wasn't thinking. I just got off the phone with friend of mine who moved to FL. He got a FL license right away but left his truck in his mother's name with CT plates on it. In other words, I don't think the two (license and tags) are connected. Then again they might be--according to the DMV site (http://www.dmv.state.va.us/webdoc/moving/newva.asp), "Title your vehicle in Virginia (do this within 30 days of moving to Virginia)" is one of the steps I have to complete upon arriving.

The whole residency thing just confuses the hell out of me. For example, I spent last summer working in Boston. When tax time came around this April, I filled out the non-resident MA state tax form. The definition of "residency" must vary by state, because it took me a while to figure out that I wasn't actually an MA resident for the time I was there. The silly thing about my stay in VA is that I might be changing addresses every year and then will have to update my license.

Thanks for the info guys.

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Hey, no problem. That's what we're here for. Enjoy the board!

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SBD wrote:

For some reason I just now thought of this. Sorry for being long-winded.

I'll be moving from CT to VA in August. I have already acquired the VA non-resident CCP application (though I will be in VA for a long time, I don't know that I'll be there "forever," so I'm going to remain a NR for a while). Once everything is in order I'm going to submit the NR application. Everything on that end seems fine.

Where I am confused, though, is with gun purchases. According to the VSP website (http://www.vsp.state.va.us/Firearms_VFTP.shtm):

Federal law prohibits the sale or transfer of a handgun to a non-resident of the state in which the handgun is being purchased.

Click to expand...

So when I get to VA, I'll have a NR CCP. I obviously cannot purchase a handgun in VA since I will still be a resident of CT. What, then, are my options for actually getting a handgun in VA? So far, I have come up with these:

1. Get a CT CCP. Purchase a handgun in CT. When it's time to move to VA, find a VA gunshop and then transfer the handgun from a CT gunshop to that VA gunshop (since it wouldn't be very legal to drive through all the states between CT and VA with a handgun in the car without some authority backing me up). For the duration of my time in VA as a NR, I'll have to return to CT for all of my handgun purchases and repeat the process.

2. Get a CT CCP. When in VA, purchase a handgun via an online vendor, have that handgun transferred to a CT gunshop, and then have that gun transferred to a VA gunshop.

​

Those are the only two options I've come up with, but both include having a CCP for the state in which I am legally a resident--CT. I should have ample time to get one before I head down to VA, but I just wnat to make sure that my line of thinking is correct.

Thanks for any and all suggestions.

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It would be perfectly legal for you to bring your gun from Conn. to Virginia. Federal law says you can travel from a place where the gun is legal to a place where the gun is legal, and you are protected by the Firearms Owners Protection Act. There are certain stipulations, such as keeping the firearm unloaded and inaccessible in places where it is illegal to have a loaded firearm in the vehicle. I honestly don't remember all the details, but is legal for a traveller to take a gun through any state in America.

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It would be perfectly legal for you to bring your gun from Conn. to Virginia. Federal law says you can travel from a place where the gun is legal to a place where the gun is legal, and you are protected by the Firearms Owners Protection Act. There are certain stipulations, such as keeping the firearm unloaded and inaccessible in places where it is illegal to have a loaded firearm in the vehicle. I honestly don't remember all the details, but is legal for a traveller to take a gun through any state in America.

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Interesting. I wonder why/how states are able to restrict highway travel with firearms. Maybe those rules don't pertain to locked-up guns.

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SBD wrote:

Interesting. I wonder why/how states are able to restrict highway travel with firearms. Maybe those rules don't pertain to locked-up guns.

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They can restrict travel within their states.

This governs interstate transport. Note you must be legal at point of origin and at terminus. You can only stop for brief, routine reasons (i.e. don't spend 3 days with girlfriend in MD, or whatever) such as meals, breaks, overnight stays incident to travel (these words are not coming from code, but my interpretation, so don't have the force of law; YMMV).



TITLE 18 > PART I > CHAPTER 44 > §926A
Interstate transportation of firearms

"Notwithstanding any other provision of any law or any rule or regulation of a State or any political subdivision thereof, any person who is not otherwise prohibited by this chapter from transporting, shipping, or receiving a firearm shall be entitled to transport a firearm for any lawful purpose from any place where he may lawfully possess and carry such firearm to any other place where he may lawfully possess and carry such firearm if, during such transportation the firearm is unloaded, and neither the firearm nor any ammunition being transported is readily accessible or is directly accessible from the passenger compartment of such transporting vehicle: Provided, That in the case of a vehicle without a compartment separate from the driver’s compartment the firearm or ammunition shall be contained in a locked container other than the glove compartment or console."

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SBD wrote:

It would be perfectly legal for you to bring your gun from Conn. to Virginia. Federal law says you can travel from a place where the gun is legal to a place where the gun is legal, and you are protected by the Firearms Owners Protection Act. There are certain stipulations, such as keeping the firearm unloaded and inaccessible in places where it is illegal to have a loaded firearm in the vehicle. I honestly don't remember all the details, but is legal for a traveller to take a gun through any state in America.

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Interesting. I wonder why/how states are able to restrict highway travel with firearms. Maybe those rules don't pertain to locked-up guns.

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Here is one link. Scroll down to "Interstate Transportation". I'm looking for other links now. www.hardylaw.net/fopa.html

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Here is another link. Read the second paragraph of the introduction. www.guncite.com/journals/hardfopa.html

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Sorry, Tess. I was so busy searching and typing I didn't read your post, which explained everything quite clearly.

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Thanks for the clarification. Wikipedia also offers a good explanation at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firearm_Owners_Protection_Act#.22Safe_Passage.22_Provision


And for anyone else who has questions about moving to VA, the DMV explains a lot of what you have to do (apparently within 30 days of moving to VA if you intend on being there more than six months):

http://www.dmv.state.va.us/webdoc/moving/newva.asp

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Thanks for the moving link. I book marked it so that I can pass it along to others.

It would be hard to travel thru every state and not be breaking their laws in some way while transporting firearms.

Safe passage Law is nice. Locked up and unloaded seems to be the way to go. I would think that most all states would have this as a requirement from transporting firearms.

One of the law's provisions was that persons traveling from one state to another for a shooting sports event or any other lawful activity cannot be arrested for a firearms offense in a state that has strict gun control laws if the traveler is just passing through (short stops for food and gas) and the firearms and ammunition are securely locked, unloaded, and not immediately accessible.

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The short version:

Residency requirements for the purpose of purchasing a handgun.

1. You will need a valid VA driver's license. License must have been issued for at least 30 days.

2. You need a 2d form of ID to verify your address. Some of the more common 2nd ID's used are:

VA CHP
Motor vehicle registration
Voters registration
utility bill.

Everything you need to know about buying a handgun in VA, more or less

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Where I am confused, though, is with gun purchases. According to the VSP website (http://www.vsp.state.va.us/Firearms_VFTP.shtm):

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I think you might be confusing the 'Permit' thing.

A "Permit" in VA is for Concealed Handgun Permit. You DO NOT need a 'permit' to purchase a handgun. You only need to be a resident, as descibed above.