eForm Filing at OFW

The Form 4

     If you’ve missed the news lately, tax stamps are now $0 (for form 4’s at least). As of January 22nd, 2026, more than 260,000 eForms have been filed! OFW has been filing NFA items for our customers for several years now, and we were thrilled to see the tax stamp decreasing to $0 (Still crossing our fingers that they get deregulated altogether) as it makes things like suppressors and SBR’s more affordable to file for our customers! 

     Since the tax stamp has gone away, we have received a lot of questions about how the filing process works and what you need to bring in store if you want to file. To a lot of people, it sounds like a very complicated process, but in reality, it's very similar to buying a firearm, just with more waiting involved! So, in this blog, we will be going over the steps of buying an NFA item at OFW! Im sure there are similar ways to do things at other establishments, and different ways, but here we will just be focusing on the order of operations at OFW, so our current and future customers can know what to expect! 

     What I consider to be the first (and maybe most important) step of the Form 4 filing process is picking out what item you will be applying for a Tax Stamp for! Why I put this first is that we need the serial number from this item to file for your tax stamp. The two most common that OFW sees are suppressors and SBR’s (Short Barreled Rifles). There is a wide array of things to consider while picking out your NFA item. We won't be getting into that criteria process here, but I'll be writing another blog post soon that goes over some of the most important things to keep in mind. 

Example of an SBR with a suppressor

     The second step would be setting up your eForms account. Now, this could be out of order if you already have one of these. Some people come into OFW with an Eforms account already set up. If you do, that's awesome! We just need your Username and PIN when we file your paperwork at OFW. If you are someone who already has an eForms account and is looking to get your first NFA item or add another, just make sure you log in periodically and know all your information, as resetting your password for that is NOT fun… If you don't have an eForms account yet, have no fear, it's super easy to do, and one of us at OFW (Either Jill or Chad) can help you register! You will need access to your email address when we create this account, so you can receive your username that will be assigned to you upon registering. 

     After you register and have your item picked out its now time to file! We do need your state-issued ID card; if yours does not have your physical address on it, we will need a form that has that as well (car registration, hunting license, etc.). One of the first questions you will be asked when you file is how you will be filing, and 90% of the time the answer is ‘as an individual’ the other 10% is as a trust, but that includes a lot more paperwork and some other things that I won’t get into here, there are two other options on how you can file but I have yet to run into those. For simplicity's sake, were gonna say you're filing as an individual! After we figure out how you're filing, we will need your basic information. All this information is what you have already entered to create your eForms account, and it has to match what was already entered. The next section is the transferee questions; these questions are very similar to the ones you answer when purchasing a firearm. Next is entering some more of your information, including a picture of you. We can take this picture right here at OFW. You have to be against a plain background (We use a white wall) with any accessories removed (Hat and glasses most likely). After the picture is taken, we upload it to your file and add some more details like your social security number, birth city, and state! That section is also where you can add electronic fingerprints if you have them. We prefer to do our fingerprints in-house, but we will get to that soon. After all of that information is entered, and a little bit more on our end, we review all the information entered to make sure it's correct, then we certify and submit the information by entering your username and PIN. 

The fingerprint cards we use at OFW

     After the online filing process is done, you move on to the paper portion! As I mentioned previously, we like to do our fingerprints in-house. Electronic fingerprints are an option, but we don't have the kiosk for that, and we’ve actually had better luck submitting physical fingerprint cards than electronic ones. The fingerprint cards we use are pretty self-explanatory and easy to use; we even upgraded to specialty fingerprint pads that use rub-off ink instead of the skin staining kind! We have you complete two fingerprint cards. After those are all done, we verify that the written information on the top portion of the fingerprint cards is filled out correctly, then they get sealed in an envelope with another piece of paper stating that you filled for form 4 online, and they get mailed to the ATF! 

     This is another portion that is subject to change, but normally, after all paperwork is complete, we have you check out like normal, you can purchase other items at the same time you pay for your suppressor or SBR. You can also take those additional items home; you just can't take your suppressor or SBR home until your tax stamp gets approved. 

     The neat thing about the electronic filing process now is that you get the response from the ATF at the same time we do! They send you an email with your response. Most of the time, the response is a photo of your tax stamp stating that you have been approved. Other times, it could be that something on your paperwork needs to be corrected. We've only had this happen once, and it was those electronic fingerprints we mentioned earlier. If, for whatever reason, you do not get approved for your tax stamp, there for can not own the suppressor or SBR you filed for, we will issue a refund to you. If you have passed a regular NICS background check, chances are you have nothing to worry about, and I’m assuming if you are filing for a tax stamp, you more than likely already have a few firearms at home. 

     One of the most common questions we get is ‘How long will this take?’ and to that we say… I don't know. Everyone is different. Before the $0 tax stamp was implemented, I could pretty consistently say 90% of people were getting their answer within two weeks. After the $0 tax stamp, however, we have not seen consistent turnaround times yet. Once we start getting responses in a consistent time frame, I will update this blog post (as well as our social media pages, @OneForceWeaponry). 

     Some other disclaimers about the NFA/ filing process. We do not file private transfers in-house, and we also do not file form 4’s for homemade items such as SBR’s. The reason for this is that there is a lot of liability in doing that. We do accept some NFA transfers, but from approved dealers only. If you would like to find out if the dealer you are interested in is approved, please don't hesitate to reach out. The reason we say approved dealers only is that not all SOT holders are operated equally, and we have seen some unfortunate circumstances for companies and buyers during transfers that were out of our control. We love to deal with other FFL’s and SOT’s, but ones that are run ethically and file paperwork correctly. 

     Thats pretty much the form 4 filing process! We try to make it as easy as possible to file and understand the process. Of course, as with anything, there are some nuances that I didnt cover in this blog, like filing as a trust, but as I said, a majority of you will most likely be filing as an individual. However, if you are interested in filing another way or in some other situations that could be brought up when filing, please feel free to reach out! We are happy to answer any questions or help you navigate the filing process. 

Thank you for reading this OFW blog post! Interested in more OFW content? Follow us on all platforms @OneForceWeaponry, join our email list, and check our website regularly for more exciting updates and inventory!