What 2026 means for suppressors, short-barreled shotguns and rifles

On Jan. 1, 2026, moderately looser rules for suppressors and short‑barreled rifles and shotguns took effect, stemming from President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill, signed into law on July 4, 2025.

As part of the reconciliation package, H.R.1, the $200 tax stamp on those items has been eliminated; however, the registration requirement remains, pending the outcome of a handful of lawsuits challenging the very existence of the National Firearms Act of 1934 (NFA).

What does that mean for you?

If you want to purchase a suppressor or a short-barreled rifle or shotgun, you must still file ATF Form 4 (Form 5320.4), the "Application for tax paid transfer and registration of firearm used to request approval to transfer a National Firearms Act (NFA) firearm subject to transfer tax liability."

That, of course, is absurd considering the tax stamp on those items is now $0.00. In fact, Buckeye Firearms Association in May joined numerous organizations nationwide in signing an open letter to two U.S. House of Representatives committees, urging Congress to eliminate unjust restrictions imposed by the NFA.

Meanwhile, the Department of Justice, in Brown v. ATF, is defending the NFA's existence, asserting that "firearms registration is justified under the Commerce Clause and the Necessary and Proper Clause" and that short-barreled rifles can be registered consistent with the Second Amendment because they are “particularly dangerous weapons” and “uniquely susceptible to criminal misuse.”

The U.S. Supreme Court, however, held in Sonzinsky v. United States (1937) that the NFA is constitutional but primarily because it functions as a tax.

Buy now or wait?

The bottom line is that whether you should run out and grab a suppressor or short-barreled rifle or wait it out depends on your risk tolerance. Purchasing now means your tax stamp cost will be null, but you'll still have to register the item. Waiting — for how long is anyone's guess — could pay off if the lawsuits seeking to dismantle the NFA ultimately succeed.

Joe D. "Buck" Ruth is a longtime small-game hunter and gun owner who spent nearly three decades in the news industry. He is the website and social-media manager for Buckeye Firearms Association.