---
title: "Shipping Firearms"
description: "Compliance requirements for shipping firearms"
---

> Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.firearmcart.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Shipping Firearms

Understand the requirements for shipping firearms through your FirearmCart store.

---

## The Transfer Process

1. **Order placed** - Customer orders firearm, selects FFL
2. **Payment captured** - Order confirmed
3. **Verify FFL** - Confirm receiving FFL is valid (use the ATF eZ Check link on the order's FFL card)
4. **Ship to FFL** - Via approved carrier
5. **FFL receives** - Dealer logs into bound book
6. **Customer pickup** - Customer completes 4473 and background check

---

## Key Requirements

| Requirement | Description |
|-------------|-------------|
| **Ships to the dealer** | Items requiring an FFL under your FFL rules are routed to the customer's selected dealer, never to the customer |
| **Adult signature** | Requested automatically on handgun and long gun labels |
| **Carrier-compliant service** | Each item class is quoted only on the services that carrier permits for it |
| **Proper packaging** | Concealed, secure packaging |

---

## How Items Are Classified

Every product carries a shipping class, and that class decides which carriers and services can be used:

| Class | Meaning |
|-------|---------|
| **Handgun** | Most restricted — air-only on the common carriers |
| **Long gun** | Ground or air |
| **Ammunition** | Must ship in its own package; ground only; never USPS |
| **Accessory** | No restriction |

---

## How a Cart Is Split for Shipping

Rates are quoted per shipment group, not per cart:

- Handguns ship on their own, so their air cost is not spread over everything else
- Long guns ship on their own
- Ammunition always ships on its own
- Accessories ride along with a ground shipment where one exists — ammunition first, then long guns. They only ship on their own when neither is present, and are never folded into a handgun's air package

A handgun and a long gun never share a package automatically. You can combine them onto one label manually from the buy-label modal, which then rates them as a single air shipment.

---

## Carrier Requirements

### Supported Carriers

| Carrier | Handguns | Long guns | Ammunition | Accessories |
|---------|----------|-----------|------------|-------------|
| **UPS** | Air services only | Ground or air | Ground only | Any service |
| **FedEx** | Overnight and 2Day only | Any service | Ground / Home Delivery | Any service |
| **USPS** (via Stamps.com) | Priority Mail, Priority Mail Express | Priority Mail, Priority Mail Express | Not offered | Any service |

ShipStation is also supported. Because you choose the carriers and services inside ShipStation, the services available for each class depend on what you have enabled there rather than on a fixed list.

### Handgun Shipping

| Carrier | Services Available |
|---------|------------------|
| **UPS** | Next Day Air, Next Day Air Early, Next Day Air Saver, 2nd Day Air |
| **FedEx** | First Overnight, Priority Overnight, Standard Overnight, 2Day A.M., 2Day |
| **USPS** | Priority Mail, Priority Mail Express |

UPS Ground and UPS 3 Day Select are excluded for handguns, as is FedEx Express Saver and all FedEx ground services.

### Long Gun Shipping

Long guns can ship via Ground or Express services on UPS and FedEx. On USPS they use Priority Mail or Priority Mail Express — not Ground Advantage.

---

## Ammunition Shipping

| Requirement | Details |
|-------------|---------|
| **Ships alone** | Ammunition can never share a package with any other class |
| **Ground only** | No air transportation |
| **Never USPS** | USPS is not offered for ammunition on any service |
| **Carrier** | UPS Ground, or FedEx Ground / Home Delivery |

---

## Parcel Weight Limits

Selections are split into boxes that stay under the carrier's per-parcel cap:

| Carrier | Cap |
|---------|-----|
| **USPS** | 70 lb |
| **UPS / FedEx** | 150 lb |

A carrier plugin can be configured with a lower box weight than the carrier's own cap. A single indivisible item heavier than the cap cannot be shipped by that carrier at all.

---

## Packaging

| Element | Requirement |
|---------|-------------|
| **Inner container** | Firearm in original box or case |
| **Outer container** | Plain corrugated box |
| **No indication** | No firearms imagery or text |
| **Include** | Packing slip, invoice copy |

---

## Documentation

Maintain records for:

| Document | Retention |
|----------|-----------|
| **Bound book entries** | 20 years |
| **Order records** | 7 years recommended |
| **Shipping records** | 7 years recommended |

---

## Returns

When customers return firearms:

1. Issue RMA
2. Customer's FFL ships to your FFL
3. Verify serial number on receipt
4. Update bound book
5. Process refund

---

## Related Documentation

- [FFL Directory](/ffl-compliance/ffl-directory) - Managing FFLs
- [FFL Rules](/ffl-compliance/ffl-rules) - Which products require an FFL
- [Fulfillment](/orders/fulfillment) - Order fulfillment
- [Shipping Settings](/store-setup/shipping) - Shipping configuration

Source: https://docs.firearmcart.com/ffl-compliance/shipping-firearms/index.mdx