Anyone have some advice, tips, horror stories?

Yes, all at BATF, US Customs.

i did it one time several years ago. took awhile to get the guns. you have to locate the dealer in australia willing to do their paperwork and hold the gun until the paperwork clears. you also have to find a usa dealer willing to do the paperwork here and take delivery of the guns. i had one gun denied entry as i was told by the customs agent " it was a military gun or a milatary cartridge". it didn't matter that it was an ancient martini henry with ammo that was almost non existant.

Hi Rusty

I brought a bunch of rifles in from South Africa. I did post about it, so somewhere in the archives it sits.

The process goes like this:

You complete the ATF Form 6.

link to ATF Form


There are a few tips to completing it- mine was rejected 4 times before I got it right. Some of it makes sense, some of t is non-sensical and counter -intuitive-- You also will need a local FFL to sign the form.

Finding an FFL willing to do the import may be problematic. Your FFL will need to go to the arrival port and meet face to face with customs, inspect the rifles and sign for them. The rifles will then be released to your FFL to follow normal procedure (background check) and whatever procedure your local laws require (waiting period?).

ATF doesn't allow in any "military rifles", with or without modifications. Pretty much any old Mauser will be rejected, even if you supply pics. I did manage to get a couple of name English rifles on Mauser actions in, but the word Mauser did not appear on the form.

I did have a Mauser 96 get rejected for import, even though it was a highly customized sporter. That hurt.

The applications are processed in West Virginia, and you can in fact call them and talk to real people. Some are very helpful and some are... government employees.

It can be done, with patience. Generally there are no duties owed on the rifles but keep that in mind when you state the value of the rifles.

And of course you'll need someone on the Australia side, but you also know that.

I also have one or two tips I have learned which I can pass on to you via PM.

Make absolutely sure on your Form 6 the ATF understands you are not importing a military rifle or a rifle that was originally a military rifle. You can have problems with Mauser-type rifles such as Oberndorf sporters and others made on 98 Mauser actions. Also, unlike in the past when you or your dealer could do it yourself, I believe clearance through US Customs now requires a customs broker, which increases the cost significantly. And not all customs brokers will clear guns. Most expedient way is to use a licensed importer but that raises the cost even more. If you're after a double rifle or English shotgun, probably it won't be that significant to the overall cost.

Trust me, this isn't a military or a bolt action rifle!

Thank you all, for the good advice!