                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECK REQUIRED FOR EMPLOYEES OF A GUN DEALER TO TRANSFER
FIREARMS; EXEMPTIONS; PENALTIES (§ 18.2-308.2:3)

A. No person, corporation, or proprietorship licensed as a firearms dealer
pursuant to 18 U.S.C. &#xA7; 921 et seq. shall employ any person to act as a
seller, whether full-time or part-time, permanent, temporary, paid or unpaid,
for the transfer of firearms under &#xA7; 18.2-308.2:2, if such employee would
be prohibited from possessing a firearm under &#xA7; 18.2-308.1:1, 18.2-308.1:2,
or 18.2-308.1:3, subsection B of &#xA7; 18.2-308.1:4, or &#xA7; 18.2-308.1:6,
18.2-308.1:7, 18.2-308.1:8, 18.2-308.2, or 18.2-308.2:01, or is an illegal
alien, or is prohibited from purchasing or transporting a firearm pursuant to
subsection A of &#xA7; 18.2-308.1:4 or &#xA7; 18.2-308.1:5.

B. Prior to permitting an applicant to begin employment, the dealer shall obtain
a written statement or affirmation from the applicant that he is not
disqualified from possessing a firearm and shall submit the applicant&#8217;s
fingerprints and personal descriptive information to the Central Criminal
Records Exchange to be forwarded to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
for the purpose of obtaining national criminal history record information
regarding the applicant.

C. Prior to August 1, 2000, the dealer shall obtain written statements or
affirmations from persons employed before July 1, 2000, to act as a seller under
&#xA7; 18.2-308.2:2 that they are not disqualified from possessing a firearm.
Within five working days of the employee&#8217;s next birthday, after August 1,
2000, the dealer shall submit the employee&#8217;s fingerprints and personal
descriptive information to the Central Criminal Records Exchange to be forwarded
to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for the purpose of obtaining
national criminal history record information regarding the request.

C1. In lieu of submitting fingerprints pursuant to this section, any dealer
holding a valid federal firearms license (FFL) issued by the Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) may submit a sworn and notarized affidavit to the
Department of State Police on a form provided by the Department, stating that
the dealer has been subjected to a record check prior to the issuance and that
the FFL was issued by the ATF. The affidavit may also contain the names of any
employees that have been subjected to a record check and approved by the ATF.
This exemption shall apply regardless of whether the FFL was issued in the name
of the dealer or in the name of the business. The affidavit shall contain the
valid FFL number, state the name of each person requesting the exemption,
together with each person&#8217;s identifying information, including their
social security number and the following statement: &#8220;I hereby swear, under
the penalty of perjury, that as a condition of obtaining a federal firearms
license, each person requesting an exemption in this affidavit has been
subjected to a fingerprint identification check by the Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco and Firearms and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms
subsequently determined that each person satisfied the requirements of 18 U.S.C.
&#xA7; 921 et seq. I understand that any person convicted of making a false
statement in this affidavit is guilty of a Class 5 felony and that in addition
to any other penalties imposed by law, a conviction under this section shall
result in the forfeiture of my federal firearms license.&#8221;

D. The Department of State Police, upon receipt of an individual&#8217;s record
or notification that no record exists, shall submit an eligibility report to the
requesting dealer within 30 days of the applicant beginning his duties for new
employees or within 30 days of the applicant&#8217;s birthday for a person
employed prior to July 1, 2000.

E. If any applicant is denied employment because of information appearing on the
criminal history record and the applicant disputes the information upon which
the denial was based, the Central Criminal Records Exchange shall, upon written
request, furnish to the applicant the procedures for obtaining a copy of the
criminal history record from the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The
information provided to the dealer shall not be disseminated except as provided
in this section.

F. The applicant shall bear the cost of obtaining the criminal history record
unless the dealer, at his option, decides to pay such cost.

G. Upon receipt of the request for a criminal history record information check,
the State Police shall establish a unique number for that firearm seller.
Beginning September 1, 2001, the firearm seller&#8217;s signature, firearm
seller&#8217;s number and the dealer&#8217;s identification number shall be on
all firearm transaction forms. The State Police shall void the firearm
seller&#8217;s number when a disqualifying record is discovered. The State
Police may suspend a firearm seller&#8217;s identification number upon the
arrest of the firearm seller for a potentially disqualifying crime.

H. This section shall not restrict the transfer of a firearm at any place other
than at a dealership or at any event required to be registered as a gun show.

I. Any person who willfully and intentionally requests, obtains, or seeks to
obtain criminal history record information under false pretenses, or who
willfully and intentionally disseminates or seeks to disseminate criminal
history record information except as authorized by this section and &#xA7;
18.2-308.2:2, shall be guilty of a Class 2 misdemeanor.

J. Any person willfully and intentionally making a materially false statement on
the personal descriptive information required in this section shall be guilty of
a Class 5 felony. Any person who offers for transfer any firearm in violation of
this section shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. Any dealer who willfully
and knowingly employs or permits a person to act as a firearm seller in
violation of this section shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.

K. There is no civil liability for any seller for the actions of any purchaser
or subsequent transferee of a firearm lawfully transferred pursuant to this
section.

L. The provisions of this section requiring a seller&#8217;s background check
shall not apply to a licensed dealer.

M. Any person who willfully and intentionally makes a false statement in the
affidavit as set out in subdivision C 1 shall be guilty of a Class 5 felony.

N. For purposes of this section:
			&#8220;Dealer&#8221; means any person, corporation or proprietorship licensed
as a dealer pursuant to 18 U.S.C. &#xA7; 921 et seq.
			&#8220;Firearm&#8221; means any handgun, shotgun, or rifle that will or is
designed to or may readily be converted to expel single or multiple projectiles
by action of an explosion of a combustible material.
			&#8220;Place of business&#8221; means any place or premises where a dealer
may lawfully transfer firearms.
			&#8220;Seller&#8221; means for the purpose of any single sale of a firearm
any person who is a dealer or an agent of a dealer, who may lawfully transfer
firearms and who actually performs the criminal background check in accordance
with the provisions of &#xA7; 18.2-308.2:2.
			&#8220;Transfer&#8221; means any act performed with intent to sell, rent,
barter, or trade or otherwise transfer ownership or permanent possession of a
firearm at the place of business of a dealer.

HISTORY: 2000, c. 794; 2002, c. 880; 2003, c. 976; 2016, cc. 48, 49; 2020, cc.
887, 888, 1173; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 555.