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The U.S. Department of Justice has created a new administrative process under 18 U.S.C. § 925(c) that allows eligible individuals to seek relief from certain federal firearm prohibitions. If a federal firearm prohibition is affecting your ability to possess firearms, you now have a new path to seek federal relief.
RecordGone provides attorney-led representation throughout the process—from evaluating your eligibility and obtaining necessary records to preparing and submitting your application and responding to DOJ requests.
The initial public application phase is limited to the first 5,000 applicants. Because obtaining records and preparing the required materials can take time, RecordGone is accepting clients now and beginning the preparation process before the public application window opens.
For decades, individual applications for relief under 18 U.S.C. § 925(c) were not being processed by the federal government. The Department of Justice has now implemented a process through which individuals may seek this relief through an administrative application.
The process applies to certain federal firearm prohibitions under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g) involving circumstances such as certain felony convictions, fugitive status, unlawful drug use, certain mental-health statuses, certain immigration statuses, dishonorable discharge, citizenship renunciation, certain domestic-violence protective orders, and certain misdemeanor domestic-violence convictions.
Eligibility and the appropriate path forward depend on the facts of your case. RecordGone can help assess your situation and determine whether pursuing federal restoration may be an appropriate option.
Federal Firearm Rights Restoration is a new federal process. Restoring firearm rights is not new to our firm.
For nearly two decades, our firm has helped clients pursue firearm-rights restoration and other post-conviction remedies across the country. That experience matters because determining the right path can require understanding the interaction between criminal convictions, post-conviction relief, state firearm laws, and federal firearm prohibitions.
Our attorneys apply that experience to evaluate your circumstances, identify potential issues before you apply, obtain and analyze relevant records, develop supporting evidence, and prepare and pursue your application through the federal process.
30,000+ Records Cleared • Nearly 20 Years of Firearm-Rights Experience • 50+ Years of Combined Attorney Experience • Nationwide Representation
Federal Firearm Rights Restoration involves much more than completing an online form. The process requires electronic fingerprinting, criminal-history records, court records, documentation concerning the underlying firearm prohibition, three qualifying character references, personal statements, and other supporting evidence depending on your circumstances.
DOJ will evaluate the circumstances surrounding your firearm prohibition, along with your record, reputation, and subsequent conduct. To grant relief, DOJ must be satisfied that you are not likely to act in a manner dangerous to public safety and that restoring your federal firearm rights would not be contrary to the public interest.
Our role is not simply to complete the application. We help investigate, prepare, and present the strongest application your circumstances support.
Every federal restoration matter is different. We organize the records, information, and supporting materials needed to prepare your application around your circumstances.
An attorney reviews your history and identifies the federal firearm prohibition affecting you.
We obtain and review relevant criminal-history, court, and government records needed for your application.
We help develop supporting evidence, including rehabilitation information and other relevant evidence, and help you identify and prepare the three character references required by DOJ.
We work with you to prepare your personal statement, application materials, and supporting documentation.
We submit your application through the DOJ process and assist with applicable post-submission requirements. If DOJ requests additional information, we help prepare the appropriate response.
We monitor your matter while DOJ reviews the application, address applicable DOJ communications, keep you informed of significant developments, and help you understand the decision when it is issued.
The DOJ allows individuals who are prohibited from possessing firearms under federal law to apply for relief. The specific requirements depend on the reason for the federal firearm prohibition and the applicant's circumstances.
Being eligible to apply does not mean that relief will necessarily be granted.
DOJ has also identified certain prior convictions and statuses that create a presumption against granting relief. Applicants with these presumptive disqualifiers may be denied unless extraordinary circumstances overcome the presumption.
DOJ identifies five categories:
Applicants must disclose presumptive disqualifiers in their application, including past convictions even if they were expunged, pardoned, set aside, or similarly amended through a post-conviction proceeding.
An attorney can review your circumstances and help determine whether a presumptive disqualifier may affect your ability to pursue federal relief.
Federal firearm-rights restoration addresses a federal firearm prohibition. It does not automatically eliminate a separate firearm prohibition imposed under state or tribal law.
Whether federal restoration would provide the relief you are seeking depends on the specific circumstances of your case.
Federal Firearm Rights Restoration will be launched in stages:
Official DOJ Federal Firearm Rights Restoration Information
DOJ advises applicants to gather their required documents before beginning the electronic application.
Depending on your circumstances, preparing for the application may involve obtaining records, gathering supporting documentation, identifying character references, and preparing other required materials.
Preparing early gives you time to identify potential issues, obtain relevant records, and organize the materials applicable to your circumstances before your application window arrives. RecordGone can begin that work with you now to help prepare your application for submission.
No. DOJ does not require you to have an attorney to apply for Federal Firearm Rights Restoration. However, the process can involve determining the federal prohibition affecting you, acquiring and reviewing criminal and court records, identifying potential disqualifiers, gathering required documentation and supporting evidence, and responding to DOJ requests. An attorney can help identify potential issues before you apply and prepare and present the strongest application your circumstances support.
We handle the investigation, record gathering, and application preparation for you. However, there are some things that require your direct participation.
You will need to provide information about your personal and criminal history, complete required fingerprinting, identify three qualifying character references who can be contacted as part of the process, and provide information and documents that are only available to you. We will also work with you to develop your personal statement and gather information about your rehabilitation and circumstances since the events that resulted in your firearm prohibition.
We will identify the records we can obtain on your behalf and provide you with clear instructions for anything we need you to complete or provide.
Do not assume that a prior case can be left out of your application because you received post-conviction relief. DOJ may require disclosure of prior convictions and conduct even when a conviction was later expunged, dismissed, set aside, pardoned, or otherwise modified. We review your complete history to determine how prior cases and post-conviction relief may affect your application.
Not necessarily. Federal Firearm Rights Restoration addresses a federal firearm prohibition. It does not automatically remove a separate firearm prohibition imposed by state or tribal law. Before pursuing federal restoration, we evaluate whether a separate firearm restriction may remain and whether federal relief would accomplish the result you are seeking.
No. Eligibility to apply does not guarantee that relief will be granted. DOJ reviews each application individually and considers your history and circumstances, applicable presumptive disqualifiers, supporting evidence, and other factors relevant to its decision.
That is why having experienced legal representation can be important. An attorney can identify potential issues before your application is submitted, make sure the required records and information are properly addressed, and help you present the strongest and most complete application.
Because this is a newly implemented federal process, reliable DOJ processing-time estimates have not yet been established. Federal firearm-rights restoration has effectively been unavailable to most individuals for more than 30 years, so significant demand is expected as the program opens to the public. That demand may result in longer DOJ processing times, particularly during the early stages of the program. DOJ's decision to initially limit the number of public applications also reinforces the importance of being prepared to apply when an application window becomes available.
The time needed to prepare your application will depend on your history and how quickly the necessary criminal-history records, court documents, fingerprints, references, and other supporting materials can be obtained.
Starting early gives you the best opportunity to have your application ready for submission and avoid unnecessary delays on your end once you are able to apply.
The DOJ application process is opening in phases. If you believe you may qualify, RecordGone can begin helping you prepare before your application window opens.
This page provides general information about the Federal Firearm Rights Restoration process and RecordGone's legal services. It is not a determination of eligibility or a guarantee of relief. Eligibility and the appropriate legal strategy depend on the individual circumstances of each matter.
The Federal Firearm Rights Restoration program is administered by the U.S. Department of Justice. RecordGone is a private law firm and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or part of the U.S. Department of Justice or any other government agency.
For official information regarding the federal program, eligibility requirements, required documents, application procedures, and current rules, refer to the U.S. Department of Justice's Federal Firearm Rights Restoration resources.
