Washington statute
RCW 9.41.190 — Unlawful firearms—Exceptions
Current through 2026 Regular Session
Part of Chapter 9.41: Firearms And Dangerous Weapons, Revised Code of Washington.
Criminal charges under this statute
Full text of RCW 9.41.190
Statutory text current through the 2026 Regular Session. This publication reproduces the official text of the Revised Code of Washington from the Code Reviser's published files; it is not the official statutes of the State of Washington.
(1) Except as otherwise provided in this section, it is unlawful for any person to:
(a) Manufacture, including by use of a three-dimensional printer, computer numerical control milling machine, or other means, or own, buy, sell, loan, furnish, transport, or have in possession or under control, any machine gun, bump-fire stock, undetectable firearm, short-barreled shotgun, or short-barreled rifle;
(b) Manufacture, including by use of a three-dimensional printer, computer numerical control milling machine, or other means, or own, buy, sell, loan, furnish, transport, or have in possession or under control, any part designed and intended solely and exclusively for use in a machine gun, bump-fire stock, undetectable firearm, short-barreled shotgun, or short-barreled rifle, or in converting a weapon into a machine gun, short-barreled shotgun, or short-barreled rifle;
(c) Assemble or repair any machine gun, bump-fire stock, undetectable firearm, short-barreled shotgun, or short-barreled rifle; or
(d) Manufacture, including by use of a three-dimensional printer, computer numerical control milling machine, or other means, or cause to be manufactured, assemble, or cause to be assembled, an untraceable firearm with the intent to sell the untraceable firearm.
(2) It is not unlawful for a person to manufacture, own, buy, sell, loan, furnish, transport, assemble, or repair, or have in possession or under control, a short-barreled rifle, or any part designed or intended solely and exclusively for use in a short-barreled rifle or in converting a weapon into a short-barreled rifle, if the person is in compliance with applicable federal law.
(3) Subsection (1) of this section shall not apply to:
(a) Any peace officer in the discharge of official duty or traveling to or from official duty, or to any officer or member of the armed forces of the United States or the state of Washington in the discharge of official duty or traveling to or from official duty; or
(b) A person, including an employee of such person if the employee has undergone fingerprinting and a background check, who or which is exempt from or licensed under federal law, and engaged in the production, manufacture, repair, or testing of machine guns, bump-fire stocks, short-barreled shotguns, or short-barreled rifles:
(i) To be used or purchased by the armed forces of the United States;
(ii) To be used or purchased by federal, state, county, or municipal law enforcement agencies; or
(iii) For exportation in compliance with all applicable federal laws and regulations.
(4) It shall be an affirmative defense to a prosecution brought under this section that the machine gun or short-barreled shotgun was acquired prior to July 1, 1994, and is possessed in compliance with federal law.
(5) Any person violating this section is guilty of a class C felony.
Official sources
Legal terms used in this section
Questions this section answers
Is unlawful firearms a felony or a misdemeanor in Washington?
Unlawful firearms is a Class C Felony in Washington under RCW 9.41.190.
Which Washington statute covers unlawful firearms?
Unlawful firearms is governed by RCW 9.41.190 (Unlawful firearms—Exceptions).
This reference is informational and is not legal advice.