What about people who live in a RV and travel the country with no permanent residence?
The address on your drivers license and vehicle registration (if the same) is your permanent address. As others have said, it can't be a PO box so where you receive your mail has nothing to do with your established residency or where you happen to be in the country on any particular day. You can't get either a DL or vehicle registration without several other documents to prove your legal status in the US and your so called
residence.
These are the requirements for dealers in VA. It isn't
just what the ATF says it is.
Virginia
V. IDENTIFICATION AND RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS A. Virginia Resident Transactions The dealer shall determine residency and verify the prospective purchaser's identity as required in Section B of the SP-65. The individual must present a valid photo-ID form issued by a governmental agency of the Commonwealth of Virginia that denotes the individual’s name, sex, and date of birth. 1. Where the primary form is a photo-ID issued by the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), the dealer shall not transfer a firearm to the prospective purchaser until 30 days after the date of issue of an original or duplicate driver's license unless a copy of his/her DMV driver's record is presented showing that the original date of issue was more than 30 days prior to the attempted purchase. 2. A State Department Driver's License is an acceptable primary form of identification: a photo-identification issued by a [Federal] Governmental Agency that indicates the individual's name, address, sex, and date of birth. 3. The DMV will not issue an original license, permit, or ID card to any applicant who has not presented evidence that he/she is a citizen of the United States, a legal permanent resident, or an authorized temporary resident alien of the United States. In the instance of temporary residence (nonimmigrant status), the driver’s license or ID card will only be valid during the period of authorized stay in the United States.
ATF
A person’s “State of residence” is defined by regulation in 27 CFR 478.11 as “the State in which an individual resides. An individual resides in a State if he or she is present in a - 2 - State with the intention of making a home in that State.” Ownership of a home or land within a given State is not sufficient, by itself, to establish a State of residence. However, ownership of a home or land within a particular State is not required to establish presence and intent to make a home in that State. Furthermore, temporary travel, such as short-term stays, vacations, or other transient acts in a State are not sufficient to establish a State of residence because the individual demonstrates no intention of making a home in that State. To ensure compliance with this residency requirement, section 922(t) of the GCA requires licensees to examine a valid “identification document” (as defined in 18 U.S.C. 1028(d) and 27 CFR 478.11) of a firearm transferee. This document must contain the residence address of the transferee so that the licensee may verify the identity of the transferee and discern whether the transferee has the intention of making a home in a particular State. Licensees transferring a firearm to a person not licensed under the GCA are required, pursuant to 27 CFR 478.124, to record the firearm transaction on an ATF Form 4473, which requires, among other things, the transferee’s residence address, including the transferee’s State of residence as it appears on the valid identification document. The term “identification document” is defined by 18 U.S.C. 1028(d)(3) as “a document made or issued by or under the authority of the United States Government, a State, political subdivision of a State . . . which, when completed with information concerning a particular individual, is of a type intended or commonly accepted for the purpose of identification of individuals.” The regulations, 27 CFR 478.11, define the term “identification document” as “[a] document containing the name, residence address, date of birth, and photograph of the holder and which was made or issued by or under the authority of the United States Government, a State, political subdivision of a State . . . which, when completed with information concerning a particular individual, is of a type intended or commonly accepted for the purpose of identification of individuals.” Identification documents include, but are not limited to, a driver’s license, voter registration, tax records, or vehicle registration. As explained in ATF Ruling 2001-5 (ATFQB 2001-4, 37), a combination of valid government documents may be used to satisfy the GCA’s State residency requirement.
I believe some FFL holders interpret address as where you happen to be physically staying at the time of purchase. I believe, as many dealers do, that your address is the one on your DL and DMV registration. In WA you must change your DL address within 10 days if you actually move. I'm not sure if a short stay in a friends trailer constitutes a move. What happens if you stay one place this week and someplace else next week. Are you going to change all of your documents to reflect where you happen to be staying that week. Of course not.
I'm out of state for months at a time but my address is whats on my DL and my registration. Has nothing to do with where my mail is going. It gets forwarded.
I can purchase a firearm in AZ using my DL and VR, have it shipped to my dealer here and take possession when I get home. I also have a US passport in case there is some question about my citizenship. All legal.
It's totally up to the FFL to decide if they want to transfer a firearm or not. Doesn't mean they have a good grasp of their requirements.