Illinois gun law is a different world from Idaho — and not in a good way. If you've got family there, or you're considering a move, or you just want to understand what the other end of the regulatory spectrum looks like, this breakdown is worth your time.

"Illinois requires a FOID card to purchase, possess, or transport firearms and ammunition. There is no exception carved out for private property, inheritance, or a trip to the range."

Read that again. You need government permission to touch a firearm on your own property. That's not a city ordinance or a county quirk — that's statewide. Makes Idaho's constitutional carry situation feel like a completely different country.

"A bolt-action, pump-action, lever-action, and slide-action firearms are not assault weapons under PICA — even if they have features that would otherwise be regulated — unless the firearm is a shotgun with a revolving cylinder."

So your Marlin lever gun is fine. Your Mossberg 590 with a detachable magazine is a different conversation. The carve-outs here are specific enough that you genuinely need ISP's flowchart in hand before you assume anything.

"A muzzle brake and a flash suppressor are not the same thing under PICA. Per ISP, a muzzle brake directs the energy of the muzzle blast to reduce felt recoil — it does not suppress flash."

This is the kind of detail that actually matters at the gun shop counter. Two muzzle devices that look similar to a casual observer fall on completely different sides of the law there. The guy behind the counter better know the difference, because the customer paying for the install is the one who gets charged.

"If you have an endorsed assault weapon and want to transfer it, your options are limited: Transfer to an heir, transfer to an individual residing in another state who will keep it in that state, transfer to a Federal Firearms Licensee."

You can't sell it to your neighbor. Full stop. What was a normal private transfer in most of the country becomes a one-way door in Illinois — it goes to family, goes out of state, or goes to an FFL. That's a significant hit to the resale value of anything grandfathered under PICA, and worth thinking about if you're sitting on rifles you eventually want to move.

For those of you who have family in Illinois or have helped someone navigate a move in or out of that state with guns — how did the transfer or transport logistics actually work in practice?

Read the full article in The Handbook → | By BGC Editorial

Illinois Firearms Laws: FOID and PICA Guide

Illinois Firearms Laws: FOID and PICA Guide

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