Suppressor Tax Stamp, No More Form 4: The NFA Just Got a Big Crack, and Suppressors Are Looking a Whole Lot Freer
Last updated: August 16, 2026 · Originally published: August 13, 2026
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Something big just happened to the suppressor tax stamp this week, and if you care about suppressors, short-barreled rifles, or short-barreled shotguns, it’s worth paying attention.
For the first time since 1934, a federal court has ruled that the registration and tax-stamp process for suppressors, SBRs, SBSs, and AOWs no longer has a solid constitutional leg to stand on. The Department of Justice let the ruling take effect instead of blocking it. As of early this morning, the old Form 4 and Form 1 process is no longer being enforced against the people covered by the lawsuit.
That includes customers of Silencer Shop.
How We Got Here: The End of the Suppressor Tax Stamp
The National Firearms Act was always sold as a tax law. Congress put a $200 tax on these items and then built a whole registration system around collecting that tax. In 2025, Congress zeroed out the tax on suppressors, short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns, and AOWs. Once the suppressor tax stamp hit zero, a group of plaintiffs being led by the Silencer Shop Foundation, went to court and argued the obvious: you can’t keep the registration system if the only reason it existed was to collect a tax that no longer exists.
On August 5, Judge James Wesley Hendrix in the Northern District of Texas agreed. He said the registration requirements for these untaxed items exceed Congress’s power. The court put a short stay on the ruling so the government could appeal if it wanted to. The Justice Department chose not to. At 12:01 a.m. Central time on August 13, the injunction went into effect.
What Silencer Shop Just Did
Silencer Shop didn’t wait around. They had already notified the ATF and DOJ that they planned to complete the first commercial suppressor transfers without Form 4s or federal registration as soon as the clock struck midnight. They followed through.
At their storefront in Leander, Texas, Silencer Shop transferred suppressors to two Gun Owners of America members, Brandon Herrera and Texas State Rep. Wes Virdell all without any of the old NFA paperwork. Those were the first lawful, unregistered commercial suppressor transfers in 92 years. Silencer Shop has since made it clear that customers buying suppressors or AOWs through them (or Powered By Silencer Shop dealers) in the 27 states without their own state-level registration requirements can now do a normal 4473 and NICS check and walk out with the can. No Form 4. No waiting. No federal registry entry.
The Bigger Picture
The ruling isn’t universal. It covers the plaintiffs, their members, and their customers. State laws still matter as some states have their own rules that look a lot like the old federal ones. Machineguns and destructive devices are still fully under the NFA. And the government can still appeal.
But here’s the part that matters most to me: the genie is out of the bottle.
I’m an FFL and an 07/02 manufacturer of NFA items. I’ve lived inside this system for a long time. I’ve filled out the forms, waited on the approvals, and watched customers get frustrated by the process. I’ve also seen how much demand there is for suppressors when you remove the friction. Once people start buying cans the same way they buy a rifle meaning same-day, no special federal paperwork, it’s going to be very hard to shove that back into the old box system. The political and practical reality of trying to reimpose a complicated registration scheme after thousands of people have already transferred without it is a different animal than defending the status quo.
I’m optimistic about where this is headed. Not because everything is suddenly perfect or because every legal question is settled, but because the direction of travel has shifted. Suppressors are hearing protection. They’re useful tools. Making them harder and more expensive to own never made much sense once you strip away the old tax justification. A court finally said so out loud, the government didn’t fight the stay, and companies like Silencer Shop are already acting on it.
There’s still work to do. There will be more lawsuits, more questions about who is covered, and probably more fights in states that still treat suppressors like they’re radioactive. But the foundation of the old system has a serious crack in it, and that crack is going to be hard to ignore going forward.
I’m looking forward to seeing what this means for the next few years, for manufacturers, for dealers, and especially for regular people who just want to protect their hearing without jumping through a month-long federal process or a suppressor tax stamp. The landscape is changing. And for once, it feels like it’s changing in a direction that actually makes sense.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you still need a tax stamp for a suppressor?
If you’re covered by the ruling, no. For the plaintiffs, their members, and Silencer Shop customers in states without their own registration rules, the $200 suppressor tax stamp and the Form 4 wait are gone. You do a normal 4473 and a NICS check, same as buying a rifle. Everyone outside that group is still operating under the old process for now.
Are suppressors legal now without a Form 4?
Yes, for the people the injunction covers. As of 12:01 a.m. Central on August 13, 2026, the Form 4 and Form 1 requirements are no longer being enforced against them. Silencer Shop has already completed lawful, unregistered transfers with nothing more than a background check. State law still controls where you live, so a few states remain off the table.
Were suppressors removed from the NFA?
Not entirely. Suppressors, SBRs, SBSs, and AOWs are still technically listed under the National Firearms Act. What the court struck down is the registration requirement now that the tax on those items sits at zero. Machineguns and destructive devices remain fully under the NFA and are not affected.
Which states can buy a suppressor without the old NFA paperwork?
Silencer Shop points to 27 states that don’t layer their own registration requirement on top of the federal one. In those states, buyers using Silencer Shop or a Powered By Silencer Shop dealer can walk out with the can the same day. States with their own suppressor rules still enforce them, so check your state before you assume the friction is gone.
Can the government bring the suppressor tax stamp back?
It can try. The Justice Department chose not to fight the stay, but appeals and new lawsuits are still on the table, and Congress could always act. My read is that once thousands of people have transferred cans without a suppressor tax stamp, putting that system back together is a much harder political fight than defending it was.
