FFL EZ Check [2026] – Everything you Need to Know

FFL eZ Check system provided by the ATF that helps individuals and other FFLs confirm the validity of a Federal Firearm License (FFL).

The eZ Check system is a great tool for what it is designed for: to make sure that an FFL is legitimate.

In this article, we'll cover everything you need to know about the ATF's system for Federal Firearms Licensees (FFLs).

What is FFL eZ Check?

The FFL eZ Check system is a tool provided by the ATF for an FFL dealer to look up a Federal Firearms License (FFL) to ensure that it is valid (not expired/revoked) and to confirm shipping information.

An FFL is a Federal Firearms License. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) regulates the interstate commerce of firearms and an FFL is required under federal law in order to be engaged in the business of firearms.

This means that if you want to be a firearms dealer or manufacturer, you're going to need to get your FFL.

Depending on the type of business activity you'd like to engage in with firearms, you'll need a particular type of FFL. And, contrary to popular belief, home-based FFLs are perfectly legal and are, in fact, the most common type of FFLs in this country.

The ATF eZ Check system is for checking on FFLs by looking up their FFL number only - it is NOT for running gun background checks (federal background checks or NICS background checks).

Why is ATF’s eZ Check Important?

If you are already an FFL holder, there are many things you must be aware of (and do) to be compliant and stay out of trouble. If you're looking for help with these things, I've created free FFL Software and a full ATF Compliance membership program.

One of the requirements under federal law is that before you transfer a firearm to another FFL, you must obtain a copy of their FFL. We also strongly recommend that you use the ATF eZ Check system to confirm the validity of the copy of the FFL you receive.

Confirming FFL Validity

Why is it important to confirm that an FFL is valid?

You should confirm that an FFL is valid because using a fraudulent FFL copy is a method of that some criminals use to unlawfully get firearms.

You see, when a non-FFL (a regular citizen) wants to purchase a firearm from an FFL, they must first appear at the licensed location (or an authorized event) to fill out the required paperwork (Form 4473) and satisfy the background check requirements to have the firearm properly transferred to them.

FFL Requirements

If you sell a gun to someone from another state like on GunBroker, for example, you'll need to ship the firearm to an FFL in their state who can then transfer it to them.

As a non-FFL, you should insist on getting a copy of the FFL you are sending to. As an FFL, it is a REQUIREMENT.

How do you know that the FFL you are shipping to is actually a legitimate/valid FFL? After all, the paper copy of the license you'll receive from the FFL holder is just that.... a piece of paper (likely a poor quality photocopy).

The FFL copy should have an expiration date printed on it, however, you have no idea if the license has been revoked by the ATF and the ez check system acts as a verification prior to an ffl transfer.

Well, you could use their website and do some research. But, even if it's a valid company name, someone could take the paper copy of the real FFL and then just put their address on it. Or, the FFL could have been revoked from the ATF.

In either of these cases, you might believe it is a real FFL (company) but you'd be sending the gun to a non-FFL.

This is a crime.

FFL eZ Check Benefits

Hopefully, you can see why it is important to use the FFL eZ Check system.

With FFL eZ Check, you can enter the FFL number and see a current record from the ATF for that FFL. This will show the actual company name, whether the FFL is still valid, and the accurate shipping information for the firearm(s).

How to use eZ Check for FFLs

There are a couple of way to use ezcheck:

First, you can visit the website manually and follow the steps below each time you transfer a firearm.

Second, you can use free A&D Bound Book Software like FFLSafe and it will automatically confirm an FFL's validity through FFL eZ Check for you.

Step 1 - Obtain a Copy of the FFL

The first step is to get an actual copy of the license for the FFL dealer that you are going to be using. You are the requesting licensee of another FFL. The license copy must be a signed copy. It does not need to be a "certified copy" - a photocopy is fine. In fact, it is technically a certified copy once signed.

There is not much of a standard here: a photocopy of the license is fine, and often it is only part of the FFL and may have something like "for firearm transfers only" written on it. Many Federal Firearms Licensees do this, so you don't take their copy of their FFL and try to use it for a firearm transfer to get a gun in a gun store in person.

As long as the copy is a signed copy of the FFL, you're good.

Step 2 - Open FFL eZ Check

This step is easy: open the FFL eZ Check tool on the ATF website by visiting: https://fflezcheck.atf.gov/FFLEzCheck/

Step 3 - Enter FFL Information

Enter the first 3 digits and the last 5 digits of the FFL number from the licensee into the FFL eZ Check tool, and then click the submit button.

If you'd like to learn more about what each section of numbers of an FFL license stand for, check out our article on FFL Numbers and what they mean.

Step 4 - Review ATF's FFL Data

After entering the FFL information (the FFL number) and selecting the submit button, you'll see the ATF's record for that Federal Firearms Licensee.

You'll see the FFL name, address, FFL type, and whether it is a valid FFL (not expired or revoked).

If the FFL is expired, you can still use it IF that Federal Firearms Licensee has a valid Letter of Authorization (LOA) from the ATF for that license. A LOA will allow an FFL to still be used if the renewal is in process. If there's a valid LOA, it will be shown in the results along with the date for which it can be used.

If you're not clear about what address you can ship a firearm to based on the addresses on the FFL, we cover this in our ATF Compliance Course.

If you receive an error message from the ATF FFL eZ Check system, confirm the licensee's information and try again. If you continue to get an error message, you may be dealing with a fraudulent copy of a license.