How To Purchase A Gun In Iowa

So, you’ve decided to buy a gun in Iowa. Maybe you’re fending off a rogue corn stalk, or you just really want to feel like a cowboy while mowing the lawn. Whatever the reason, you’re in luck—Iowa’s gun laws are about as complicated as ordering a plain hamburger.

First, the big surprise: you don’t need a permit just to buy a handgun or long gun from a licensed dealer. That’s right, the state trusts you more than a TSA agent trusts a passenger with a book. All you need is a valid ID and a pulse—though a pulse is highly recommended.

The Background Check: Your 15 Minutes of Fame

When you buy from a dealer, you’ll fill out a federal form called the 4473. It asks if you’re a felon, a fugitive, or if you’ve been “adjudicated as a mental defective”—a phrase that sounds like a bad Yelp review. Expect to wait about 5 to 10 minutes for the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) to give you a thumbs-up.

Fun fact: Iowa processes more than 95% of NICS checks instantly. Unless your name is “McLovin,” you’ll probably pass. But if the system crashes? You can wait three days, or your dealer might just sigh and say, “Come back tomorrow, pal.”

The Permit to Carry: Because Open Carry is a Fashion Choice

If you want to carry a concealed handgun—or even open carry in many places—you’ll need a Permit to Carry Weapons. This isn’t required to buy a gun, but it’s like buying a fancy holster for your ego. To get one, you’ll need to take a 4-hour training class. That’s right: four hours of learning about safety, laws, and why you shouldn’t shoot the neighbor’s cat, even if it looks at you funny.

The class is usually fun. You’ll shoot at paper targets, miss a few, and then get a certificate that feels more prestigious than a doctorate in potato farming. Then you take that paper to your county sheriff, pay roughly $50, and wait 30 to 60 days. Pro tip: don’t lose the certificate. If you do, you’ll have to re-take the class, which is basically paying for a sarcastic instructor to tell you “keep your finger off the bang switch” again.

Private Sales: The Wild West of Dad’s Garage

Here’s where Iowa gets extra goofy: you can buy a gun from a private individual—like your neighbor, or a guy named “Cletus” on Facebook Marketplace—with zero paperwork. No background check, no permit, just a handshake and a promise not to use it on the guy who cut you off on I-35. The law recommends you ask for ID, but it’s not required.

Is this a loophole? Yes. Is it legal? Also yes. Just don’t do it across state lines, or the ATF will show up with a warrant and a sense of humor that’s drier than a popcorn fart.

The Waiting Game: Do You Have Patience?

Iowa has no mandatory waiting period. That means you can walk into a gun store, buy a shotgun, and be home in time to miss your spouse asking, “What’s in the bag?” The dealer might chuckle and say, “Still faster than your Amazon delivery.”

However, if you’re 18 to 20 years old, you can only buy long guns from dealers. Handguns? Nope—you have to wait until you’re 21, because apparently, at 18 you can vote, fight in wars, and buy a rifle, but a handgun is too much responsibility. It’s like telling a teenager: “Sure, drive a car, but Don’t touch the cupholder—it’s dangerous.”

Where to Buy: From Booths to Bass Pro Shops

Gun stores in Iowa range from cozy “we also sell beef jerky” dens to mega-marts that smell of gunpowder and ambition. Try a local gun show if you enjoy loud t-shirts and vendors who ask, “So, you huntin’ or plottin’?” It’s a blast, literally and figuratively.

Online purchases are legal, but the gun must ship to a licensed dealer for pickup. So you’ll pay a $25 transfer fee, then wait for the dealer to finish his sandwich before processing your background check. Patience, grasshopper.

The Surprising Law: No “Bump Stocks” Allowed

Iowa actually banned bump stocks in 2018, which is a bit like banning flip-flops in a snowstorm. You also can’t own a machine gun made after 1986, so put away your dreams of becoming Rambo—unless you’ve got $20,000 and a form from the ATF that takes six months to process.

Final Step: Be a Decent Human

Once you’ve got your firearm, remember: Iowa is a “shall-issue” state, meaning they practically hand out permits if you meet the requirements. But don’t be a jerk. Shoot responsibly, lock it up, and for the love of sweet corn, don’t wave it around at a state fair unless you’re aiming for a butter sculpture.

And if you ever feel unsure, just ask a friend who’s a gun enthusiast. They’ll talk your ear off about calibers and “trigger reset” until you nod off. Which, honestly, is safer than buying a gun from a guy named Cletus in a parking lot.

So go ahead—buy your firearm. Just don’t use it to threaten the neighbor’s cat. That cat has your address.