NICS Index

In November 1993, the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act of 1993 (Brady Act), Public Law 103-159, was signed into law requiring Federal Firearms Licensees (FFLs) to request background checks on prospective firearm transferees. The permanent provisions of the Brady Act, which went into effect on November 30, 1998, required the U.S. Attorney General to establish the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) so that any FFL may contact by telephone, or by other electronic means, for information to be supplied immediately, on whether the transfer of a firearm would violate Section 922 (g) or (n) of Title 18, United States Code (U.S.C.), or state law.

The NICS is a national system that checks available records in the National Crime Information Center (NCIC), the Interstate Identification Index (III), and the NICS Index to determine if prospective transferees are disqualified from receiving firearms.

The NICS Index contains records provided by local, state, and federal agencies about persons prohibited from receiving firearms under federal law. All records in the NICS Index are federally disqualifying records and will prohibit the transfer of a firearm.

Most records in the NICS Index are obtained from federal agencies; however, authorized local and state law enforcement agencies may voluntarily contribute records for entry into the NICS Index. Additionally, the FBI may enter records into the NICS Index.

The following definitions from the Federal Register, Vol. 62, No. 124, outline the categories of persons prohibited from receiving firearms. These categories are:

1) Persons who are aliens and are illegally or unlawfully in the United States:

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and state law enforcement agencies have the authority to enter/update records of individuals who are aliens and are unlawfully/illegally in the United States or (except as provided in Title 18, U.S.C., Section 922[y][2]) are individuals who have been admitted to the United States under a nonimmigrant visa, e.g., aliens traveling temporarily in the United States for business or pleasure, students who maintain a residence abroad or aliens who are temporary foreign workers.

2) Persons who have renounced their U.S. citizenship:

The Department of State alone has the authority to enter/update records on persons who have renounced their U.S. citizenship.

3) Persons who have been adjudicated as a mental defective or have been involuntarily committed to a mental institution:

The Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Defense, and local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies have the authority to enter and update records of persons who have been adjudicated as mental defectives or have been involuntarily committed to mental institutions.

4) Persons who have been discharged from the U.S. Armed Forces under dishonorable conditions:

The Department of Defense and the U.S. Coast Guard have the authority to enter and update records of persons who have been dishonorably discharged from the U.S. Armed Forces.

5) Persons who are unlawful users of or addicted to any controlled substance:

The Department of Defense, the U.S. Coast Guard, and local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies have the authority to enter and update records of persons who have been unlawful users of or are addicted to any controlled substance.

6) Persons who are federally disqualified when a record is not already included in the NCIC or the III:

Local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies have the authority to enter/update records of persons who are federally disqualified when those records are not already included in the NCIC or the III.

The local, state, and federal agencies are provided with two modes to add, modify, or cancel records from the NICS Index.

The first mode is an electronic connection between the NICS and the contributing agency using an application layer and the NCIC-Front End. The agency may use the interface to electronically add, modify, supplement, cancel, or display a denied person’s record in the NICS Index. The second mode is a batch data transfer on tape for the NICS Index record additions, modifications, supplements, and cancellations, which can be submitted as a series of records on an IBM standard 3480 magnetic cartridge tape, CD-ROM, or on a 3.5” diskette.

Since the contributing agency is responsible for the accuracy and validity of the NICS Index records, it is imperative to supplement or cancel records as needed.

In addition to local, state, and federal agencies voluntarily contributing records to the NICS Index, the NICS Section receives telephone calls from state mental institutions, psychiatrists, police departments, and family members inquiring about placing individuals in the NICS Index. Frequently, these are emergency mental health issues and may require immediate action. Validation of the supporting records to ensure the individual is prohibited is conducted prior to the subject’s entry into the NICS Index.

Customer Service
1-877-444-NICS (6427 )

Facsimile
1-888-550-6427  

Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (TDD)
1-877-NICS-TTY  

NICS Web Site:
www.fbi.gov/hq/cjisd/nics/index.htm 

NICS E-Check:
www.nicsezcheckfbi.gov 

NICS E-Mail Address
a_nics@leo.gov 

NICS Appeals E-Mail Address
nicsappeals@leo.gov

January 2008

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