On January 15, 2026, the Department of Justice declared that 18 U.S.C. § 1715—the 1927 federal prohibition on mailing handguns—violates the Second Amendment. Assistant Attorney General T. Elliot Gaiser concluded in a 15-page opinion that the executive branch may not constitutionally enforce this statute. The DOJ will cease prosecutions and ordered USPS to update regulations immediately.
Congress passed the 1927 ban believing handguns weren’t constitutionally protected. Public Law 69-583 declared pistols and revolvers nonmailable with fines up to $1,000 and two years imprisonment. Only government officials and licensed manufacturers were exempted.
For 99 years, Americans couldn’t mail handguns. Combined with FedEx, UPS, and DHL policies prohibiting non-FFL shipping, this created a complete civilian ban. Every repair required FFL middlemen charging $25 to $75 or more. Gifts between family members in different states required FFL transfers and background checks. Citizens traveling across state lines faced impossible choices when airlines restricted firearms, buses prohibited them, and mailing remained a federal felony.
The DOJ applied the Supreme Court’s Bruen framework requiring firearms restrictions be “consistent with the Nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation.” Gaiser found § 1715 fails on three grounds.
First, illegitimate purpose. The statute “aims to suppress traffic in constitutionally protected articles.” It singles out handguns—which Heller called “the most popular weapon chosen by Americans for self-defense”—while allowing rifles and shotguns to be mailed.
Second, no historical analogues. DOJ found only Tennessee’s 1879 law criminalizing transport of pocket pistols for sale, which was premised on the idea that only military handguns were constitutionally protected—a principle Bruen rejected. Colonial laws restricting arms sales to Native Americans during hostilities or imposing wartime export controls don’t justify peacetime restrictions on citizens mailing arms to citizens.
Third, substantial burden on core rights. The law makes lawful travel with firearms “difficult, if not impossible” and burdens acquisition and maintenance of arms. As Gaiser wrote, “the receipt of a weapon is almost always a necessary predicate to both keeping and bearing a weapon.”
The opinion doesn’t extend to undetectable firearms or pen guns. USPS need not carry ammunition or gunpowder due to explosive hazards. And 18 U.S.C. § 922 still prohibits interstate transfers between non-licensees, meaning interstate private party sales still require FFL involvement.
This handgun mailing opinion fits a broader pattern. Biden’s Zero Tolerance Policy shut down FFL dealers over paperwork errors—revocations jumped from 5 in 2021 to 157 in 2023. Trump ended it April 7, 2025. The $200 NFA tax stamps for suppressors and short-barreled weapons were eliminated July 4, 2025. Biden’s pistol brace ban was reversed. Biden’s “engaged in business” rule expanding FFL requirements is under review for repeal.
Biden used administrative barriers to burden gun ownership. Trump is removing them through constitutional analysis rather than waiting for courts to work through challenges. The Office of Legal Counsel proactively reviewed restrictions, applied Bruen, and declared enforcement unconstitutional.
Gun Owners of America filed Shreve v. U.S. Postal Service in July 2025 challenging § 1715. The case remains pending, but DOJ determined citizens’ rights shouldn’t be abridged while awaiting judicial resolution.
For the first time in 99 years, Americans have the constitutional right to mail handguns for lawful purposes. The mandatory FFL middleman requirement for repairs, gifts, and self-shipping is eliminated. Citizens can travel with arms without facing prosecution when other carriers refuse firearms.
But victory is incomplete. Gun owners exercising constitutional rights risk package seizures even though DOJ won’t prosecute. The Justice Department has acted. USPS must comply.
Congress passed § 1715 in 1927 to undermine the Second Amendment. For 99 years, that law stood unchallenged. It falls not through congressional repeal or judicial decision, but through executive acknowledgment that enforcement violates the Constitution.
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