Starting in 2027, Washington gun buyers will need government approval, a background check, and safety training before any dealer can sell them a firearm — and a sitting county sheriff calls the plan “insane.”
Story Snapshot
- Starting May 1, 2027, Washington dealers cannot sell a firearm until the buyer shows a valid state permit.
- The permit requires fingerprints, a Washington State Patrol background check, and proof of recent safety training.
- The permit costs about $126 up front and must be renewed every five years.
- Franklin County Sheriff Jim Raymond says the law is unconstitutional and calls it “insane.”
How the New Permit System Works
Washington’s revised gun law, found in RCW 9.41.121, bars any licensed dealer from handing over a firearm until the buyer produces a valid permit to purchase. That rule kicks in on May 1, 2027. It marks a shift from a one-time point-of-sale check to a state-run approval system buyers must clear before they even pick a gun off the shelf.
House Bill 1163 spells out what that approval takes. Applicants must submit a full set of fingerprints through their local law enforcement agency and show a certificate proving they finished certified firearms safety training within the past five years. Only after the Washington State Patrol’s background check program confirms eligibility can a dealer complete the sale.
The training itself isn’t just paperwork. State law lists topics like suicide prevention, safe storage, legal rules on using deadly force, and conflict resolution. Supporters see this as building real skills, not just checking a box, though the state has not yet published final standards for how the training will be graded or who can teach it.
The Price Tag and Renewal Cycle
Cost estimates put the total burden at $126 — a $90 permit fee plus a $36 fingerprint charge — before adding any separate training-class fees or local law enforcement charges for fingerprinting. That price does not include what private instructors may bill for the required safety course.
Because the permit is only good for five years, buyers can expect to pay again and go through the process a second time to keep buying guns legally. State fiscal paperwork projects the Washington State Patrol program will cost millions of dollars to run, funded largely through those application fees. Official legislative summaries confirm the law’s full scope takes effect statewide on that same May 2027 date.
A Sheriff Calls the Law ‘Insane’
Franklin County Sheriff Jim Raymond has become one of the loudest voices against the new system. “I think this is insane,” Raymond told The Center Square, adding that he believes the permit requirement violates the constitutional right to keep and bear arms that law-abiding citizens already hold.
Raymond has framed his opposition around protecting kids without giving up gun rights, saying he wants his grandchildren to attend safe schools and is willing to do almost anything to make that happen — “minus give up my constitutional rights and guarantees.” He argues the law goes too far and predicts it will end up in court.
Starting May 1, 2027, you'll need government permission before you can walk into a gun store in Washington. Bill Kirk of Washington Gun Law joins @jcurleyshow to break down the permit-to-purchase law. pic.twitter.com/Lw9EPcXTAl
— KIRO Newsradio 97.3 FM🎙 (@KIRONewsradio) September 17, 2026
Gun-rights groups and some lawmakers echo that constitutional argument, warning that turning a fundamental right into something buyers must apply and pay for sets a troubling precedent, regardless of the law’s safety goals.
What Research Says About Permit Laws Elsewhere
Studies of similar permit-to-purchase laws in other states offer a mixed but sometimes favorable picture for supporters. Johns Hopkins researchers found that state handgun purchaser licensing laws were linked to lower firearm homicide and suicide rates compared to states without them, based on data from Connecticut, Missouri, and other states that adopted or repealed such systems.
No Washington-specific study exists yet, since the law doesn’t take effect until 2027. Questions remain about processing times, appeal rights for denied applicants, and whether local fingerprinting and training costs will end up higher than the state’s posted fee. Those details will likely shape how the law is judged once it actually starts running.
Sources:
townhall.com, wa-law.org, lawfilesext.leg.wa.gov, seattlered.com, app.leg.wa.gov, pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
