How long are the NICS Checks taking?

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BGutzman

New member
For years whenever I purchased a pistol the NICS checks always get delayed and then about 4 hours later (often less) I get the go and return to the store and pick up my purchase...

I have no convictions of any kind for anything.... Never charged with anything, not so much as a speeding ticket in my life... I have a CCW permit and carry daily...

So Im always curious why the delay in the first place but I can wait four hours... No big deal.....

Well .............

I decided the SIG itch was too strong and I broke down and bought (or attempted to buy) a Sig P290... My NICS check didnt come back for the last 8 days and still isnt in.. The stores going to complete the transaction tomorrow and that will be the end of it...

My question is NICS really so over run by new gun purchases or do you think I fell into some electronic database hole? Im not sure if I can or should try to dig into the matter further or if its truly just the mass purchases of guns going on..

Any thoughts?
 
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BarryLee

New member
No, I do not think they are that far behind I suspect something else delayed your approval. I have a Georgia Firearms License, so I can skip the NICS check, but when I went though it a few years ago it was literally minutes.
 
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ScottRiqui

New member
I'm in Virginia, and I've never gotten anything other than an instant approval. That being said, I'm not sure what makes the difference between an instant approval, a delay of a few hours, or a delay of a few days.

Regarding your situation - I thought that if a decision hadn't been rendered in three days, you could go ahead with the purchase. Has your store said why they're waiting for the ninth day to complete the transaction?
 
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Dave Anderson

New member
My FFL dealer gave me a bit of background on why some checks are delayed. Almost always, he says, it is because the individual shows up on a database to which access is limited, and the person doing the initial check does not have access. That means the check has to go to a more senior person who is authorized to access the database.

Our city is located near a military base and he sells quite a few guns to military personnel. Almost always they are delayed. Access to military records is strictly controlled. Another example is a security clearance. If the person applying has a security clearance it will likely be delayed, and the higher the clearance generally the longer the delay.

To give an example, let's say the person buying the gun has a top-level security clearance. The person the dealer first speaks to when requesting the NICS check wouldn't know about the clearance, or be allowed information on it. All he would know is the computer says something like "senior personnel access only" or something similar. He then sends the application to a higher level. The next person may not have access either and it may have to go still higher.

In the case of high-level security clearances there may be very few people allowed access, and those people may have a backlog, or may have finished work and gone home for the day.

It's possible people are in security databases and don't know it, or have forgotten. For example you may have once worked for a company providing a product or service to the military, and as part of the contract the company is required to provide a security check on its personnel.

The dealer told me every delayed application he's ever had was approved eventually, once the higher level official had time to look at it.

People get the wrong idea about instant versus delayed approval. They think a delayed approval means some negative information has come to light, and those far-off bureaucrats are studying all the facts, deciding whether this person is worthy or not before grudgingly giving approval.

I know people in the military who feel a delayed approval is somehow questioning their character - they'll say "Uncle Sam trusts me to [drive a tank, fly an F16] but doesn't trust me to buy a gun." In fact, Uncle Sam is just being very careful about who is allowed access to information on his military personnel.
 
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PawPaw

New member
My NICS checks are often done in seconds, but I have a very distinctive name and I always give them my SSN.

You might share a name with someone who has a ... more nefarious past? One acquaintance of mine had the same name as someone with a checkered past and had trouble getting approval, even though he was a staunch, upright citizen. His FFL recommended that he apply for a UPIN nuimber, a personal number that he puts in Block 9 and it helps him get instant approval.

From what I understand, you apply for the UPIN number and the NICS checks your record and assigns a number. When you use that number, they know exactly who you are and are able to issue a PROCEED.
 
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Sparks1957

New member
I have a very distinctive name and I always give them my SSN
Click to expand...

Mine never take more than a minute or two, probably for the same reasons.

The only other person in the history of the world with my name was my great-grandfather, who fought in The Civil War and died in 1905.
 
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ScottRiqui

New member
Our city is located near a military base and he sells quite a few guns to military personnel. Almost always they are delayed. Access to military records is strictly controlled. Another example is a security clearance. If the person applying has a security clearance it will likely be delayed, and the higher the clearance generally the longer the delay.

To give an example, let's say the person buying the gun has a top-level security clearance. The person the dealer first speaks to when requesting the NICS check wouldn't know about the clearance, or be allowed information on it. All he would know is the computer says something like "senior personnel access only" or something similar. He then sends the application to a higher level. The next person may not have access either and it may have to go still higher.
Click to expand...

That makes sense on the surface, but I've been on active duty for the past 18 years, have a current Top Secret/SCI security clearance from the DoD, and live in the Norfolk/Virginia Beach area, which has the highest concentration of military personnel on the East coast. I've *never* had an NICS check result in anything other than an instant approval.

If military personnel are getting delayed more often than the general population, I'm wondering if it has more to do with the fact that they're likely to have had multiple addresses in a short period of time, and it's taking longer to make sure that the background check is tracing the correct person back through time?
 
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Tom Servo

Staff
My NICS check didnt come back for the last 8 days and still isnt in
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If they haven't heard back within 3 business days, the dealer can release the gun.

Delays can happen for any number of reasons, and while we can speculate, I've never heard a definitive set of criteria that contribute. One thing I have noticed the last couple of weekends is that either the computers at the call center are running slowly, or they're understaffed. That could be a factor.
 
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BGutzman

New member
I appreciate the insights and the comments.... I did have a security clearance before I retired from the military so maybe thats part of the hold up...

The store had its own policy on how long they wait to allow the sale which was fine if frustrating....

It will be a little while before the gun buying itch hits be again but I have never had a hold this long.... Its just kind of frustrating to get a delay, especially one this long...

Its over now.... I love the P290... time to lube it up and head to the range...:)
 
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KC Rob

New member
Our city is located near a military base and he sells quite a few guns to military personnel. Almost always they are delayed. Access to military records is strictly controlled. Another example is a security clearance. If the person applying has a security clearance it will likely be delayed, and the higher the clearance generally the longer the delay.
Click to expand...

A security clearance has nothing to do with it, I have a Top Secret and I get approved instantly, the dealer hangs up the phone with NICS and I am good to go.

For example you may have once worked for a company providing a product or service to the military, and as part of the contract the company is required to provide a security check on its personnel.
Click to expand...

That isn't an issue either, security clearances aren't granted then you have one from then on out, they expire every five years and besides companies/agencies don't carry your clearance if you are do not need it any longer or use it for your job. It costs money and is a security risk to have people with active clearances who aren't using them anymore.

I don't know all the ins and outs of the NICS check system, I do know that security clearances are not the issue though.

Anyways, glad you got your gun finally, now take it to the range and blow off some steam!
 
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Dave Anderson

New member
My earlier comments about delays to military personnel or security clearances were not based on guesses, theory, or idle speculation. They came from the dealer who got his information from NICS personnel. incidentally this dealer himself holds a fairly high level security clearance.

If the person applying provides only ID such as driver's license and social security number then that is what the dealer conveys to his first NICS contact. If a search of those criminal records. etc comes up clean the application is approved.

However if the person also provides information leading to other data bases (such as military service, or high level government service requiring security clearance) then those are checked as well. As explained some of these data bases are only accessible by senior personnel who themselves have higher level security clearances.
 
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KC Rob

New member
My comments are not based on guesses, theory, idle speculation or as in your case, second hand knowledge, but rather on the fact that I am a Special Investigator with Federal Investigative Services (the agency that grants security clearances) so I know a little bit about the topic since I deal with it on a daily basis.

No where on the form 4473 are you asked to list anything pertaining to military service or "high level government service". You list your name, SSN and other info. Then your FFL asks to see your drivers license, to verify residency, then he calls NICS. At no time is your military or government background asked, discussed or disclosed. When exactly would you be providing information leading to other databases?

Where does your dealer work that requires a "fairly high level security clearance"? I thought he was a gun dealer, or is that just a part time gig? Gun dealers don't need a security clearance from the government to ply their trade, so if he is not currently working for the government he is either pulling your leg, or he previously had a clearance from government service and thinks that it is somehow still active, which it ain't. A clearance does not exist in a vacuum, it has to be held or sponsored by some agency, if you are not currently working in a field that requires one, you don't have one, even if you used to.

My original comment was not meant to be an attack on you or your dealer, I was just trying provide some clarity on a topic I happen to know a little something about.
 
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Stealth01

New member
Retired military, retired aerospace contractor, purchased another hand gun yesterday, in the time it took my LGS owner to read my information off to them, I was approved! Been that way for my last 6 guns!!
 
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mrvco

New member
I bought a pistol last week and it took less than 30 minutes... Less time than it took me to go to the ATM and grab a quick bite to eat.

But I've also seen the queue get backed up for 2-3 hours, so if I'm planning on buying, I usually plan my day so I go by the LGS first, then go run errands and come back later to pick up the goods.
 
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