When completing a Form 1 or Form 4, each ‘Responsible Person’ on your trust must complete a Form 23
A copy of the ‘responsible person questionnaire’ form 5320.23 (Form 23) will need to be completed by each ‘responsible person’ of the trust (you and anyone on Schedule B of your trust).
Important Note: Your fellow ‘responsible persons’ will find it much easier to complete this form if they have a copy of your completed questionnaire in front of them so they do not make any mistakes regarding the make, model, serial, etc. of the NFA item.
The latest version of the Form 23 may be downloaded here. The form itself is well designed with fillable fields which auto-transfer the data to two additional copies (however, this feature only works if you download the form and open it in Adobe Acrobat, Acrobat Reader, FoxIt, or another stand-alone PDF Editor. It will NOT work inside the browser.)
You, and the Joint Trustees listed on Schedule B of your trust, should download the form and each one complete it according to the following instructions:
Form 23 – Page 1
- In Box 1 you should check the box for Form 4.
- In Box 2 you should copy the trust name and address from Box 2 on the Form 4.
- In Box 3a you should put your full legal name and your home address.
- In Box 3b you should put your telephone number.
- In Box 3c you should put your email address.
- If you have changed your name at any time during your life, including being married, then Box 3d should contain all other names you have ever used.
- In Box 3e you will affix a 2×2 passport-quality photo taken within the last year (on the ATF copy of the form only). As I noted here, many NFA dealers offer in-store photography options so you should check with your local gun store. Failing that, Walgreens is a common provider of this service in many towns.
- Box 3f should contain your Social Security Number. This is an optional field but including it should dramatically decrease your processing time.
- Box 3g should also contain your date of birth.
- Box 3h should contain your ethnicity
- Box 3i should contain your race
- In Box 4a, you should copy the type-of-firearm from the Form 4
- In Box 4b you should copy the mfg/maker/importer name and address from the Form 4
- In Box 4c you should copy the model from the Form 4
- In Box 4d you should copy the caliber and UOM from the Form 4
- In Box 4e you should copy the serial number from the Form 4
- Box 5 should contain the information regarding the CLEO whose jurisdiction includes the home address in Box 3a of this form.
Form 23 – Page 2
- You will need to answer the questions in Boxes 6, 7, 8, and 9 as they apply to you, the person completing the form. You will need to answer them truthfully as any errors may be prosecuted as perjury!
- Note: If you have been convicted of a felony but have since had your gun rights restored then the instructions state you should answer question ‘No’ to the question about whether you have been convicted of a felony. However, I strongly advise you to attach a copy of your restoration paperwork to the Form 23 when submitting it to the ATF.
- You will sign the certification following Box 9. (More about this in the signing section below)
- You should enter the date in the field to the right of the signature block.
Printing The Completed Form 23
Once you have completed the Form 23, you will need to print it. It will print 2 copies. You should now affix your photo to the ATF copy of the Form 23 only. (DO NOT USE STAPLES)
Signing the Completed Form 23
The only place you will need to sign the Form 23 is following the certification statement below Box 9. You do NOT add “as trustee” to your signature on this form.
Do not forget to sign both copies of the Form 23.
Important: The ATF requires all signatures to be in either blue or black ink.
Since the ATF releases new versions of this form fairly frequently, please let me know if you encounter any differences between this guide and the current version of the form.
