wjla.com · September 9, 2026
Maryland gun law changes begin Oct. 1 -- here's what to know
# Maryland gun law changes begin Oct. 1 -- here's what to know
by John Gonzalez
Wed, September 9, 2026 at 4:03 AM
Updated Wed, September 9, 2026 at 4:03 AM
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FILE - In this Oct. 2, 2018, file photo, semi-automatic rifles fill a wall at a gun shop in Lynnwood, Wash. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, File)
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (7News) — Several changes to Maryland’s gun laws take effect Oct.1, including new reporting requirements for licensed firearms dealers, the destruction of firearms surrendered through qualifying gun buyback programs and a longer handgun permit period for certain retired law enforcement officers.
Another significant change involving a category of semiautomatic pistols does not take effect until Jan. 1, 2027.
## New requirements for firearms dealers
Under a new Maryland law, licensed firearms dealers must notify the Secretary of State Police within 24 hours after learning of certain burglaries, attempted burglaries, robberies or thefts involving firearms or ammunition at the dealer’s business or where firearms are stored.
Dealers must also report certain compromises of required security features, including failures involving video surveillance, measures designed to prevent unauthorized entry, monitored burglary alarms or physical barriers.
The gun law also establishes civil penalties of up to $250 for a first violation and up to $1,000 for a second or subsequent violation.
## Buyback firearms must be destroyed
Another law taking effect October 1 requires a federal firearms licensee or law enforcement agency operating a gun buyback program to destroy each firearm and all of its component parts turned in through the program.
Before a law enforcement agency destroys a firearm, it must determine whether the firearm is connected to a crime or has been reported lost or stolen.
## Five-year permits for certain retired officers
A separate law changes the expiration and renewal period for handgun permits issued to retired law enforcement officers who retired in good standing from a Maryland state, county or municipal law enforcement agency.
Those permits will expire on the last day of the holder’s birth month five years after the permit is issued, with the possibility of successive five-year renewals if the applicant continues to meet the requirements.
## A major change coming in January
One of the more controversial changes takes effect Jan. 1, 2027.
Under Senate Bill 334, Maryland will prohibit, with specified exceptions, the manufacture, sale, offer for sale, purchase, receipt or transfer of a category of firearms the law defines as a “machine gun convertible pistol.”
The law defines that category as certain semiautomatic pistols with a cruciform trigger bar that can be readily converted into a machine gun by hand or with common household tools through the attachment of a pistol converter.
The law is being challenged in federal court by gun-rights organizations, including the Second Amendment Foundation and National Rifle Association. The lawsuit argues the law violates the Second Amendment.
Gun store owner Tim Brown, owner of Gun Shack/Crosswind in Carroll County, said the new requirements will mean additional reporting for dealers and questioned whether additional restrictions are the right approach.
> “Well I guess it means we’re going to have to get a little bit more tight on what we are doing as far as reporting that stuff. I would certainly think we would report it quickly as it is. They put laws in and it gets worse, and they put more laws on and it gets worse, and it gets worse," Brown said.
## Virginia also saw increased gun-buying activity
Virginia is also undergoing major changes to its firearms laws.
As of July 1, 2026, all firearm sales in Virginia, including private sales, are subject to mandatory background checks, subject to exemptions in state and federal law.
Before the July changes took effect, Virginia gun dealers reported increased sales.
Reports show that in June, dealers were seeing a surge in customers, while FBI data showed 75,376 background checks in Virginia during May — roughly 20,000 more than at the beginning of the year.
Other reporting found firearm-buying activity had increased ahead of Virginia’s July 1 restrictions. That increase, however, does not by itself establish that the upcoming laws caused the increase in sales.