What Happened?
If you work at a gun dealership or another federally licensed firearms business, your employer will soon have a new option to run a federal criminal background check on you before or during your employment. A Justice Department final rule, issued under the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act of 2022, takes effect November 27, according to a Legis1 review of the rule.
Under a Justice Department final rule that takes effect November 27, gun dealers and other federally licensed firearms businesses, known as Federal Firearm Licensees (FFLs), can voluntarily run FBI background checks on employees who handle weapons through the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). Before this rule, FFLs had no formal federal channel to run NICS checks on workers; any employee screening had to rely on non-NICS methods.
Why Does it Matter to Me?
The check is voluntary, so no federally licensed firearms business is required to screen employees through NICS, and businesses that do not use it face no new obligation. For businesses that do opt in, the rule provides a standardized federal channel that may simplify recordkeeping and give employers a documented basis for hiring decisions involving access to firearms.
The rule covers certain current and prospective employees who are eligible under the Justice Department's criteria, and FFLs that choose to run these checks should align their processes with the amended regulations before the rule takes effect on November 27.
Both Sides, Now
Before the rule, firearms businesses that screened employees had to rely on methods outside NICS, while the rule gives them a standardized federal channel through the system. Because participation is voluntary, it also does not impose a new compliance burden on FFLs that prefer their existing screening practices.
Opponents raise concerns about NICS accuracy. The FBI's 2024 NICS Operational Report says the agency received 19,116 NICS-related challenges in 2024, and thousands of them were overturned on review. Opponents argue that using NICS for employment screening risks wrongful denials, which could harm employees and employers, because the database can wrongly block eligible people and appeals can be slow.
Congress authorized the employee-screening provision as part of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act of 2022; the Justice Department's final rule implements that authority by amending FBI regulations governing NICS.
What Happens Next?
The rule takes effect November 27, when FFLs may begin submitting NICS queries for employment background checks. Because participation is voluntary, no FFL is required to screen employees, but those that choose to use the check should ensure their processes align with the amended regulations before November 27.
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