What You Can Still Buy in Colorado Without the SB25-003 Card

SB25-003 took effect on August 1, 2026. Since then the question we hear most at the counter is some version of “so what can I still buy?” The short answer: most of what’s in the shop. The card-and-course requirement covers one slice of the market. Everything below goes home the way it always has: a 4473, a CBI background check, Colorado’s three-day wait, and you’re done.

This post is the list. If you want the whole law, step by step, read our SB25-003 guide.

What the card is for

The law covers “specified semiautomatic firearms” (SSF). In plain terms, that’s three things, per the bill and Colorado Parks and Wildlife’s program page:

• Semi-automatic rifles with a detachable magazine
• Semi-automatic shotguns with a detachable magazine
• Gas-operated semi-automatic handguns with a detachable magazine

To buy one of those, you need a sheriff-issued Firearms Safety Course Eligibility Card and a passed safety course (4 hours with hunter education, 12 hours without, in person, 90% to pass). Both are good for five years. If that’s you, the guide walks through it.

If it isn’t, keep reading.

Bolt-action rifles

Not covered. Every bolt gun in the rack, from a .22 to a .300 PRC, sells the way it did in July. That’s most elk and deer rifles in Routt County anyway. A bolt rifle is also the simplest answer to Colorado’s big game rules: CPW caps semi-autos at six rounds in the magazine and chamber combined for big game, and a bolt gun never runs into that question.

Bolt-action rifles in stock

Lever-action rifles

Not covered. A .30-30, a .45-70, a .357 carbine, a lever .22. Lever guns are having a moment, and none of them need the card.

Lever-action rifles in stock

Pump-action and other manual shotguns and rifles

Not covered. Pumps, break-actions, over/unders, side-by-sides, single shots. The law names bolt, pump, lever and slide actions as outside the definition. If you work the action by hand, it’s out.

Most semi-auto shotguns

The law covers semi-auto shotguns with a detachable magazine. Most semi-auto bird guns feed from a fixed tube under the barrel, not a detachable magazine. If you’re shopping for a duck or upland gun, odds are it’s not covered. If you’re not sure about a specific model, ask us before you drive over and we’ll check it.

Four that are in stock now and go home without the card:

Most semi-auto pistols

This one surprises people. The handgun part of the law only reaches gas-operated semi-auto handguns with a detachable magazine. Most pistols aren’t gas-operated. They’re recoil-operated: Glock, SIG P365 and P320, Smith & Wesson M&P, Springfield, Staccato, 1911s, the rest of the usual counter. Those are not covered.

The handguns that are covered tend to be AR- and AK-pattern pistols and other rifle-derived designs that run on gas. If it looks like a rifle with a short barrel, ask.

Colorado’s 15-round magazine limit still applies to every pistol, covered or not. That’s a separate law, and it hasn’t changed.

Revolvers

Not covered. No magazine at all.

.22 rimfire

Rimfire firearms of .22 caliber or smaller are exempt, unless the gun has a separate upper and lower receiver. A Ruger 10/22, a Marlin, a Henry, a Browning Buck Mark: exempt. A .22 built on an AR-style upper and lower: covered. That’s the one rimfire trap.

Revolvers and rimfires in stock now:

Semi-autos with a fixed magazine of 15 or fewer

A semi-auto with a fixed (non-detachable) magazine that holds 15 rounds or fewer is outside the definition. Some manufacturers now build “Colorado compliant” fixed-magazine versions of rifles for exactly this reason. Ask us what’s available and what it takes to load one; they work differently than you’re used to.

The named exempt models

The law also excludes a list of specific firearm models. Colorado’s Firearms Dealer Division publishes a guidance document on which firearms count as specified semiautomatic firearms, and CPW links to it from its program page. The Division says the document is not all-inclusive and is updated as new guns come out. If you’re asking about one gun in particular, call. It takes us a minute to check.

Suppressors

Not covered. A suppressor isn’t a firearm under SB25-003’s definition, so buying a can doesn’t take the card. It still takes the federal paperwork: an eForm 4, prints and a photo at our counter, and ATF approval, which is running in days right now. The federal tax is $0 since January 1, 2026. The rifle you put the can on is a separate question. More on our suppressors page.

Antiques, curios and relics

Qualifying antiques and C&R firearms are outside the definition. Same with permanently inoperable guns.

Guns you already own

Nothing changes. SB25-003 applies to sales and transfers on or after August 1, 2026. A rifle you bought before then is yours, no card, no registration.

Used guns follow the same rules

The law follows the gun, not the price tag. A used bolt rifle, lever gun, pump or revolver off our used rack needs nothing extra. A used AR-pattern rifle does. A lot of what comes across the counter in trade this fall is exactly the exempt stuff: deer rifles, bird guns, revolvers, old .22s. It’s one of a kind and it sells first come, so check the rack often.

Quick reference

Type	Card and course needed?
Bolt-action rifle	No
Lever-action rifle	No
Pump, break-action, single shot	No
Semi-auto shotgun, fixed tube magazine	No
Semi-auto shotgun, detachable magazine	Yes
Recoil-operated pistol (Glock, SIG, S&W, 1911)	No
Gas-operated pistol, detachable magazine (AR/AK pistols)	Yes
Revolver	No
.22 rimfire, one-piece receiver	No
.22 rimfire on a separate upper and lower	Yes
Semi-auto rifle, fixed magazine of 15 or fewer	No
Semi-auto rifle, detachable magazine	Yes
Suppressor	No (federal Form 4 still applies)
Anything you owned before Aug 1, 2026	No

If what you want is covered

You still can buy it. You need the card and the course first. Routt County residents apply with the Routt County Sheriff; the state fee is $52. The nearest course has been on the Front Range. We’re working on teaching it here: three of our staff passed NRA Pistol Instructor in September and are working through the Sheriff’s instructor verification and CPW’s train-the-trainer. We don’t have a class date yet. When we do, the class list hears first.

Not sure where a gun lands? Bring it in or call. We’ll tell you straight.

This is general information for our customers, not legal advice. Every firearm sale follows federal and Colorado law, including a background check.

The fastest way to see what you can take home today: browse the used rack, or call us at (970) 879-7565 and we’ll hold one while you drive in.