How to Buy a Suppressor in Colorado (2026)
The federal tax stamp is $0 and eForm 4 approvals are running days, not months. Here's the suppressor buying process step by step, and where Colorado fits in.
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For 30 years the answer to “how long does it take to buy a suppressor?” was “sit down.” Nine-month waits. A $200 federal tax on top of the can. Paperwork thick enough to shim a door. In 2026 that story is basically over. The federal tax stamp dropped to $0 on January 1, and eForm 4 approvals are running in days rather than months. If you’ve been putting this off, the wait finally ends.
Plan on a week or two for an individual and longer on a trust. Those numbers move. Ask us when you come in and we’ll tell you what our last few approvals took.
What Changed in 2026
- $0 tax stamp. The $200 NFA transfer tax was zeroed out by H.R. 1, the “One Big Beautiful Bill.” It applies to Form 4s submitted on or after January 1, 2026. Machine guns and destructive devices are still $200.
- eForm 4 is fast again. Electronic Form 4s are clearing in days, not the better part of a year.
- Paper Form 4 is effectively dead. It’s still allowed and still takes far longer. Nobody files paper anymore.
- Everything else is the same. You still need a Form 4, a background check and a licensed dealer transfer. Registration didn’t go away, just the tax.
August 2026 court ruling
A federal court struck down NFA registration for suppressors on August 5, 2026, and as of September 8, 2026 the Justice Department has not appealed. It is not a nationwide repeal, and it does not change anything for Colorado buyers. The Form 4 process below still applies exactly as written. Read our full breakdown of the ruling and where Colorado stands.
The Six Steps
Step 1
Pick the Can
Choose a suppressor sized for your host firearm and caliber. We’ll show you what fits your rifle, pistol or shotgun.
Step 2
Buy It From Us
Pay for the suppressor at Elk River Guns. It stays in our safe until the ATF approves the transfer to you.
Step 3
Fingerprints & Photo
Two sets of prints and a passport-style photo. Done in-store on the kiosk, no mail-in prints.
Step 4
File eForm 4
You file electronically as an individual or trust. Include a “responsible person” packet for each trust member.
Step 5
Wait for Approval
ATF emails you when it clears. Timelines are theirs, not ours. We’ll reach out when it lands here.
Step 6
Pick It Up
Bring your ID. We do the final 4473 transfer in-store, hand you the approved stamp, and it’s yours to take home.
Individual or Trust
The single biggest decision on your Form 4. Both are legal. Both work. They answer different questions about ownership and about who is permitted to possess the can. Those possession questions are legal ones, so here’s the shape of each rather than a recommendation.
File as an Individual
- Fastest right now.
- Simplest paperwork: just you.
- One registered owner, and the rules on who else may possess it are narrower.
- On death, it passes through your estate.
File as a Trust
- Slower right now.
- Multiple trustees can be named on the trust.
- Succession is handled by the trust document.
- Trustees can be added or removed over time.
Ask an attorney, not us
Which one is right for you is a legal question, and we’re not the ones to answer it. Possession, lending, travel and estate handling all turn on details we can’t evaluate at the counter. Talk to an attorney who works in NFA law before you decide. We’ll process either one.
What About Colorado?
Colorado allows suppressor ownership, and CPW’s regulations permit suppressor use when hunting big game, predators, small game and furbearers. Colorado adds no state permit or state registration on top of the federal process.
The current CPW regulations are the authority on manner of take for your season. Read them, or call CPW, before you hunt with one. The suppressor is a firearm accessory: the underlying rules for weapon type, caliber and season don’t change because you added one.
SB25-003 is written around the firearm
C.R.S. 18-12-116 defines a “specified semiautomatic firearm” by action type and magazine. A suppressor is not a firearm under that definition. If you’re building a suppressor-host rifle, the question is about the host, not the can. See our SB25-003 guide, and take anything unusual to a Colorado firearms attorney.
Pick Your Can
We’re a full-line NFA dealer. Some cans sit in inventory and some are order-in, so call ahead if you want a specific one ready to look at. A few that are in stock now:
Taquito 22
.22 LR · Fletcher Rifle Works
Permian 30
.30 cal · Fletcher Rifle Works
OCL Infinity 556K
5.56 NATO
All suppressors
Full lineup
Rifle not threaded? That’s a job for our bench.
Do It All at the Counter
We’re a Silencer Shop Powered Dealer. You can walk in, pick your can, and do your prints and photo on the kiosk in one visit. No trip to the sheriff, no mail-in prints, no notarized signatures to chase down.
Come see us
1320 Dream Island Plaza, Steamboat Springs, CO
Call ahead and we’ll have the can you want out to look at.
The August rulingThe NFA Suppressor Ruling and What It Means in Colorado
Cost and your first canBuying a Suppressor in 2026: $0 Tax, Approval in Days, and How It Works at Our Counter
Wait times change constantly; ask us for what we’re seeing now. Tax figures reflect H.R. 1 as effective January 1, 2026. Elk River Guns is a licensed Class 3 SOT dealer. Nothing here is legal advice. For your own situation, consult an attorney familiar with NFA law.
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