Short Barreled Shotguns and AOWs After ATF's October 9 Change

Short barreled rifles got the headlines on October 9, 2026. ATF's policy that day covered two more National Firearms Act items most people never think about: the short barreled shotgun and the "any other weapon", or AOW.

Both now get the same treatment as an SBR. ATF says it won't enforce the approval, registration and tax stamp requirements for either one. The law still lists them, the policy can be reversed, and your state's statute didn't change.

What counts as a short barreled shotgun?

A shotgun with a barrel under 18 inches, or an overall length under 26 inches, is a short barreled shotgun under the NFA. Most people who own one today registered it on a Form 1 or Form 4.

The firearms that look like one and aren't are the Mossberg 590 Shockwave and the Remington Tac-14. Both left the factory with a 14 inch barrel and a bird's head grip, never a stock, and an overall length just over 26 inches. That makes each one a "firearm" under the Gun Control Act rather than a shotgun. Put a shoulder stock on either and it becomes a short barreled shotgun. We'd read your state's statute before buying the stock, since the stock is the part that changes what you own.

What is an AOW?

"Any other weapon" is the NFA's catchall, defined in 26 U.S.C. 5845(e). ATF's FAQ describes the class as concealable firearms other than pistols and revolvers. The examples people actually meet:

• A smooth bore pistol built to fire shotgun shells
• Disguised guns, like pen guns and cane guns
• A handgun with a vertical foregrip. ATF has long held that a vertical grip turns a pistol into something that isn't designed to be fired with one hand, which makes it an AOW if it's still short enough to conceal

The AOW tax used to be $200 to make one and only $5 to transfer one. Both have been $0 since January 1, 2026.

What ATF stopped enforcing on October 9

ATF's FAQ applies the same list to all four $0 items: SBRs, SBSs, suppressors and AOWs. For a short barreled shotgun or an AOW, ATF says it won't enforce:

• Approval before you make one or transfer one
• Registration in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record
• The bans on making, receiving or possessing an unregistered one
• The NFA ban on moving an unregistered one across state lines
• The NFA's marking requirement

ATF still enforces the bans on an obliterated serial number and on illegal imports. Machine guns and destructive devices keep the $200 tax and the full NFA. The full background, including the court ruling behind all of this, is in the SBR guide.

Where an SBS and an AOW part ways

Both items left the NFA's enforcement together, but the Gun Control Act treats them differently, and that's where you'll trip.

Travel. Section 922(a)(4) of the Gun Control Act requires ATF approval to take a short barreled shotgun across state lines, and ATF's FAQ says you still need a Form 20 for one "even if it is unregistered". We'd file that Form 20 before any trip with an SBS, registered or not. The same section never listed AOWs. ATF says it won't enforce the NFA's own transport ban on them, so an AOW crosses state lines with no federal approval.

Buying one from a dealer. Section 922(b)(4) bars a dealer from selling a short barreled shotgun without Attorney General approval. ATF says it won't enforce that until it writes a non NFA process. For an AOW, ATF tells dealers to process it like any other Gun Control Act firearm, with a Form 4473, a background check and a sale to a resident of the dealer's own state.

The AOW on a lot of AR pistols

The AOW most people could build without meaning to is an AR pistol with a vertical foregrip. On builds that also picked a pistol brace, about a third of foregrip picks are vertical grips. Angled grips and handstops make up most of the rest.

ATF has treated a vertical grip on a pistol as an AOW when the pistol is concealable. The common workaround has been an angled grip or handstop instead. Some builders rely on an overall length over 26 inches, measured with the brace collapsed. That 26 inch line comes from ATF letters, not the statute. Under the October 9 policy, ATF won't enforce AOW registration either way. We'd still treat a vertical grip on a short pistol as an AOW wherever state law is in doubt.

Your state may still care. We'd keep the angled grip in any state that ties NFA items to federal registration. The AR pistol guide covers the grips short builds pick.

Your state still decides it

ATF's FAQ says most states require NFA items to comply with federal law or be registered under the NFA. It also says it can't tell you whether an item held under its nonenforcement policy counts as lawfully held under state law.

The Firearms Policy Coalition wrote to the attorneys general of 15 such states on October 9: Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Washington and Wisconsin. ATF adds that a minority of states ban most or all NFA items outright, and its policy doesn't touch those bans.

Should you register one anyway?

ATF still keeps the registry and still approves a Form 1 or Form 4 at $0. Under ATF's policy, filing is now your choice. We'd file in the same three cases as an SBR: you live in a state that expects NFA items registered, you might move to one, or you want cover if the policy flips.

That last one matters more than it sounds. ATF's FAQ says federal law has no grandfather clause for unregistered items if enforcement resumes. The main way back on the registry would be an amnesty. The Attorney General can hold one but doesn't have to.

We wouldn't deregister an SBS or AOW you already own. ATF will remove one if you write to its NFA Division, and once it's off it can't go back on without an amnesty.

What to watch next

• ATF's dealer forms for selling a short barreled shotgun under 922(b)(4)
• The Justice Department's answer to nine plaintiff states asking the court to clarify the injunction's reach, due October 12
• State attorneys general answering the FPC letters

What to read next

• Can you SBR an AR-15 now? What the October 9 change does
• Suppressors in 2026: the tax, the Form 4 and the October 9 change
• AR pistol upgrades: braces, grips and buffers