There's no yearly tax on Title II NFA firearms (aka class 3 or full auto/select fire). It's simply a ONE-TIME $200 transfer tax when you purchase the weapon. The reason prices are so high these days is that thanks to the 1986 GCA thereÂ’s only a limited supply of registered, transferable machineguns available on the market and any machinegun built after 1986 canÂ’t be transferred to civilians. Only LE, government agencys and the military can buy newly manufactured machineguns.
In order to build a new Thompson right now, you'd first have to be licensed as a Type 1, Class III dealer AND a Type 7, Class II Manufacturer. The fee for these two licenses is $350 (total) for the first three years. That doesn't sound too bad does it?
But wait, there's more...
You can't work out of your house. As a dealer, you have to have a storefront with access to the public. This requires state and local licensing.
It gets better...
Then, since you'd be building a new machinegun, you have to have a letter from a LE agency requesting a demonstration of the weapon. After the demo, if they didn't buy it, the gun would have to be destroyed. It can't be kept "in the collection".
Oh, yeah...and donÂ’t forget, once you do get the proper licenses, you can expect to be visited by your friendly BATF agent on a regular basis.
The last piece of good news is:
“A Class 3 Federal Firearms License is required for dealing, manufacturing, and importing firearms for the express purpose of revenue generation - not collecting. It is a felony to obtain a Class 3 License for the purpose of enhancing your collection.”
Sure miss the good old days. :cry: