It is generally unlawful in Massachusetts to sell, offer for sale, transfer, own or possess an “assault-style firearm.”¹ However, this prohibition does not apply to assault-style firearms lawfully possessed in Massachusetts on August 1, 2024, by an owner in possession of a license to carry or a license to sell, provided the firearm is registered and serialized in accordance with the law.

1) Semi-automatic firearms that meet a “features test” encompassing the ability to accept a detachable magazine and at least two specified characteristics;

2) Firearms listed on the banned assault-style firearm roster compiled by the secretary of public safety and security;²

3) Firearms listed in the statute, including the Colt AR-15;

4) Copies or duplicates of any firearm enumerated in statute or on the roster, meaning that they are able to accept a detachable magazine and either have “internal function components that are substantially similar in construction and configuration to those of an enumerated firearm” or have “a receiver that is the same as or interchangeable with the receiver of an enumerated firearm.”³

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1. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, § 131M(b).[↩]
2. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140 § 131 3/4(a).[↩]
3. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140 § 121.[↩]