Here is the email I got back in June from the NFA Branch. They are trying to make a dent in the back log and I will say that the forms have been coming back quicker, but they have a big hole to dig out of before the wait times really go down.
In follow-up to ATF’s letter dated April 16, 2014, regarding the status of the eForms system; this update is being provided to inform the industry of ATF’s progress in addressing eForms and paper NFA applications. To accommodate the substantial increase in application volume that has recently occurred, ATF is working diligently to decrease processing times while continuing to enhance the eForms platform.
What is our progress to date?
From a peak of over 81,000 pending NFA applications at the end of February 2014, as of June 18, 2014, ATF has reduced the number to less than 63,000 applications pending (23% reduction in pending applications). In the last four weeks, although the NFA Branch received over 17,800 applications we processed more than 22,400 applications.
The statistics in the table below represent the processing of NFA Forms over the past four weeks.
NFA FORMS PROCESSED BY WEEK
Date (Week of) 5/28/2014 6/4/2014 6/11/2014 6/18/2014
All Forms 4,815 5,629 5,635 6,323
eForms 1,199 1,204 1,905 1,682
Paper Forms 3,616 4,425 3,730 4,641
At the same time, ATF has directed additional resources to NFA application processing:
• There are currently 15 Legal Instrument Examiner (LIE) applicants currently in the background investigation phase of hiring.
• The use of overtime funding has been authorized for those employees processing NFA applications.
• ATF has cross-trained LIEs from various other ATF branches to support NFA application processing. This is an ongoing process and has already beneficially impacted application processing.
• ATF has dedicated additional data entry contract resources to reduce the time it takes for an application to be entered into the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record (NFRTR). As a result, data entry time has already been reduced from eight weeks to two weeks.
If you have any questions regarding any of the information included in this email, you may contact us through the eForms system by using “Ask the Experts” or by emailing us at eforms.admin_atf.gov.
Thank you for your continued support of eForms.
