State Legality MatrixPistol BracesDistrict of Columbia
Statute-cited, last verified 2026-08-04
Banned
No. Braced AR-pattern pistols are unregistrable assault weapons, and the District cannot register a short-barreled rifle either.
Controlling law: D.C. Code § 7-2501.01(3A)(A)(i)(V)(dd); D.C. Code § 7-2502.02(a)(3), (a)(6)
Contested entry
The District uses the same magazine-location feature test as the other ban jurisdictions: a semiautomatic pistol with a detachable magazine is an assault weapon if it can accept a magazine at some location outside of the pistol grip. Every firearm in the District needs a registration certificate, and § 7-2502.02(a)(6) forbids issuing one for an assault weapon, so unregistrable means unpossessable. Section 7-2502.02(a)(3) closes the other path by barring registration of a short-barreled rifle. No District statute names the brace; the host firearm is already barred.
Federal law
The 2023 ATF stabilizing-brace rule was vacated nationwide and is not enforced, but that does not categorically make every brace-equipped firearm a pistol. Under 26 U.S.C. § 5845, federal classification still turns on whether the specific weapon is designed and intended to be fired from the shoulder. A brace-equipped firearm that meets the short-barreled-rifle definition requires NFA approval and registration; a configuration that remains a pistol does not. Building an actual short-barreled rifle is still an NFA act: Form 1, fingerprints, CLEO notification, a NICS check, and registration all apply. The federal making tax has been $0 since January 1, 2026 under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, and eForm approvals currently run days to a couple of weeks.
Scope: Pistol stabilizing braces (SB Tactical, Maxim Defense, A3 Industries and similar) and the braced pistols they mount on. Short-barreled rifles and state assault-weapon feature tests are tracked as separate classes.
Common questions
No. Braced AR-pattern pistols are unregistrable assault weapons, and the District cannot register a short-barreled rifle either. Controlling law: D.C. Code § 7-2501.01(3A)(A)(i)(V)(dd); D.C. Code § 7-2502.02(a)(3), (a)(6).
The controlling law is D.C. Code § 7-2501.01(3A)(A)(i)(V)(dd); D.C. Code § 7-2502.02(a)(3), (a)(6). Braced AR-pattern pistols are unregistrable assault weapons, and the District cannot register a short-barreled rifle either.
The 2023 ATF stabilizing-brace rule was vacated nationwide and is not enforced, but that does not categorically make every brace-equipped firearm a pistol. Under 26 U.S.C. § 5845, federal classification still turns on whether the specific weapon is designed and intended to be fired from the shoulder. A brace-equipped firearm that meets the short-barreled-rifle definition requires NFA approval and registration; a configuration that remains a pistol does not. Building an actual short-barreled rifle is still an NFA act: Form 1, fingerprints, CLEO notification, a NICS check, and registration all apply. The federal making tax has been $0 since January 1, 2026 under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, and eForm approvals currently run days to a couple of weeks.