State Legality MatrixPistol BracesHawaii
Statute-cited, not legal advice, last verified 2026-10-20
Banned
No. Braced AR- and AK-pattern pistols are prohibited assault pistols, and Hawaii bans every rifle with a barrel under 16 inches. Effective 1992-07-01.
Controlling law: Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 134-1, 134-4(e), 134-8(a)
Contested entry
Hawaii's assault pistol definition is a two-characteristic test covering a magazine attaching outside the pistol grip, a threaded barrel, a barrel shroud, an unloaded weight of 50 ounces or more, a centerfire pistol with an overall length of 12 inches or more, and semiautomatic versions of automatic firearms. An AR or AK pistol trips two of those before a brace is involved. The brace still matters at the margin on a conventional handgun, where it can push overall length past 12 inches and supply the second characteristic. There is no NFA safe harbor: § 134-8(a) bans rifles under 16 inches flatly, so a Form 1 is unavailable, and only assault pistols registered in state before July 1, 1992 are grandfathered.
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 is an NFA firearm; a configuration that remains a pistol is not. Since October 9, 2026, ATF does not enforce the NFA's Form 1 approval and registration requirements for SBRs, as a matter of enforcement discretion, but an SBR still needs an approved Form 5320.20 before interstate transport, state law still applies, and ATF says enforcement could resume if the policy changes. The federal making tax has been $0 since January 1, 2026 under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
Federal baseline verified 2026-10-09. 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- and AK-pattern pistols are prohibited assault pistols, and Hawaii bans every rifle with a barrel under 16 inches. Effective 1992-07-01. Controlling law: Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 134-1, 134-4(e), 134-8(a).
The controlling law is Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 134-1, 134-4(e), 134-8(a). Braced AR- and AK-pattern pistols are prohibited assault pistols, and Hawaii bans every rifle with a barrel under 16 inches.
Hawaii's rule took effect 1992-07-01. Hawaii's assault pistol definition is a two-characteristic test covering a magazine attaching outside the pistol grip, a threaded barrel, a barrel shroud, an unloaded weight of 50 ounces or more, a centerfire pistol with an overall length of 12 inches or more, and semiautomatic versions of automatic firearms. An AR or AK pistol trips two of those before a brace is involved. The brace still matters at the margin on a conventional handgun, where it can push overall length past 12 inches and supply the second characteristic. There is no NFA safe harbor: § 134-8(a) bans rifles under 16 inches flatly, so a Form 1 is unavailable, and only assault pistols registered in state before July 1, 1992 are grandfathered.