Not every California restraining order triggers the federal gun ban for people under court orders; that ban applies only to an order that passes a three-part test in 18 U.S.C. section 922(g)(8). But the check for a California gun purchase also looks for state-law bans, and California bars anyone subject to a domestic violence protective order, including a temporary one, from owning, possessing, purchasing, or receiving a firearm or ammunition while the order is in effect.
The three-part federal test
Under 18 U.S.C. section 922(g)(8), federal law bars you from possessing or receiving a firearm or ammunition because of a court order only if all of the following are true:
- It “was issued after a hearing of which such person received actual notice, and at which such person had an opportunity to participate.”
- It “restrains such person from harassing, stalking, or threatening an intimate partner of such person or child of such intimate partner or person,” or from other conduct that would place an intimate partner in reasonable fear of bodily injury to the partner or child.
- It either includes a finding that you represent “a credible threat to the physical safety” of that intimate partner or child, or “by its terms explicitly prohibits the use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force” against them that would reasonably be expected to cause bodily injury.
If any one of these is missing, the order does not trigger this federal ban, though it can still trigger California’s.
A temporary order issued before your hearing does not meet the federal test
The first condition requires a hearing that you received actual notice of and had an opportunity to take part in. A temporary order issued before that hearing does not satisfy it. If the court issues a longer order after the hearing, that new order is measured against all three conditions. California’s own ban works differently and does reach temporary orders, as explained below.
Who counts as an “intimate partner” under federal law
The second condition turns on who the order protects. Federal law defines an intimate partner as “the spouse of the person, a former spouse of the person, an individual who is a parent of a child of the person” and “an individual who cohabitates or has cohabited with the person” (18 U.S.C. section 921(a)(32)). A dating relationship by itself is not on that list. An order can still meet this condition if it protects a child of an intimate partner or your own child.
California orders can protect more relationships. Under the Domestic Violence Prevention Act, abuse of “a person with whom the respondent is having or has had a dating or engagement relationship” is domestic violence (Family Code section 6211(c)), with no marriage, shared child, or cohabitation required. An order that protects only a dating or engagement partner you never lived with and have no child with does not meet the federal intimate partner condition, however the hearing and credible-threat conditions come out.
Do not confuse this with the federal ban that follows a domestic violence conviction. In 2022, the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act added current or recent former dating relationships to the definition used for that conviction-based ban (18 U.S.C. section 921(a)(33)), but it did not change the intimate partner definition used for court orders. For how a conviction itself can affect firearm rights, see corporal injury on a spouse or cohabitant.
California’s own ban does not depend on the federal test
A person subject to a domestic violence protective order “shall not own, possess, purchase, or receive a firearm or ammunition while that protective order is in effect” (Family Code section 6389(a)). For this purpose, a protective order includes one issued “ex parte, after notice and hearing, or in a judgment” (Family Code section 6218), so the state ban covers temporary orders and orders protecting a dating partner. Under Penal Code section 29825, buying or receiving a firearm, trying to, or owning or possessing one while knowing that an order like this prohibits it is a separate crime; the same applies to civil harassment, workplace violence, and criminal protective orders that include a firearm prohibition. A federal gap is never permission to keep or buy a gun while a California order says you cannot.
How the check works when you try to buy
A licensed dealer must contact the National Instant Criminal Background Check System before completing a transfer, and that system checks whether your receiving a firearm would violate federal law or “State, local, or Tribal law” (18 U.S.C. section 922(t)). In California, the state Department of Justice examines its records to decide whether the buyer “is prohibited by state or federal law” from possessing, receiving, owning, or purchasing a firearm, and it participates in the federal system (Penal Code section 28220(a)(1), (b)). A sale between two private parties generally must also go through a licensed dealer (Penal Code section 27545).
Courts must send data on domestic violence protective orders and criminal protective orders to law enforcement within one business day for entry into the state’s system (Family Code section 6380(a)). That puts the order on file quickly. Whether it also meets the federal three-part test is a separate question.
What to check in your own situation
- Is your current order a temporary one issued before the hearing, or an order issued after a hearing you had notice of?
- Who does the order protect: a spouse, former spouse, co-parent, someone you live or lived with, a child, or only someone you dated?
- Does the order’s own text include a credible-threat finding, or an explicit ban on using or threatening physical force?
- Whatever the federal answers, the California ban applies while the order is in effect. Do not try a purchase to test it, ask someone else to buy a gun for you, or arrange a transfer outside a dealer.
Next steps
Because the federal answer depends on your order’s relationship, hearing history, and exact wording, have a lawyer read the order itself rather than guessing from the general rule. A lawyer at the Law Offices of David S. Chesley can go through your order and explain what it means for your firearm rights under state and federal law. Call (800) 755-5174 to discuss your order.