Rev. Rul. 54-515

Advice is requested whether a firearm may be transported to a foreign country for exhibition and/or demonstration purposes only and subsequently brought back to the United States.

Section 319.10 of Regulations 88 defines exportation as the severance of goods from the mass of things belonging to this country with the intention of uniting them to the mass of things belonging to some foreign country. Accordingly, the transportation of a firearm from the United States into a foreign country for exhibition and/or demonstration purposes only would not constitute an exportation within the purview of section 319.19 of Regulations 88 provided such firearm is not united with the mass of things belonging to the foreign country into which the firearm is transported. In such cases, the firearm may subsequently be returned to the United States.

Where a firearm is to be transported in the manner indicated, a Form 3 (Firearms) must be filed with the Director, Alcohol and Tobacco Tax Division, Internal Revenue Service, Washington 25, D.C. Information relating to the identification of the firearm must be given on such form, together with the name of the person taking the firearm to the foreign country and his relationship to the person or company owning it. After the firearm has served its purpose as an exhibition and/or demonstration item and is returned to the premises in the United States from which originally taken, a Form 2 (Firearms) must be executed showing the date on which the firearm was returned to stock.