Can a foreign tourist buy a gun magazines in the USA?
<p>I want to buy an empty Magpul 30 rds magazine as a souvenir.</p>

<p>Just magazines, not the gun. Can I buy them in California or Nevada without a licence or anything?</p>

<p>The short answer: No license is required in any U.S. jurisdiction to buy a firearm magazine.</p>

<p>There are some jurisdictions that restrict the sale of "high-capacity" magazines to civilians.  That's something that is changing often enough that any answer covering the U.S. will probably quickly be obsolete.  Suffice it to say: If you can find it in a store there are no legal restrictions or conditions on purchasing it.</p>

<p>Technically an "export" license <em>might be</em> required under <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Traffic_in_Arms_Regulations">ITAR</a> to take magazines out of the country, but in practice this has not <em>yet</em> applied to individuals carrying low-tech small-arms accessories (in quantities reasonable for an individual's use).</p>

<p>It would be impractical to regulate everything that is or could be a part of a firearm.  Imagine trying to regulate all metal pipes, for example.  So for purposes of possession, ownership, and transfer, one specific part of every firearm is legally considered the firearm.  It's always some part that is both essential to the operation of the weapon, and can't be easily improvised to make a working weapon from the other parts.  For example, on an AR15/M16 rifle, the lower receiver is considered the firearm:</p>

<p><img src="https://i.stack.imgur.com/fqG5w.jpg" alt="enter image description here"></p>

<p>All other parts of an AR15/M16 can be bought and sold by anyone without restriction, because they're harmless without the lower receiver.  (Except maybe as a club.)</p>

<p>I'm not aware of any type of weapon for which the magazine is considered the firearm.  A magazine is not essential to the operation of the weapon, since you can always single-load cartridges by hand.</p>

united-states