ATF FFL DIRECT integration: answer trace requests from your phone
Answer the National Tracing Center’s firearm trace requests in minutes, from an email alert and a phone, without going back to the office to pull up the bound book.
A trace request is an urgent law enforcement request
Investigators are waiting on the answer. The old process meant a call or fax, a manual search through A&D records, and a reply typed out by hand. FFL DIRECT replaces that with a secure, machine-to-machine exchange, and APB360 handles the work in between.
- The request arrives automaticallyATF sends the trace straight to APB360 over FFL DIRECT. No phone tag and no fax machine.
- Your records are already searchedAPB360 matches the serial number against your electronic bound book and lines up the disposition records that fit.
- Compliance staff get an emailWith the full trace details and a link to sign in.
- Review and approve from your phoneCheck the matched records, choose the disposition, and approve from any browser, on any device.
- The response goes back to ATFFormatted to ATF’s requirements, with ATF’s own coded values for weapon type, caliber and country filled in.
A person always signs off
Automation does the searching. It never does the deciding. Nothing is sent to ATF until someone on your team has approved exactly what will be sent. If the selected records change after approval, the approval no longer applies, and the response has to be approved again before it can go.
Every request, approval and transmission is recorded with who did it and when, so you have a complete audit trail if a trace response is ever questioned.
Why it matters for manufacturers
- Hours become minutes — no manual record searches, no retyping into a fax or email
- Respond from anywhere — on the floor, on the road or out of the office
- Fewer errors — responses are built from your bound-book data, not transcribed from it
- Each FFL’s data stays its own — each trace is routed to the right organization’s records and people
About FFL DIRECT
FFL DIRECT is a secure, asynchronous API from the ATF’s National Tracing Center. Participating FFLs can automatically receive and respond to trace requests for disposition data via JSON over HTTPS/TLS. The ATF service itself is free to participate in. FFLs interested in the broader program can contact the ATF team at FFLDIRECT@atf.gov for the integration guide and cooperative agreement process.
FFL DIRECT FAQ
Is the APB360 FFL DIRECT integration live?
Yes. The integration was completed and fully tested in October 2026.
Does APB360 send trace responses to ATF automatically?
No. APB360 receives the request and searches your bound book automatically, but nothing is sent to ATF until a person on your team approves exactly what will be sent. If the selected records change after approval, it must be approved again.
Do we need to be at the office to respond?
No. Compliance staff receive an email with the trace details and can review and approve the response from any browser, on any device.
Who can use it?
Manufacturers who keep their A&D records in APB360 can be connected to FFL DIRECT. APB360 manufacturer solutions are for Federal Firearms License Type 07 and higher.