Order online, pick up at a licensed dealer in Chaves County. Roswell is the Chaves County seat and a ranching, dairy and farm town in the Pecos Valley, known around the world for the 1947 UFO incident and the museum it inspired. New Mexico Military Institute has been in town since the 1890s.
Pick an FFL dealer near you that accepts shipped transfers and name it at checkout. We confirm their license and ship the firearm to them. Ammunition, optics and parts ship straight to your door where New Mexico law allows.
New Mexico has no permit to purchase and no gun registration. Every sale, including most private sales, needs a federal NICS background check through a licensed dealer, and state law adds a seven-calendar-day waiting period before the dealer can hand over the firearm. Holders of a valid New Mexico concealed handgun license, FFL holders and immediate family transfers are exempt from the wait. At pickup you show photo ID and complete ATF Form 4473. Dealers sell rifles and shotguns from age 18 and handguns from 21.
Dealers in these communities all work for Roswell-area buyers:
Open carry of a handgun is legal in New Mexico for adults who may possess a firearm, and a loaded gun may be kept in your own vehicle without a license. Carrying a loaded concealed handgun on foot requires a concealed handgun license issued by the New Mexico Department of Public Safety, not the county. Applicants must be 21, live in New Mexico and finish an approved course of at least 15 hours. The license costs $100 and is valid for four years. Schools, preschools, courthouses, licensed liquor establishments and tribal land carry extra limits.
The New Mexico Department of Wildlife, called Game and Fish until July 2025, sets hunts by Game Management Unit and hunt code. Most deer, elk and pronghorn licenses come through the annual big-game draw; the 2026-27 draw closed March 18, 2026. Rifle deer and elk hunts mostly fall between October and December, with exact dates printed for each hunt code in the 2026-27 Hunting Rules and Information booklet. Any centerfire firearm .22 caliber or larger with expanding bullets is legal for big game; full metal jacket and tracer ammunition are not.
Roswell is surrounded by short-grass prairie with pronghorn and mule deer, much of it private ranchland. Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge on the Pecos River draws ducks, geese and sandhill cranes in winter.
Bottomless Lakes State Park and Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge are both just east of town.
The New Mexico Department of Wildlife runs free rifle ranges at Tres Piedras and Clayton and helped fund shotgun ranges in Albuquerque, Clovis and Las Cruces; the BLM and the Forest Service list more, including Albuquerque's Shooting Range Park. Hours and fees vary, so check with each range before you go.
Source: New Mexico Department of Wildlife, BLM and U.S. Forest Service public range lists, September 2026. Distances are approximate; call or check the agency site before you drive out.
Yes. Order here, name a licensed FFL dealer in Dexter, Hagerman, Lake Arthur, Roswell or anywhere in Chaves County, and we ship the firearm to them. You fill out ATF Form 4473 at their counter and they run the background check.
No. New Mexico has no permit to purchase. You pass a NICS background check and complete Form 4473 at the licensed dealer near Roswell who receives your order.
Yes, for most buyers. State law requires seven calendar days between the sale and the handover of a firearm, and New Mexico concealed handgun license holders are exempt. A federal court has blocked the law only for the two plaintiffs in the lawsuit, so dealers still apply it to everyone else.
The New Mexico Department of Public Safety issues every concealed handgun license in the state; the county sheriff does not. You must be 21, a New Mexico resident and complete an approved course of at least 15 hours.
We ship every firearm to a licensed dealer near Roswell that you choose at checkout. The dealer runs the background check and holds the gun through the waiting period; ammunition and gear ship to your door.
Transfer fees are set by each dealer, commonly $25 to $50 per firearm. Ask the dealer near Roswell before you order.
Shots across open piñon-juniper country and high meadows can be long, so flat-shooting cartridges such as the 6.5 Creedmoor, .270, .308, .30-06 and 7mm magnums are popular; many elk hunters step up to a .300 magnum. Use expanding bullets and check the rules printed for your hunt code.
Each dealer sets its own fee, commonly $20 to $75. Call before you order to confirm the price and that they accept firearms shipped from an online store.
General information, not legal advice. Rules current as of September 2026. See our New Mexico gun law overview and check with New Mexico Department of Public Safety, Concealed Carry Unit or a local attorney about your own situation.