It is a common misconception that you need a bank account for a gun trust. This cannot be further from the truth. In fact, I highly recommend against setting up a bank account for your gun trust. Then, why do we hear so many people speak about bank accounts?
Approximately 10 years ago, when gun trusts first started taking off, some attorneys were under the impression that bank accounts were necessary. Their estate planning trust clients had bank accounts, so why not gun trust clients? It made sense.
The industry was just beginning to learn how to set up gun trusts. Attorneys had to start somewhere. Their thought process was to cover all of the unknowns. A bank account was an unknown, so most attorneys instructed clients to obtain a bank account.
Nowadays, the vast majority of attorneys know bank accounts are not required for gun trusts. The ATF does not care if the trust has a bank account. The ATF does not care who purchased the NFA weapon. Paying for the NFA weapon with trust funds does not protect you against liability. Therefore, there is no benefit to opening a bank account in the name of your gun trust.
The downsides to opening a bank account are: you must obtain a tax identification number, spend an hour or more at a bank opening the account, make an opening deposit, maintain a minimum balance, pay monthly account fees, file yearly tax returns, and buy checks. Save yourself the hassle. Buy your NFA weapons with personal funds.
– /s/Dean Phillips