Are AR-15 Pistol Braces Legal in 2025?

If you bought an AR-15 pistol (or built one from an AR pistol kit) then chances are high that you've looked into installing a brace on your pistol's naked buffer tube. You've also likely come into back-and-forth discussions online (or even at your local gun shop) on whether pistol braces are even legal. So, are they?

Yes, as of January 2025, AR-15 pistol braces are legal.

But with how much the ATF has flip-flopped on this issue -- and with how many cases arguing for and against the legality of the pistol brace have been ruled upon in U.S courts -- it's important to know the timeline of the pistol brace saga, and where things currently stand. 

Let's start at the beginning, and work our way to the latest legal development.

NOTE: Gun laws change frequently, often with little notice, and sometimes because of sudden court rulings. Nothing in this guide should be construed as legal advice. Always verify the legality of the parts you're installing on your AR-15 by checking your local, state, and current federal laws before modifying your rifle or pistol.

2012: The Pistol Brace is Invented

Alex Bosco, a military veteran, invented the first AR-15 pistol brace in 2012. Bosco submitted his invention to the ATF and asked the agency to confirm whether an AR-type pistol would, by legal definition, remain a pistol when affixed with a brace. The ATF confirmed this to be the case. With his device approved for use by the ATF, Bosco founded SB Tactical and began manufacturing pistol braces for the AR and AK platforms.

2015: ATF Rescinds Pistol Brace Approval

In 2015, the ATF retracted its approval of Bosco's brace. The agency later stated that the pistol brace, when shouldered by the user, caused it to become a buttstock, which transformed the pistol into an unregistered short-barreled rifle. 

2017: The Pistol Brace is Reapproved

SB Tactical spent two years fighting the ATF's reversal on the legality of the pistol brace. In 2017, the company defeated the ATF's 2015 opinion, and the federal agency again reversed course and approved, for a second time, the use of braces on AR-15 pistols. 

2020: ATF Tries to Classify Braced Pistols as SBRs

Pistol braces became more popular in the late 2010s, with more manufacturers producing newer and different braces for the AR-15 and AK markets. In December 2020, the ATF tried for a second time to reclassify braced pistols as short-barreled rifles.

But, after receiving nearly 70,000 comments decrying the decision -- and having potentially violated federal law by not allowing the public 90 days to comment on the proposal -- the ATF dropped the matter, and braces remained legal.

2023: ATF Tries to Ban Braces For a Third Time

On January 21, 2023, the ATF issued yet another proposal that would reclassify virtually all braced AR-type pistols as unregistered short-barreled rifles. The rule, titled "Factoring Criteria for Firearms with Attached Stabilizing Braces," redefined a stabilizing brace as a device that allowed a firearm to be fired from the shoulder.

2024: The Pistol Brace Ban is Thrown Out

Immediately after the ATF's updated rule concerning pistol braces went into effect, pro-gun plaintiffs filed suit against the government on the basis the rule was vague, inconsistent, and unconstitutional. In June 2024, after more than a year of court proceedings, U.S. District Judge of the Northern District of Texas, Reed O'Connor, threw the ruling out.

The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals on August 9, 2024 also ruled against the ATF's pistol brace rule, finding the rule was "arbitrary and capricious." 

In late November 2024, the U.S. government filed a brief with the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals arguing the courts have thus far erred in throwing out the ATF's reclassification of pistol braced weapons as short-barreled rifles. But as of the date of publication, the ATF's rule remains overturned and braces still remain legal for use.