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Ilegal to buy?

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Sefrez

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First off, yes I'm new here. ;D

Anyway,

I live in the US. Would it be illegal for me to buy the 15mW X-Series from novalasers?
No I'm not planning on pointing at plains or cops cars.
 





Well, it's technically illegal to import anything over 5mW, but generally they will never find it in the mail anyway, and if they did, the probably wouldn't even do anything, and it's perfectly legal to own one anyway.
 
Sweetness. ;D

Thanks for replies!

Would I "really" need goggles for a 15mW laser? It's not that much more than a 5mW.
Also, is a 15mW beam even visible?
 
Actually, no. Since Nova ships all products from Toronto, buying a laser from them is considering importing it. Since all X-Series are greater than 5mw, and none of them have the proper safety features or FDA Accession numbers, it is COMPLETELY ILLEGAL for you to buy an X-Series laser in the US and have it shipped to you. It is a violation of federal law, there is no "technically" to it, it is illegal.

Now, will you get caught? Probably not. If you do get caught, will you lose your laser? Yes. If they just confiscate it, will Nova ship another one? Yes.

But the most important question, is it getting confiscated all that can happen? NO. The government, if it saw fit, would be completely justified and within the law to fine you thousands of dollars and put you in jail. According to previous experience of people here and other places online, it getting confiscated would probably be all that happens, so it's up to you if you think it's worth the risk. But you have to understand all the risks before you can make a good decision.
 
A laser can be any power and still be legal, it just needs to be FDA certified and have a five point safety feature. A 2 second delay, a key switch, an aperature cap thing, an indicator LED, and something else I can't think of.
All of the RPL's from Optotronics and all of LaserGlow's products and the Alpha and the Nova series from NOVAlasers are legal.
 
So this laser is LEGAL in the USA to buy and to own?

Ug. No links allowed by me. The Alpha15.

And are you sure? lol
 
I would like someone else to quote me on it, but yes. I would wait until a member that knows more than I do to answer this. You should be OK. The delay can get annoying though. Just curious, what are you going to use it for?
 
There's a difference in legal to import/manufacture/sale and legal to personally own/use.  It is illegal to import a laser greater than 5mW unless it has the 5 safety features and an FDA Accession number.  It is also illegal to manufacture and sell such a laser in the United States.  BUT, it is perfectly legal to OWN that laser for your own personal use.

The FDA/federal government regulate the manufacture for sale and the import of lasers, but they leave it up to local jurisdictions (state, county, town) to regulate ownership and personal usage of lasers.

If the laser has the 5 safety features and is approved by the FDA, it is legal to import. So the Alpha series is legal to buy, assuming they have gone through the paperwork to get an Accession number from the FDA. I assume they have done this for the Nova and Alpha series, since those lasers do have the safety features incorporated.

Make sense?
 
Perfect sense. Thanks.

And @ LRMNmeyer.

Just common pointing around. The reason I don't want a 5mW is because the beam is not real visible. I'm hoping a 15mW will have a little more visible beam. (in darker areas)
 
Sefrez said:
So this laser is LEGAL in the USA to buy and to own?

Ug. No links allowed by me. The Alpha15.

And are you sure? lol
Click to expand...

Adding to what pullbangdead said, some states have laws that make it illegal to own laser pointers if you are under the age of 18. That means your mommy and daddy would be responsible for breaking the law. Google keyword search laser pointers minors state laws
From a federal perspective there are no laws preventing minors from owning <5mw laser pointers
 
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