Purchase or sale of or possession with intent to sell items made of part or byproduct of certain animals: Prohibition; exceptions; penalties.
Nev. Rev. Stat. § 597.905
in effect1. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 2, a person shall not purchase, sell, offer for sale or possess with intent to sell any item that is, wholly or partially, made of an animal part or byproduct derived from a shark fin, a lion of the species Panthera leo or any species of elephant, rhinoceros, tiger, leopard, cheetah, jaguar, pangolin, sea turtle, ray, mammoth, narwhal, walrus or hippopotamus.
2. The provisions of subsection 1 do not apply to:
(a) Any activity undertaken by a law enforcement agency or officer pursuant to federal or state law.
(b) An antique that contains a de minimis quantity of an animal part or byproduct derived from any species listed in subsection 1, provided that the animal part or byproduct is a fixed component of the antique and the owner or seller of the antique establishes with documentation evidencing provenance of the antique that the antique is at least 100 years old.
(c) A musical instrument, including, without limitation, piano, string instrument and bow, wind instrument and percussion instrument, that contains a de minimis quantity of an animal part or byproduct derived from any species listed in subsection 1, provided that the owner or seller of the musical instrument:
(1) Possesses any certification or permit required by federal law for the sale of the musical instrument; and
(2) Establishes with documentation evidencing provenance that the musical instrument was legally acquired.
(d) A knife or firearm, or a component thereof, that contains an animal part or byproduct derived from any species listed in subsection 1 if:
(1) The animal part or byproduct:
(I) Is a fixed or integral part of the knife or firearm, or the component thereof; and
(II) Originated in or was legally imported to the United States; and
(2) The owner or seller of the knife or firearm, or the component thereof, establishes with documentation evidencing provenance that the knife or firearm, or the component thereof, was legally acquired; and
(3) All the requirements for the sale of the knife or firearm, or the component thereof, set forth in federal and state law are met.
(e) Sales authorized by the Department of Business and Industry to a bona fide scientific or educational institution of an item that contains an animal part or byproduct derived from any species listed in subsection 1, provided that the owner or seller of the item:
(1) Possesses any certification or permit required by federal law for the sale of the item; and
(2) Establishes with documentation evidencing provenance that the item was legally acquired.
(f) Any item that contains an animal part or byproduct derived from any species listed in subsection 1 for which the owner or seller has obtained any certification or permit required by federal law for the sale of the item or that is specifically authorized for sale by federal law, provided that all the requirements for the sale of the item set forth in federal or state law have been met.
(g) Any sport-hunted item that is legally obtained in accordance with federal law.
3. Any person who violates a provision of subsection 1:
(a) For the first offense, is guilty of a gross misdemeanor;
(b) For the second offense, is guilty of a category E felony and shall be punished as provided in NRS 193.130 ; and
(c) For the third and any subsequent offense, is guilty of a category D felony and shall be punished as provided in NRS 193.130 .
4. In addition to the criminal penalties set forth in this section, a person who violates a provision of this section, upon conviction, shall pay a civil penalty not to exceed $6,500 or an amount equal to four times the fair market value of the item which is the subject of the violation, whichever is greater.
5. As used in this section:
(a) De minimis quantity means:
(1) Less than 20 percent of an item by volume;
(2) Less than 200 grams in weight when examined as a separate component; and
(3) Less than 20 percent of the fair market value of an item or of the actual price paid for the item, whichever is greater.
(b) Sale or sell means any act of selling, trading or bartering, for monetary or nonmonetary consideration, and includes any transfer of ownership that occurs in the course of a commercial transaction, but does not include a nonmonetary transfer of ownership to a legal beneficiary of a trust or to a person by way of gift, donation, inheritance or bequest.
(c) Shark fin means the fresh and uncooked, or cooked, frozen, dried or otherwise processed, detached fin or tail of a shark.
Source: NV Statutes (Official Site)URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/NRS-597.htmlFetched: 10/4/2026