> How about a background check and a mental check?

That would pretty much guarantee that people who need mental health services would deliberately avoid getting it to prevent it from showing up on their records, e.g. a security guard who needs to carry a firearm for their job.

How do you define a "mental check"?

"socially awkward people aren't allowed to have guns" as a policy would be a flagrant violation of a constitutional right.

The scary thing is that mentally ill people can intentionally mask their illness in order to pass exams.

Replying to the other comments under this reply: in Canada we check for past history of mental illness but don’t flag gun license applicants just because of that. They need to have a history of being treated due to illness that could lead to violence.

In the interests of keeping things pari passu, how about implementing mental screenings as part of voter registration as well?