Firearms licences
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Firearms licences
Overview
Introduction
This chapter covers the firearms licence requirements and application process, including:
- Requirements to apply for a firearms licence
- Considerations before issuing a firearms licence
- Firearms licence holder obligations
- Surrendering, expiring and revoked firearms licences
- Immediate supervision requirements for non-licence holders
- Other miscel aneous information about the possession and use of firearms and arms items
Licence types
There are two types of licenses issued under the Arms Act 1983:
- Firearms licence
- Dealer’s licence
A short-term firearms licence may be issued to a visitor who intends to be in New Zealand for a period of
less than one year and is referred to as a ‘visitor firearms licence’ (section 25(2) and (3) and definition of
“visitor” in section 2). For more information about visitor firearms licences, see the Visitor Firearms
Licence arms chapter.
The following people require a firearms licence
- Persons in possession of firearms
- Persons in possession of firearms parts
- Persons in possession of ammunition
- Firearms dealers and their employees
- Ammunition sel ers
- Persons aged 16 or 17 in possession of airguns.
To possess pistols, restricted weapons, pistol carbine conversion kits or prohibited items, the relevant
endorsement is required on the firearms licence. A person may apply for a firearms licence and
endorsement(s) concurrently. Each application is to be considered on its merits and the approval for one
does not automatical y al ow for the approval of the other application.
A person cannot apply for a first-time firearms licence and a first-time dealer’s licence concurrently.
Firearms licence
A firearms licence:
- permits the holder to possess non-prohibited firearms, non-prohibited magazines and other non-
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Firearms licences
prohibited parts and ammunition (section 20, 22A, and 22B)
- is required by persons aged 16 and 17 years who wish to possess an airgun (section 21)
- cannot be issued to persons under 16 years of age (sections 23 and 24)
- is required by persons who wish to possess or use:
- Reproduction or replica firearms which are more modern copies of antique firearms - even if
these are virtual y identical to a true antique firearm, they are not an antique firearm due to
being manufactured after 1899 (the definition of antique firearm refers). Accordingly, a
licence is stil required to possess them (and if that replica is a pistol, prohibited firearm or
restricted weapon, the appropriate endorsement and permit is required also).
- Special y dangerous airguns. See clauses 1A and 3 of the Arms (Restricted Weapons and
Special y Dangerous Airguns) Order 1984, which currently provides that the fol owing are
special y dangerous airguns and therefore come within the definition of “firearms” under
section 2 of the Arms Act:
- airguns known as the Larc International Model 19A and the Larc International
Model M19-AMP
- specified pre-charge pneumatic air rifles other than airguns that are designed for use
in airsoft or paintbal sports and are in the same configuration as when they were
manufactured.
There is no limit on the number of non-prohibited firearms or airguns a person with a firearms licence
may hold. The licence holder must, however, have approved secure storage sufficient for all firearms in
their possession, and firearms must at all times be possessed only for a lawful, proper and sufficient
purpose (section 45). Also refer to the Exemptions section below.
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Firearms licences
Application for a firearms licence
A person may apply to a member of the Police for a firearms licence if the person:
- is of or over the age of 16 years; and
- has not had a firearms licence revoked in the previous 5 years (or, if they have, the revocation was
reversed by the District Court); and
- is not disqualified under section 22H from holding a firearms licence (see Appendix One for ful
details on disqualifiable offences).
A person who is the holder of a firearms licence may, before the expiration of that firearms licence, apply
for a new firearms licence. These types of application are col oquial y known as “renewals”.
Exemptions
Licence not required for specific items
Section 22 of the Act and Regulation 20 of the Arms Regulations 1992 does not require a licence for
possession of certain non-prohibited firearms that, because of the way they work, are defined as
firearms, but have specific functions. These specific firearms are:
- a bolt gun or a stud gun
- a humane kil er
- a tranquil iser gun
- a stock marking pistol
- an underwater spear gun (which uses an explosive to propel the spear; or may be of a type which
fires a projectile by force of an explosive).
- a flare pistol
- a deer net gun
- a pistol that is part of rocket or line throwing equipment
- a miniature cannon
- an antique firearm*
- a dog training dummy launcher
- an improvised explosive device disrupter.
The restrictions on the sale of ammunition under section 22D of the Arms Act 1983, that ammunition can
only be sold by a firearms licence holder to someone who is also a firearms licence holder, do not apply
to any ammunition for those firearms listed above.
The items above are not required to be entered into the Registry.
A permit to import any exempt item above is still required as the exemption relates to possession only.
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