Permit for the acquisition and possession of weapons and ammunition Issuance of green gun ownership card for a single person

If, as an individual, you want to acquire and possess weapons and/or ammunition that require a permit, you must apply for a permit from the competent weapons authority. Basically, you always need a permit to acquire and possess weapons and ammunition.

In general, firearms are objects intended for attack or defence, signalling, hunting, distance injection, marking, sport or play, in which projectiles are propelled through a barrel or in which solid bodies are fired in a targeted manner, the propulsive energy of which can be introduced by muscle power or another energy source and stored or held by a locking device (for example, crossbows, arrow launchers).

A distinction is made between firearms that require a licence and those that do not require a licence. In order to be allowed to carry firearms without a permit, you need a small firearms license (see further information). All weapons that are not alarm shots, irritants and signal weapons with PTB symbols in the circle are counted as requiring a permit. A detailed list of weapons for which you need a gun possession card can be found in Appendix 2 of the Weapons Act.

It is recommended that you inform yourself in detail about the regulations of the weapons law before submitting your application.

To obtain permission to acquire and possess weapons and ammunition that require a permit, you must:

• be of the appropriate age, and
• Your need,
• Your reliability in terms of weapons law,
• Your personal suitability,
• Your expertise in the use of weapons and ammunition as well as
• prove the safe storage of weapons and ammunition.

Age

If you are under 25 years of age, you may be asked by the competent firearms authority to submit a specialist medical or psychological report/certificate of your mental fitness. You have to pay for the certificate/certificate yourself and send it in the original by post to the responsible weapons authority (a copy or e-mail will not be accepted).

If you are a hunter, you do not need such a certificate.

As a sport shooter, you must be at least 18 years old. Then you are entitled to purchase and possess firearms up to calibre 5.6 mm lfB (.22 l.r.) for rimfire ammunition with a muzzle energy of the projectiles not exceeding 200 joules (J) and single-shot long guns with smooth barrels of calibre 12 or smaller.

For other firearms, the minimum age for sport shooters is 21 years, provided that you can present a specialist medical or psychological report/certificate of your mental fitness.

Need

In order to be allowed to purchase and possess weapons and ammunition, you must provide a credible reason (need) to the competent weapons authority. As a rule, a credible reason is accepted if:

• You are a hunter and have a hunting license (day or annual hunting license). If, as a hunter, you only want to purchase and possess long guns and two handguns, then no further proof of a need is required.
• You have been a member of a sports club for 1 year, which is a member of a recognized shooting sports association and in which shooting with such weapons is permitted according to an approved shooting sports regulations. The shooting sports regulations are approved by the Federal Office of Administration. You must also prove that you have attended the training regularly (at least once a month or at least 18 times within a year).
• Your life is at high risk
• You can credibly demonstrate other reasons why you want to acquire and possess weapons and ammunition.

Reliability under weapons law

Among other things, you can be considered reliable in terms of weapons law,

1. if you have not been sentenced to at least 1 year's imprisonment within the last 10 years and have not been a member of or supported a banned organisation in the last 10 years.
2. if you are not likely to misuse or misuse weapons or ammunition, fail to store such items carefully or leave them to persons who are not authorized to do so.
3. if you have not been in preventive police custody for violence more than once in the last 5 years with judicial authorisation.
4. if you have not repeatedly or grossly violated the gun law.

Personal suitability

You may be considered personally unsuitable if, among other things:

1. You are legally incapacitated.
2. You are addicted to alcohol or other intoxicating substances, mentally ill or debilitated.
3. You suffer from serious illnesses, such as brain injuries, or physical impairments, such as amputations or severe visual impairment.
4. It can be assumed that you are not able to handle weapons or ammunition carefully or appropriately, or that there is a real risk that you will endanger others or yourself.

Ability

In order to be allowed to purchase and possess weapons and ammunition, you must prove that you can handle them appropriately. In order to acquire the expertise in the handling of weapons and ammunition, you must take part in an appropriate course. The course consists of a theoretical and practical part. At the end of the course, you will take an exam in front of an authorized examination board. If you have passed the test, you will receive proof of the weapons and ammunition for which you have acquired the expertise. You can also obtain the expertise only for the weapons and ammunition that you wish to acquire and possess.

You do not have to take a separate proficiency test if you

• the hunter's examination or an equivalent examination, or
• have passed a journeyman's examination for the gunsmith's trade, or
• have worked full-time in the firearms and ammunition trade for at least 3 years.

In these cases, all you need to do is provide appropriate evidence.

Safekeeping

You need to keep weapons and ammunition safe. In general, this means that only you, as the authorized person, have access to weapons and ammunition, for example by carrying the key with you at all times. If you do not store your weapons and ammunition safely, you are committing an administrative offence for which a fine of up to 10,000 euros can be imposed. In addition, your reliability under weapons law may be called into question and your weapon possession card may be revoked.

When applying, you must provide information about both the storage location and the container in which you want to store weapons and ammunition. Basically, you can use the following guidelines as a guide:

• Ammunition requiring a permit must be stored in a sheet steel cabinet/container with a swing bolt lock.
• In order to store long guns and handguns that require a permit, as well as ammunition that requires a permit, you need a gun safe. The gun safe you need depends on the number and type of weapons and/or ammunition you want to purchase and possess.
  • In a gun safe with resistance grade 0 according to EN 1143-1 weighing up to 200 kilograms, you may store an unlimited number of long guns, up to 5 handguns and ammunition.
  • In a gun safe with resistance grade 0 according to EN 1143-1 weighing more than 200 kilograms, you may store an unlimited number of long guns, up to 10 handguns and ammunition.
  • In a gun safe with resistance grade 1 according to EN 1143-1, you are allowed to store an unlimited number of long guns and handguns as well as ammunition.
• The following rules apply to the place where you are allowed to place the gun safe:
  • If you live in an apartment building, it is not allowed to place the gun safe in the basement if each resident has only one so-called cellar shed, which is only secured with a door with a padlock.
  • You are also allowed to store up to 3 long guns in buildings that are not permanently occupied, such as a hunting lodge or a weekend house. To do this, however, you will need a gun safe with resistance level 1.
  • If you live in the same household as another gun owner, you may store the guns in a shared gun safe.
• As a hunter, you may also temporarily have your long guns stored by another hunter in his gun safe. However, this time should be limited, permanent storage is not allowed. For permanent storage, you should purchase your own gun safe that only you have access to.
• It is also allowed to store weapons and ammunition at an arms dealer. You will need to provide proof of this.