Permission to take firearms or ammunition into, through or out of the Federal Republic of Germany Extension
If your permit to temporarily take weapons or ammunition from Germany abroad or to temporarily take them to Germany or through Germany is no longer valid, you must have it extended. You can have your permit extended several times for 1 year at a time.
In order to be allowed to take weapons to Germany, you must prove your need, your reliability under firearms law, your personal suitability and your expertise. If you are a citizen of an EU member state, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Iceland, the European Firearms Pass is sufficient proof. If you are a citizen of a third country, you can provide proof by means of meaningful official documents from your home country with a German translation. If you are a citizen of a third country and are unable to provide information on weapons and ammunition when submitting your application, you must do so upon entry at the latest.
You must always state the reason why you wish to bring weapons and ammunition to Germany temporarily, for example an invitation to hunt, to a shooting competition or to a traditional event.
If you are submitting the application for a shooting team, for example, you can enter the names of all participants on a separate sheet and attach it to the application. The permit will then be issued for all applicants together.
You do not require a permit if you are from an EU member state, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Iceland
- as a hunter up to 3 long guns and the corresponding ammunition,
- as a sport shooter up to 6 firearms and the corresponding ammunition and
- as a traditional marksman up to 3 single-shot or repeating long guns and the corresponding ammunition
to Germany. However, the weapons you are taking with you must be entered in your European firearms pass. As a citizen of a third country, you do not have to prove that you are of legal age and have the necessary expertise.
You do not need a European firearms pass if you want to take certain weapons from Austria to Bavaria or vice versa as a marksman or traditional marksman.
You also do not need a permit to take weapons and ammunition to Germany if you
- you are taking weapons and ammunition with you for which you have permission to purchase and possess (weapons possession card - WBK),
- are carrying signal weapons and the associated ammunition on board ships for safety reasons or
- carry weapons and ammunition on board a ship or aircraft that are permanently kept under lock and key in Germany. These weapons and ammunition must be reported immediately to the competent authority and must be re-exported from Germany within one month at the latest.
If you wish to take weapons and ammunition from Germany to an EU member state, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Iceland, you require
- a permit to purchase and possess weapons and ammunition (weapons possession card - WBK),
- a European firearms pass in which the weapons you wish to take with you are entered
and
- the consent of the country to which you wish to take the weapons and ammunition or credible proof that no permit is required.
You must also ensure the safe transportation of the weapons and ammunition. You can also commission a forwarding agent for this purpose. You should find out about the conditions of the country under which transportation is permitted or not permitted before taking them with you.
If you want to take weapons and ammunition from Germany to a third country, you do not need a German permit. Here, too, you should find out about the conditions of the country under which you are permitted or not permitted to take them with you.
- Identity card or passport (copy)
- Previous carry-on permit
Carriage to Germany from an EU member state, Switzerland, Liechtenstein or Iceland
- European firearms pass (copy)
Carriage to Germany from a third country
- Official documents with German translation as proof of need, reliability, personal suitability, expertise
Carriage from Germany to an EU member state, Switzerland, Liechtenstein or Iceland
- European firearms pass (copy)
- Weapons possession card (WBK) (copy)
Consent of the state (if required) or proof that no consent is required
If you want to have your permit to take weapons and ammunition to Germany extended, you must meet the following requirements:
- You must prove the need as to why you want to take weapons and ammunition with you.
- You must be of legal age.
- You must be reliable in terms of firearms law. This means that any convictions must have been handed down more than 10 years ago and memberships in organizations banned in Germany more than 5 years ago.
- You must be personally suitable. This means that you must be legally competent and not addicted to alcohol or mentally ill.
You must have sufficient expertise to handle weapons and ammunition.
You can apply for the extension of your carry-on permit in writing or online. If you wish to apply for the extension of your carry permit in writing:
If you want to apply for the extension of your carry permit online: You submit the application via the online service of the competent weapons authority and upload copies of the documents/documents. |
Compulsory action before the administrative court
The text was automatically translated based on the German content.
Lower Saxony Ministry of the Interior and Sport
17.08.2023
Please contact the weapons authority in your district