Importing Firearms

Has anyone imported firearms into Australia before? I'm a sports shooter (target & long range shooting) and own several pistols, rifles and a pump-action shotgun and would like to continue my hobby in Australia.

So I've learned there is federal and state-level regulation. All weapons must adhere to the state regulation, and for some approval from the attorney-general (for example for the pump-action shotgun).

I'm really looking for the correct order to pick up my hobby in Australia, so to not get myself in any trouble :-)

1. Verify that all to be imported firearms adhere to state law, and sell those off which don't
2. Find a firearms dealer who is willing to receive the firearms after import
   
3. File Form B709A for category A, B & C firearms and Form B709D for category H firearms to state police and request attorney-general permission for category C & H firearms
   
4. Look into, and adhere to airline firearm transport requirements
   
5. Join an approved target shooting club (and clay target shooting club for category
   
6. Complete firearms safety training
   
7. Request personal firearms license for category A, B firearms & probationary pistol licence for category H firearms
   
8. Request permits for category A, B firearms, and pick those up from firearms dealer (from step 2)
   
9. Complete pistol safety training
   
10. After 6 months, request permits for (max 2, either centrefire or rimfire, but not both) category H firearms, and pick those up from firearms dealer (from step 2)
    
11. After 1 year, request a Category H Sport/Target Shooting Licence, and pick up rest of category H firearms at firearms dealer
    

Some questions;

• Is this sequence correct and am I not missing anything?
  
• How long is the police certification (requested by form B709A/D) valid?
  
• Is a foreign (non-Australian) proof of safety training transferable?
  
• Is it common to pay storage fees to the firearms dealer?
  
• Are firearms transported to the firearms dealer by the DIBP?
  

Looking forward to your own experiences :-)

Has anyone imported firearms into Australia before? I'm a sports shooter (target & long range shooting) and own several pistols, rifles and a pump-action shotgun and would like to continue my hobby in Australia.

 

So I've learned there is federal and state-level regulation. All weapons must adhere to the state regulation, and for some approval from the attorney-general (for example for the pump-action shotgun).

 

I'm really looking for the correct order to pick up my hobby in Australia, so to not get myself in any trouble :-)

 

--- Overseas ---

1) Verify that all to be imported firearms adhere to state law, and sell those off which don't

2) Find a firearms dealer who is willing to receive the firearms after import

3) File Form B709A for category A, B & C firearms and Form B709D for category H firearms to state police and request attorney-general permission for category C & H firearms

4) Look into, and adhere to airline firearm transport requirements

--- On shore ---

5) Join an approved target shooting club (and clay target shooting club for category C)

6) Complete firearms safety training

7) Request personal firearms license for category A, B firearms & probationary pistol licence for category H firearms

8) Request permits for category A, B firearms, and pick those up from firearms dealer (from step 2)

9) Complete pistol safety training

10) After 6 months, request permits for (max 2, either centrefire or rimfire, but not both) category H firearms, and pick those up from firearms dealer (from step 2)

11) After 1 year, request a Category H Sport/Target Shooting Licence, and pick up rest of category H firearms at firearms dealer

 

Some questions;

a) Is this sequence correct and am I not missing anything?

b) How long is the police certification (requested by form B709A/D) valid?

c) Is a foreign (non-Australian) proof of safety training transferable?

d) Is it common to pay storage fees to the firearms dealer?

e) Are firearms transported to the firearms dealer by the DIBP?

 

Looking forward to your own experiences :-)

It's not impossible, just hard.

Your sequence is about right, but in 2008 broadly we went for :

5) Join a club, you'll meet other people who will know the sequence, South African/Irish etc

2) after some time (the club will advise, but it varies for categories and types), including in our case we had Citizenship we used a gun dealer/shop to guide us through.

The dealer will organise and manage the transport end to end (as in dealer to dealer), as I recall, no ammunition is advised transported (much more paperwork), or if you make your own, so use it or lose it before shipping, the dealer will charge for storage but it is reasonable (was reasonable)

Our case had added complexity in the fact that it was a deceased estate with a number of firearms, rimfire .22 and centre fire 222, despite the Australian Police being very helpful and also the gun dealer in sydney, we just could not manage to tie the ends without a face to face, so the firearms went into storage in europe.

We also had rights to shoot on land, which if you are not in a gun club is a substantive reason to have a firearm.

You will also need secure storage, I would join a club immediate and tell them what you are doing, they will have storage facilities which meet the federal and state requirements.

e) The firearms will come secure by freight and will be signed for by the dealer or his representative (hence no ammo or ammo in a different consignment requiring separate paperwork)

Unfortunately the climate is not (as you are probably aware) kind to shooters, lower north shore in Sydney is no place to have a hunting weapon, I cannot advise on side arms and pump action, suffice to say , they are even less popular than the rifles due to their popularity with certain members of society :mad:

The issue you will have is that you may need to join a club and be a member of a club for a certain period and have supervised/curated access to your weapons before they are released

To be honest we're back in the UK now, boys are having huge fun with a .22 and optics (firebird exploding targets anyone ?) , but the paperwork to move our heirloom rifles (yes they have huge sentimental value) is just as much a phonebook as before.....

It's not impossible, just hard.

Unfortunately the climate is not (as you are probably aware) kind to shooters, lower north shore in Sydney is no place to have a hunting weapon, I cannot advise on side arms and pump action, suffice to say , they are even less popular than the rifles due to their popularity with certain members of society :mad:

 

Well, I wasn't actually aware of that... are you talking about the heat (barrel overheating), corrosion due to humidity or something else? Concerning sidearms, I'm active in IPSC / parcours shooting, so I'm curious if that is also done in AUS...

It's not impossible, just hard.

To be honest we're back in the UK now, boys are having huge fun with a .22 and optics (firebird exploding targets anyone ?) , but the paperwork to move our heirloom rifles (yes they have huge sentimental value) is just as much a phonebook as before.....

 

I'm certainly not opposed to regulation (and getting firearms out of the hands of criminals), but most regulation is just hurting good, law-abiding citizens, while criminals don't really give a sh*t :-)

the Climate I was referring to was the "social and public" perception and thus the jurisdictional differences between the UK and Aus, for example a .22 air rifle is classed as category A in Oz, same as a Remington/BRNO .22 which is about a 100 times more powerful ???, high capacity magazines and semi-auto, including shotguns with round capacity are restricted to government agencies and primary producers (i.e. farmers), not impossible, but difficult.

Can't comment on sidearms, you'll definitely have to join a club and be a member for a period of time (I think it was about 6 months).

Totally agree with you on the regulation, saw first hand a haul of illegal weapons in a storage facility in adelaide when I was there working for the justice dept, crazy stuff and not a serial number to be seen.....

Ah, that kind of climate :-) Yes, I'm fairly aware of that. As long as people don't get completely anal about firearms, I'm rather okay with strict gun laws where they make sense. A lot is about perception, and most people aren't aware of sport/target shooting and how fun this can be. Yes, firearms can be dangerous in the wrong hands, but that's the matter for so many things. Education and firearms safety is key.

Quite odd that air rifle shooting is considered the same as .22lr, then again very powerful air rifles exist. But indeed from what I've already read the categorization isn't really completely logical.

But let's not make this into a discussion about pro/cons of firearms regulations. I'm aware that it'll be an uphill battle, that's why I'd like to prepare well :-)

Has anyone imported firearms into Australia before? I'm a sports shooter (target & long range shooting) and own several pistols, rifles and a pump-action shotgun and would like to continue my hobby in Australia.

 

So I've learned there is federal and state-level regulation. All weapons must adhere to the state regulation, and for some approval from the attorney-general (for example for the pump-action shotgun).

 

I'm really looking for the correct order to pick up my hobby in Australia, so to not get myself in any trouble :-)

 

 

 

1. Verify that all to be imported firearms adhere to state law, and sell those off which don't

2. Find a firearms dealer who is willing to receive the firearms after import

3. File Form B709A for category A, B & C firearms and Form B709D for category H firearms to state police and request attorney-general permission for category C & H firearms

4. Look into, and adhere to airline firearm transport requirements

5. Join an approved target shooting club (and clay target shooting club for category

6. Complete firearms safety training

7. Request personal firearms license for category A, B firearms & probationary pistol licence for category H firearms

8. Request permits for category A, B firearms, and pick those up from firearms dealer (from step 2)

9. Complete pistol safety training

10. After 6 months, request permits for (max 2, either centrefire or rimfire, but not both) category H firearms, and pick those up from firearms dealer (from step 2)

11. After 1 year, request a Category H Sport/Target Shooting Licence, and pick up rest of category H firearms at firearms dealer

 

 

 

Some questions;

 

 

 

• Is this sequence correct and am I not missing anything?

• How long is the police certification (requested by form B709A/D) valid?

• Is a foreign (non-Australian) proof of safety training transferable?

• Is it common to pay storage fees to the firearms dealer?

• Are firearms transported to the firearms dealer by the DIBP?

 

 

Looking forward to your own experiences :-)

I'm not sure of the situation because it is 12 years ago since I was involved in this farago myself, but my memory, very hazy, is that I was advised I needed an export/import license? and home office approval?, now I'm not sure whether things have changed or whether I have got it all wrong, but another issue that I seemed to remember was the reluctance of airlines to accept carriage of large numbers of firearms.

Now I am not saying that I am remembering correctly or clearly after all these years so don't take it as gospel

Another issue is finding a dealer in Australia who will be responsible for your firearms over that period of time and who will put them onto their books, I would talk to them right at the outset.

Gun dealerships I found in Brisbane were much more geared up to selling on a much bigger scale than in the UK, places like Fultons just didn't exist.

I ended up selling up here in the UK and buying again in Qld, which can be a real wrench, I let a No 1SMLE, BSA, go for 50 pound, it had all matching numbers and walnut woodwork, a tragedy.

Your safety training is definitely not transferable , I'm not sure you can transfer it between states, remember your licence is issued by the State police for that state.

I'm not sure of the situation because it is 12 years ago since I was involved in this farago myself, but my memory, very hazy, is that I was advised I needed an export/import license? and home office approval?, now I'm not sure whether things have changed or whether I have got it all wrong, but another issue that I seemed to remember was the reluctance of airlines to accept carriage of large numbers of firearms.

Now I am not saying that I am remembering correctly or clearly after all these years so don't take it as gospel

Another issue is finding a dealer in Australia who will be responsible for your firearms over that period of time and who will put them onto their books, I would talk to them right at the outset.

Gun dealerships I found in Brisbane were much more geared up to selling on a much bigger scale than in the UK, places like Fultons just didn't exist.

I ended up selling up here in the UK and buying again in Qld, which can be a real wrench, I let a No 1SMLE, BSA, go for 50 pound, it had all matching numbers and walnut woodwork, a tragedy.

Yeah, I'll have to lookup on the airlines, could be a deciding factor on the airline to take. I presume it isn't possible to ship firearms with the rest of the household container as Unaccompanied Personal Effects?

How is the sport shooting scene in Brisbane? Are all kinds of disciplines practiced? Are there any open air ranges?

Too bad for the Lee-Enfield! The guy who bought it must've had a great day though :-)

Glad you raised this issue as I have a number of rifles I really want to bring with me when we move. I will be keeping close eyes on this thread.

Yeah, I'll have to lookup on the airlines, could be a deciding factor on the airline to take. I presume it isn't possible to ship firearms with the rest of the household container as Unaccompanied Personal Effects?

 

How is the sport shooting scene in Brisbane? Are all kinds of disciplines practiced? Are there any open air ranges?

 

Too bad for the Lee-Enfield! The guy who bought it must've had a great day though :-)

Airlines have no problems with firearms as long as they are packed correctly , with correct paperwork (usually sealed, and prepared properly for transport)

I used to work for Qantas amongst other airlines.

)

you know you've fired a rifle when you've shot a lee-enfield :

Yeah, I'll have to lookup on the airlines, could be a deciding factor on the airline to take. I presume it isn't possible to ship firearms with the rest of the household container as Unaccompanied Personal Effects?

 

How is the sport shooting scene in Brisbane? Are all kinds of disciplines practiced? Are there any open air ranges?

 

Too bad for the Lee-Enfield! The guy who bought it must've had a great day though :-)

There is a range out at Belmont which does go back to 1000yds, the Queensland Rifle Association is based out there,it has about 40 targets and a small bore range and pistol range, word of warning make sure you have plenty of sunscreen and invest in a pair of uv resistant long trousers if you are thinking of doing target shooting, lot of reloading done, target rifle is very competitive although there are a few groups doing things like Lee Enfield service rifle, don't know much about sporting rifle, I think you have to have ownership of open land or landholders agreement for you to shoot over and their is a minimum area and it must not be bounded by a road, I think, not sure?. If you are going to Qld all the application forms for a firearms licence are on the web, biggest problem is the wait time for them to process the application, I think I waited 4 months.

if you are going to do Target rifle PM me because I can give you a bit of inside info on clubs.

Removers won't accept firearms as general effects.

Airlines have no problems with firearms as long as they are packed correctly , with correct paperwork (usually sealed, and prepared properly for transport)

 

I used to work for Qantas amongst other airlines.

)

you know you've fired a rifle when you've shot a lee-enfield :

I had a No 1 which I had as .303 for sentimental value and a Long branch No 4 in 7.62 and a couple of other 7.62's before the law became ridiculous and money became no object for people, the No 4 really used to come into its own at 600yds and beyond, the Longbranch manufacture was known for this, manufacturing tolerances were better I believe

Thing is the move'll be for next year, and we haven't decided yet on NSW or Queensland. I own a Ruger Precision Rifle in .308 Win and apparently they aren't allowed in Sydney because of the foldable stock (stupid regulation, because it's a bolt-action and inoperable when folded). Hence it's leaning toward Queensland ;-)

Thing is the move'll be for next year, and we haven't decided yet on NSW or Queensland. I own a Ruger Precision Rifle in .308 Win and apparently they aren't allowed in Sydney because of the foldable stock (stupid regulation, because it's a bolt-action and inoperable when folded). Hence it's leaning toward Queensland ;-)

I suppose you have checked that with QLD, it might be considered as a assault rifle, I did find the QLD firearms dept would respond to e mails but that was 12 years ago.

I suppose you have checked that with QLD, it might be considered as a assault rifle, I did find the QLD firearms dept would respond to e mails but that was 12 years ago.

It's sold in QLD, so I don't foresee a problem there. It's not a semi-automatic rifle, it's a bolt-action. Can't imagine why it could be seen as an assault rifle... Because it's black? 'Cause it has a handguard? :-)

It's sold in QLD, so I don't foresee a problem there. It's not a semi-automatic rifle, it's a bolt-action. Can't imagine why it could be seen as an assault rifle... Because it's black? 'Cause it has a handguard? :-)

No because it has a folding stock, the Australians tightened up massively after the port Arthur? Massacre in early 2000's, I'm not trying to make a judgement, I've been shooting for 45 years until I gave up due to the regs and the public perception of shooters, I started shooting when you could go to Bisley across London on public transport with 2 rifles in canvas bags.

Govts are driven by public and police paranoia, it's easier to buy one on the black market than legally own one now.

Does anybody have info on regs for WA, i have found the licensing info but just trying to find out what will happen. I am really into target shooting, so much so that my masters dissertation is on characterisation of propellant and primer combustion in high accuracy military and police use. We are coming out for a short break next week to show the kids what perth and surrounding area is all about so would be good to scope out ( pun intended) whats about.

Does anybody have info on regs for WA, i have found the licensing info but just trying to find out what will happen. I am really into target shooting, so much so that my masters dissertation is on characterisation of propellant and primer combustion in high accuracy military and police use. We are coming out for a short break next week to show the kids what perth and surrounding area is all about so would be good to scope out ( pun intended) whats about.

if your dissertation is on that subject, then could your proposed occupation be in that area or strongly related ? In which case you may zero in on the occupational shooter category ?, I think that's certainly worth a shot despite what bureaucratic turrets you may have to climb.

all awful puns intended........

if your dissertation is on that subject, then could your proposed occupation be in that area or strongly related ? In which case you may zero in on the occupational shooter category ?, I think that's certainly worth a shot despite what bureaucratic turrets you may have to climb.

 

all awful puns intended........

Awesome, had to rep you for that!

On a side note though my masters is actually a MEng - Mechanical but decided to do something different then everyone else, working with a company caller Extreme Precision which is great fun.

Does anybody have info on regs for WA, i have found the licensing info but just trying to find out what will happen. I am really into target shooting, so much so that my masters dissertation is on characterisation of propellant and primer combustion in high accuracy military and police use. We are coming out for a short break next week to show the kids what perth and surrounding area is all about so would be good to scope out ( pun intended) whats about.

I'm curious, what's your research question then? (and hypothesis?)