Grant of a Firearm Certificate
A firearm certificate differs from a shotgun certificate on a number of points. Firstly, it will only allow you to possess those weapons which have been authorised by the police and secondly, it will only allow you to use those weapons for a specific purpose, and on occasions, at a specific place.
Before issuing a firearm certificate, the Chief Officer of Police must be satisfied that the applicant can be permitted to have firearms and ammunition in his possession without danger to public safety or to the peace.
Applying for the grant of a firearm certificate
Applications for the grant of a firearm certificatemust be made to the Chief Officer of Police,for the area in which you reside. Theymust be made on prescribed Form 101, which are available from your local police station, the Firearms Licensing Office or from this website (below).
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By virtue of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exemptions) Order 1975, an applicant is not permitted to withhold information concerning a previous conviction, however old or minor, on the grounds that it is 'spent'. This also includes convictions outside of Great Britain.
If you have any difficulties or queries when completing the form, please contact your local Firearms Licensing Office.
All of the questions in Part A of this form, which deal with personal details, are identical to those that appear on a shotgun certificate application form, and guidance can be found under that category.
Part B refers to details of weapons and ammunition. In the case of a grant, questions 17 and 18 should normally be answered as "none".
- Q19: Please be sure to complete all four columns in respect of each weapon requested, particularly as to "reason" in column 3, and "where you intend to use it" in column 4. "Reason" is probably the most misunderstood single item relating to firearms. Remember you must provide good reason foreach and every weapon you request. For more information see our separate category on Good Reason.
- Q20: Bear in mind the "overall total" of ammunition you are requesting. You must be able to safely store this amount separately from your firearms. Ensure you have requested ammunition for each of he calibre weapons requested, except those that are muzzle-loading. It is normal to request to be allowed to possess a slightly larger amount than you are allowed to purchase. This will then allow you to "top up" your ammunition before completely running out.
- Q21: You should request the amount of ammunition, within reason, that you require to purchase or acquire at any one time. It should be noted that expanding ammunition is not normally allowed for target shooting.
Part C concerns the storage of your firearms and ammunition. In most circumstances this will be at the applicant's home address, but it is possible to store elsewhere, for instance at your club.
Part D refers to any other certificates which you currently hold, or have held in the past. All the questions are straightforward and help on 25b can be found in our section on Coterminous Shotgun Certificates.Part E relates to refereeswhich is fully explained under that section.
Part F (on reverse of Form 101), is the declaration that the applicant must sign and date. If the applicant is under 17 years old, the declaration must be countersigned by a parent or legal guardian. See also Age Restrictions.
In all cases your application must be accompanied by four photographs.
You should also enclose the appropriate fee. See Fees and Charges.
You may deliver your application to your local police station or preferably, post your application directly to Firearms Licensing Section, Community Justice Department at Police Headquarters.
Once your completed application is received, necessary checks will take place and you shall be contacted by the Firearm Enquiry Officer covering your area. He/she will arrange a mutually agreeable appointment to visit your home address to discuss your application and give advice on the necessary security.
If during enquiries it appears that your security measures require upgrading, then your application may be allowed "in principle only", until the measures are fully implemented. Once you have installed the required security you should contact your Enquiry Officer to arrange for him to re-inspect it. His/her report will be directed to the Firearms Licensing Office, where your application will be given a final assessment. On approval, the granted certificate will be sent to you directly, usually by post.
Should your application be refused, then the reason will be fully explained to you. Your fee and photographs will be returned. You are entitled to appeal to a Crown Court Judge if you feel that the refusal was unjustified.
A Chief Officer of Police must not grant a certificate to any person he has reason to believe to be:
- Prohibited by the Act from possessing a firearm; or
- Of intemperate habits or unsound mind; or
- To be for any reason unfit to be entrusted with a firearm.
If the grant is not so precluded, the Chief Officer of Police has to be satisfied that the applicant:
- Has a good reason for requiring the firearm and ammunition; and
- Can be permitted to have the firearm or ammunition without danger to public safety or to the peace.
Referees
The Firearms Acts requires an applicant, for the grant or renewal of a firearm certificate, to supply the names and addresses of two people who have agreed to act as referees.
Referees are to firearms, what countersignatories are to shotguns and most of the same criteria apply.
The main difference is that you require tworeferees, each of which must complete a "reference form" called a Form 125, as shown below.
The reference form is the same colour blue as a firearm grant form (Form 101). Please ensure that you receive tworeference forms with your grant application form.
When an applicant for the grant of a firearm certificate completes his application form (101), he should enter the details of his two referees in Part E.
Each of the referees should read the completed application form, then sign and date the declaration. The referees should then be given a copy of the Reference Form 125, to be completed in private.
It is essential that the referee completes allsections fully, particularly questions 15-18 in Part C. If any are left blank or not completed satisfactorily, the form will be returned to the referee resulting in a delay. Answering these questions with "no" or "none" or "n/a" is not acceptable and unhelpful both to your application and assisting in the assessment of your application. It may well result in the enquiry officer deciding that the referee does not know you personally, as required.
The criteria for acceptability is much the same as for shotgun countersignatures, except in the case of renewal of a firearms certificate for target shooting. In this situation one of the referees must be a club official of the approved club named on the applicant's firearm certificate.
In these circumstances it is not a requirement for the club official to have known the applicant personally for at least two years. Registered Firearms Dealers may also act as referees but only when they are also club officials. The second referee must notbe a member of any target shooting club.
For the grant of a firearm certificate it is not essential that one of the referees is a club official.
When fully completed the referee must sign and date the declaration, then return the reference form direct to the Firearms Licensing Office within 28 days. It must not be shown, or returned to you for submission, and the reference should be given freely and not on payment.
If the referee knows of any matter or occurrence of which they think the Chief Officer of Police should be aware, they should include it on the form. They should also mention anything that gives rise to any concern they may have about the applicant's suitability to possess firearms. All information will be treated in the strictest confidence, but the referee may be interviewed by the police to clarify any statement on the form.
The Firearms Acts, do not provide a right of appeal by an applicant where the police consider that a nominated referee does not meet the requirements laid down in the Firearm Rules.
Photographs
The Firearms Rules also prescribe that all applications for grant/renewal of shotgun and/or firearm certificate are accompanied byfour identical photographs of the applicant.
- The photograph must be recent and should show you full face and without a hat.
- The image should be printed on normal thin photographic paper, be unmounted and measure 45mm x 35mm.
- The normal photographs which are supplied for passports, either from a photographic booth or studio, are quite acceptable.
In the case of shotgun applications
- One of the photographs should be signed in ink, on the back, with the applicant's usual signature.
- One other photograph must be endorsed by your countersignatory in ink, on the back, with the following words:"I certify that this is a current true likeness of (insert name of applicant)." He/she should then sign the declaration and insert the date the likeness was compared.
In the case of firearm applications
- One of the photographs should be signed in ink, on the back, with the applicant's usual signature.
- Two other photographs must be endorsed,one each, by each of the two referees, in ink, on the back, with the following words: "I certify that this is a current true likeness of (insert name of applicant)." He/she should then sign the declaration and insert the date the likeness was compared.
In all cases
Please be sure to include ALL FOUR photographs are included with each application.
Security
When applying for the grant of a shotgun or firearm certificate you may prefer not to do anything in relation to security, until one of our Firearm Enquiry Officers has paid you a visit in order that he/she can advise you accordingly re type and location of security measures.
However, in most cases advice has already been sought from the Firearms Licensing Office and applicants have security installed at their home prior to the Firearm Enquiry Officer's home visit.
The Firearms Acts are not specific regarding security except to state that the weapons must be kept safe and secure at all times so as to prevent unauthorised access, as far as is reasonably practical.
However, before granting you a certificate, the Chief Officer of Police needs to be satisfied that you can store them safely. It therefore follows that the issuer of the certificate must set the standards to be met, within the limitations of the Acts.
We are helped in these matters by various sources. Firstly the Home Office guidance is that all shotguns and firearms should be kept in bona-fide gun cabinets. That is, cabinets which are purpose built for the keeping of shotguns and firearms. The cabinets must be located within the confines of the house and not stored in a garage or outbuilding. They should be rawl-bolted to a solid brick wall and out of sight of casual callers. Section 1 ammunition should be stored separately and securely from Section 1 weapons.
BS7558 is a British Standard for gun cabinets since 1992 which practically all cabinets, sold by reputable Registered Firearms Dealers, will meet.
When it comes to domestic security we use another British Standard as a guide. That is BS8220 (Security of domestic dwellings), which is the level of security normally required by reputable Insurance Companies for house contents cover.
We believe that the security of the weapon is second only to the vetting of the applicant. If it requires a British Standard to insure that your jewellery and valuables are safe, then it is not too much to expect shotguns and firearms to be kept at the same level of security.
It is not required to turn your home into a fortress but only to meet a standard of security which modern day requirements deem necessary to keep one's ordinary possessions safe.
Basically, BS8220 requires the fitting of a five lever mortice dead lock (to BS3621), to the final exit door (normally the front door). All accessible opening windows which offer an aperture large enough to be climbed through, should be capable of being locked with a removable key. Rear doors should be secured by mortice or slide bolts and patio doors fitted with anti-lift bolts.
For further information please visit Home Office guidance on firearm security
