Apply for a gun license

You generally need a permit (firearms license) if you want to carry a weapon with you ready for use, outside

• your own home,
• your own business premises,
• your own pacified property (e.g. your own garden) or
• a shooting range.

Exceptions apply in the cases specified in § 12 Para. 3 WaffG (e.g. transportation of weapons that are not ready for firing or access on the way to hunting or to a shooting range and back). If you only wish to carry alarm, irritant or signal weapons with PTB approval marks in public, you only require a small firearms license, the issue of which is subject to less stringent requirements.

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

If you carry the weapon with you, you must have the firearms license with you and be able to identify yourself with an identity card or passport.

You will receive the firearms license for a maximum of 3 years. You can have the firearms license extended twice for a maximum of 3 years.

You may be refused a firearms license if you have not lived in Germany within the last 5 years.

If you move to another town or municipality, you do not have to have your firearms license transferred.

If you handle weapons and ammunition without the required firearms license, you could face a fine or imprisonment.

Requirements

• You must be at least 18 years old.
• You must have a valid permit for the purchase and possession of a weapon (e.g. hunting license or gun ownership card) or your employer if you wish to carry the weapon as an employee of a security company.
• You must prove that it is necessary for you to carry weapons in public (need).

  In order to be allowed to carry weapons in public, you must provide the relevant weapons authority with a credible reason. As a rule, a credible reason is recognized if
  

  • Your life is in great danger.
  • You are an employee of a security company.
  • you can credibly demonstrate other reasons why you wish to carry weapons in public.
• You must prove your reliability under firearms law.

  You can be assessed as reliable under firearms law if, among other things
  

  • if you have not been sentenced to a prison sentence of at least 1 year within the last 10 years and have not been a member of or supported a prohibited organization in the last 10 years.
  • if it cannot be assumed that you misuse weapons or ammunition or handle them improperly, do not store these items carefully or hand them over to persons who are not authorized to do so.
  • if you have not been in preventive police custody more than once in the last 5 years with judicial authorization due to violence.
  • if you have not repeatedly or grossly violated firearms legislation.

• You must prove your personal suitability.

  You may be assessed as personally unsuitable if, among other things
  

  • You are legally incompetent.
  • you are dependent on alcohol or other intoxicating substances, mentally ill or mentally retarded.
  • you suffer from serious illnesses, such as brain injuries, or physical impairments, such as amputations or severe visual impairment.
  • it can be assumed that you are unable to handle weapons or ammunition carefully or properly or that you are unable to store these items carefully or that there is a concrete danger that you will endanger others or yourself.
• You must prove that you have sufficient knowledge of weapons and ammunition and how to handle them. You can shoot a firearm and know how to carry a weapon safely in public (expertise).

  In order to be allowed to carry weapons in public, you must prove that you can handle them appropriately. In order to obtain the certificate of competence in handling weapons and ammunition, you must take part in a corresponding course. The course comprises a theoretical and practical part. At the end of the course, you will take an examination before an authorized examination board. If you pass the examination, you will receive proof of the weapons and ammunition for which you have acquired the certificate of competence. You can also obtain the certificate of competence only for the weapons and ammunition that you wish to acquire and possess

• You must have liability insurance that covers personal injury and property damage up to a lump sum of 1 million euros.
• You must provide evidence of the safe storage of weapons and ammunition.

  You must store weapons and ammunition securely. This generally means that only you as an authorized person may have access to weapons and ammunition. If you do not store your weapons and ammunition securely, you are committing an administrative offense for which a fine of up to EUR 10,000 can be imposed. In addition, your reliability under firearms law may be called into question and your firearms possession card and firearms license may be revoked.

  When submitting your application, you must provide information about the storage location and the container in which you wish to store weapons and ammunition. The storage requirements are based on § 13 of the General Weapons Act Ordinance (AWaffV). In cases of doubt, please contact the authority responsible for you. In principle, you can use the following guidelines as a guide:
  

  • You must store ammunition requiring a permit in a sheet steel cabinet/container with a swing bolt lock or an equivalent locking device.
  • You need a gun cabinet to store long guns and handguns that require a permit. The type of gun cabinet you need depends on the number and type of weapons and/or ammunition you wish to purchase and own.
    
    • You can store an unlimited number of long guns, up to 5 handguns and ammunition in a gun cabinet with resistance grade 0 in accordance with the DIN/EN 1143-1 standard weighing up to 200 kilograms.
    • You may store an unlimited number of long weapons, up to 10 short weapons and ammunition in a gun cabinet with resistance grade 0 in accordance with the DIN/EN 1143-1 standard weighing over 200 kilograms.
    • In a gun cabinet with resistance grade I in accordance with the DIN/EN 1143-1 standard, you may store an unlimited number of long weapons and handguns as well as ammunition.
  • The following regulations apply to the location in which you may set up the gun cabinet:
    
    • If you live in a shared household with another person who is also authorized to own weapons, you may store the weapons in a shared weapons cabinet.

What documents do I need?

• Identity card or passport (copy)
• Weapons possession card (if not applied for at the same time)
• Proof of a need (e.g. proof that you are at risk)
• Proof of liability insurance in the amount of 1 million euros (lump sum for personal injury and property damage)
• Examination certificate of special expertise
• Proof of storage (e.g. photo of the sealable container)