Apply for a firearms possession licence for hunting associations

Teaser

If you wish to acquire and possess weapons and/or ammunition as a hunting organisation, you must apply for a permit from the relevant weapons authority.

  • Service description

    In principle, you always need a licence to acquire and possess weapons and ammunition.

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

    A distinction is made between firearms that require a licence and those that do not. You need a small firearms licence to be allowed to carry unlicensed firearms. All weapons that are not alarm, irritant and signalling weapons with a PTB mark in the circle are counted as weapons requiring a permit. You will find a detailed list of the weapons for which you require a weapons possession licence in Annex 2 of the Weapons Act.

    You must nominate a responsible person who must be reliable and personally suitable in terms of weapons law and who can provide evidence of the necessary expertise. This person does not have to be authorised to represent the company, i.e. not a member of the board of directors, for example. If the responsible person leaves the hunting organisation, you must inform the competent authority immediately and appoint a new responsible person within 2 weeks. Otherwise, the competent authority will revoke your licence to acquire and possess weapons (weapon possession card).

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

    In order to obtain permission to acquire and possess weapons and ammunition requiring a licence, you must be registered as a hunting association in the register of associations and provide evidence of the safe storage of weapons and ammunition. The responsible person appointed by you must
    - have the appropriate age and
    - prove their reliability under firearms law,
    - their personal suitability and
    - their expertise in handling weapons and ammunition.

  • Procedure

    You can apply for the purchase and possession of weapons and/or ammunition requiring a licence in writing and, if necessary, online.
    If you apply for the purchase and possession in writing:


    - You fill out the form provided by the competent firearms authority.
    - You send the signed form and the required documents to the competent firearms authority.
    - You can also visit the competent firearms authority in person and submit the application.


    If the purchase and possession can also be applied for online:
    - You submit the application via the online service of the competent firearms authority and upload the required documents.

  • Responsible office

    The firearms authority in whose district the hunting organisation is based is responsible.

  • Prerequisites

    - The person responsible must be at least 25 years old.

    - The responsible person must prove their reliability under firearms law.

    The person responsible can be considered reliable under firearms law, among other things,
    - if they 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 organisation in the last 10 years.
    - if it cannot be assumed that they misuse weapons or ammunition or handle them improperly, do not store these items carefully or hand them over to persons who are not authorised to do so.
    - if they have not been in preventive police custody more than once in the last 5 years with judicial authorisation due to violence.
    - if they have not repeatedly or grossly violated the Weapons Act.

    - The person responsible must prove their personal suitability.

    The responsible person may be deemed personally unsuitable if, among other things,
    - they are legally incompetent
    - they are dependent on alcohol or other intoxicating substances, mentally ill or mentally retarded.
    - they suffer from serious illnesses, such as brain injuries, or physical impairments, such as amputations or severe visual impairment.
    - it can be assumed that they cannot handle weapons or ammunition carefully or properly or cannot store these objects carefully or that there is a concrete danger that they will endanger others or themselves.

    - The responsible person must prove that they have sufficient knowledge of weapons and ammunition and how to handle them (expertise).

    In order to be authorised to handle weapons and ammunition, they must take part in an appropriate training course. The course comprises a theoretical and practical part. At the end of the course, an examination is taken before an authorised examination board. If the examination is passed, the responsible person receives proof of the weapons and ammunition for which the licence has been acquired. The responsible person can also only obtain the licence for the weapons and ammunition that they wish to acquire and possess as a hunting association.

    The responsible person does not have to take a separate examination if they
    - have passed the hunting examination or an equivalent examination or
    - have passed a journeyman's examination for the gunsmith's trade or
    - have worked full-time in the trade with firearms and ammunition for at least 3 years.
    In these cases, only suitable evidence must be submitted.

    - You must prove that you can store weapons and ammunition safely.

    This generally means that only the person responsible has access to weapons and ammunition, for example by carrying the key with them at all times or keeping it safe in some other way. If you do not store your weapons and ammunition securely, you are committing an administrative offence for which a fine of up to EUR 10,000 can be imposed. In addition, this may cast doubt on the reliability of the person responsible under firearms law and, as a hunting association, your firearms licence 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. In principle, you can use the following guidelines as a guide:
    - Ammunition subject to authorisation must be stored in a sheet steel cabinet/container with a swing bolt lock.
    - You need a gun cabinet to store long guns and handguns subject to authorisation as well as ammunition subject to authorisation. 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 may store an unlimited number of long guns, up to 5 handguns and ammunition in a gun cabinet with resistance grade 0 in accordance with EN 1143-1 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 EN 1143-1 weighing over 200 kilograms.
    - In a gun cabinet with resistance grade 1 in accordance with EN 1143-1, you may store an unlimited number of long guns and handguns as well as ammunition.
    - The following regulations apply to the location where you are allowed to set up the gun cabinet:
    - If you live in a block of flats, it is not permitted to place the gun cabinet in the cellar if each resident only has a so-called cellar locker that is only secured by a door with a padlock.
    - You may also store up to 3 long guns in buildings that are not permanently inhabited, such as a hunting lodge or a weekend home. However, you need a gun cabinet with resistance grade 1 for this.
    - If you live in a shared household with another gun owner, you may store the guns in a shared gun cabinet.
    - As a hunter, you may also allow another hunter to temporarily store your long guns in their gun cabinet. However, this period should be limited; permanent storage is not permitted. For permanent storage, you should purchase your own gun cabinet to which only you have access.
    - It is also permitted to store weapons and ammunition at a gun dealer. You must provide appropriate proof of this.

  • Which documents are required?

    - Identity card or passport (copy)
    - Extract from the register of associations
    - Proof of expertise (responsible person)
    - Proof of storage, e.g. purchase contract for a gun cabinet and/or photos of the gun cabinet and installation site
    - If applicable, a specialist medical or psychological certificate confirming the mental aptitude of the responsible person (if under 21 years of age for sport shooters or under 25 years of age for other persons)

  • What fees are incurred?

    Fee: 86,00 €
    Prepayment: No
    There is an administrative fee of EUR 86, to which a surcharge of at least EUR 22 is added if a background check and aptitude test are carried out.

  • Legal basis

  • Applications / Forms

    Online services available: not known

    Forms available: not known

    Written form required: Yes

    Informal application possible: No

    Personal appearance required: No

  • Short text

    • Authorisation to acquire and possess weapons and ammunition: Issue of weapons possession licence (WBK) for hunting associations
    • Prerequisites:
      • Registered in the register of associations
      • Appointment of a responsible person
      • Responsible person:
        • No criminal record (reliability)
        • No legal incapacity, mental illness or dependence on drugs (personal suitability)
        • Knowledge of firearms regulations
        • Safe handling of weapons and ammunition
        • Skills in shooting with firearms (may not be required if only weapons that cannot be fired are collected)
      • Secure storage
    • Unauthorised handling of weapons and ammunition leads to a fine or prison sentence
    • Responsible: Weapons authorities (in Hesse: District or independent city in which the hunting organisation has its headquarters)

  • Typing

    3a

  • Library entry status

    5

Who should I contact?

In Hesse, the district regulatory authorities (administrative districts and independent cities) are responsible as weapons authorities.

Responsible departments