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🇨🇦Gun laws in Canada

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Overview

Canada regulates civilian firearms primarily through two federal statutes: the Firearms Act (S.C. 1995, c. 39), which governs licensing, registration and authorizations, and the Criminal Code (R.S.C. 1985, c. C-46), which defines firearm classes and creates the criminal offences. According to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), which administers the Canadian Firearms Program (CFP), firearms law is a shared responsibility: the framework is federal, while provincial Chief Firearms Officers (CFOs) handle day-to-day administration such as authorizations and range approvals. Because the core rules are national, the basic licensing and classification regime is the same across all provinces and territories, though provinces layer their own hunting and range rules on top.

Civilian ownership is lawful but conditional. A person must hold a valid licence to possess or acquire firearms and ammunition, and the type of licence determines what may be owned. The Criminal Code sorts firearms into three classes — non-restricted, restricted and prohibited — and each class carries progressively stricter controls. Most ordinary hunting rifles and shotguns are non-restricted; handguns are generally restricted; and fully automatic weapons, converted automatics, and a large list of specified models are prohibited.

Canada's regime has tightened substantially in recent years. According to Public Safety Canada, a national handgun freeze on the sale, purchase and transfer of handguns by individuals came into force on October 21, 2022, and was later codified into law through former Bill C-21, which received Royal Assent on December 15, 2023. Separately, an Order in Council of May 1, 2020 prohibited roughly 1,500 models of "assault-style" firearms, a list that has since been extended (with further additions announced through December 2024 and into 2025). Bill C-21 also prohibited certain newly designed semi-automatic long guns, created "red flag" and "yellow flag" measures, and addressed privately manufactured "ghost guns."

The overall design of the system is preventive and permission-based rather than rights-based: there is no constitutional right to bear arms in Canada, and lawful possession flows from a licence granted after screening. According to the RCMP, licensing rests on eligibility screening and mandatory safety training rather than on the applicant demonstrating a need to own a non-restricted firearm, although restricted firearms require a specific purpose such as target shooting or collecting. Registration obligations differ by class: restricted and prohibited firearms must be individually registered, while the separate long-gun registry for non-restricted firearms was abolished federally in 2012. Quebec subsequently established its own provincial registry for non-restricted firearms. The sections below describe ownership and licensing, carry and transport, cross-border travel, hunting and sport shooting, and penalties, each drawn from official RCMP and Government of Canada sources current as of 2026.

Ownership & licensing

According to the RCMP Canadian Firearms Program, an individual must hold a valid firearms licence to lawfully possess or acquire firearms and ammunition. The standard licence is the Possession and Acquisition Licence (PAL). A PAL endorsed for non-restricted firearms covers ordinary rifles and shotguns, while a Restricted PAL (RPAL) is required to acquire and possess restricted firearms such as most handguns. Licences are issued by the RCMP through the provincial Chief Firearms Officers and are subject to ongoing eligibility screening.

Safety training is mandatory. The RCMP states that non-restricted applicants must pass the Canadian Firearms Safety Course (CFSC), and restricted applicants must additionally pass the Canadian Restricted Firearms Safety Course (CRFSC). Applicants must achieve a passing score on the associated tests. Beyond training, applicants undergo background checks and security screening; the Firearms Act allows authorities to consider factors bearing on public safety, including a person's history of violence, mental-health concerns, and court orders. Certain court orders now trigger consequences automatically: Public Safety Canada notes that Bill C-21 introduced measures such as automatic licence revocation for individuals subject to certain protection orders, reflecting a shift toward faster removal of firearms from people deemed a risk.

According to Wikipedia's summary of the federal rules, and consistent with RCMP guidance, a person generally must be 18 years of age or older to acquire a firearm, with a limited minor's licence available for supervised use in narrow circumstances. There is no general requirement that a PAL applicant justify owning a non-restricted firearm; however, the RCMP notes that restricted firearms must be tied to a permitted purpose, most commonly target practice or target shooting at an approved range, or membership in a collection.

Classification is central to what a licence permits. Per the RCMP, restricted firearms include handguns that are not otherwise prohibited, semi-automatic centre-fire firearms with a barrel shorter than 470 mm, and firearms that can be reduced by folding or telescoping to under 660 mm in overall length. Prohibited firearms include automatic firearms, converted automatics, handguns with a barrel of 105 mm or less or chambered for .25 or .32 calibre, and sawed-off long guns below the stated length thresholds, among others.

Storage is regulated. The RCMP requires that firearms be stored unloaded and secured — for example with a trigger or cable lock, or in a locked container — with ammunition stored so it is not readily accessible in a way that defeats these controls; requirements are stricter for restricted and prohibited firearms. Magazine capacity is also capped by regulation. According to the RCMP, most magazines designed for a semi-automatic centre-fire long gun are limited to 5 cartridges, and most handgun magazines are limited to 10 cartridges; rim-fire and non-semi-automatic long-gun magazines are generally not capacity-limited, and the limit is fixed by the firearm type the magazine was designed for. Since December 15, 2023, transferring a cartridge magazine requires a valid licence, and since September 1, 2024, the same applies to certain firearm parts.

Carry & transport

Canada draws a sharp line between transporting a firearm and carrying one for protection. For the general public, there is effectively no lawful concealed or open carry of firearms for self-defence. Carrying a restricted firearm or a prohibited handgun on one's person requires an Authorization to Carry (ATC), which the RCMP issues only for narrow, lawful occupational purposes. According to reporting on the federal system, ATCs for protection of life are exceedingly rare, with only about one or two such permits active in the entire country at any given time. Most ATCs that do exist relate to specific occupations such as trapping in remote areas or handling large sums of cash. Applicants apply to the Canadian Firearms Program using the prescribed RCMP form.

Moving a restricted or prohibited firearm from place to place is governed by transport rules rather than carry rules. According to the RCMP, an Authorization to Transport (ATT) is required to move restricted firearms and prohibited handguns to locations other than certain default destinations. In many provinces a long-term ATT is automatically attached to the licence for routine trips — for example, between the owner's home and an approved shooting range, a gunsmith, a gun show, a police station, or a port of entry — while movement to other destinations requires a specific ATT from the Chief Firearms Officer. Non-restricted firearms (typical hunting rifles and shotguns) do not require an ATT.

The physical conditions of transport are strict and set by the RCMP. A restricted or prohibited firearm being transported must be unloaded, fitted with a secure locking device such as a trigger lock, and kept in a locked, opaque container. Ammunition may travel in the same vehicle but must not be loaded in the firearm. For non-restricted firearms, the transport rules are somewhat lighter — the firearm must be unloaded — but owners are still expected to take reasonable precautions, and unattended firearms in vehicles must generally be locked and kept out of sight. These rules mean that even lawful owners cannot keep a loaded, accessible firearm in a vehicle for defensive purposes.

Because carry for self-defence is not generally available, the practical effect is that handguns and other restricted firearms are treated as range-and-storage items: acquired under an RPAL, registered, stored securely at home, and transported in locked cases to and from approved ranges under an ATT. The handgun freeze introduced in 2022 and codified by Bill C-21 further narrows this space by preventing individuals from acquiring new handguns at all, subject to limited exemptions such as authorized carriers and eligible sport shooters. Where the rules governing a particular movement or occupational authorization are ambiguous, the CFO for the relevant province is the decision-maker, and the RCMP directs applicants to the Canadian Firearms Program for case-specific determinations; general legal advice cannot substitute for a CFO's authorization, and the precise conditions attached to an ATC or ATT are set individually.

Travel & import

Bringing firearms into Canada is controlled at the border by the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), working within the same Firearms Act and Criminal Code framework administered by the RCMP. According to the CBSA, all firearms must be declared to a border services officer on arrival; failing to declare a firearm can lead to seizure, monetary penalties, and criminal charges. The three-class system applies at the border: prohibited firearms cannot be imported by travellers, while non-restricted and restricted firearms may be brought in only under specific conditions.

For visitors who do not hold a Canadian firearms licence, the CBSA describes a Non-Resident Firearm Declaration (RCMP form 5589). When confirmed by a border officer, this declaration functions as a temporary licence and registration, valid for up to 60 days, and can be extended. The CBSA states that a fee applies to the declaration. A non-resident may import non-restricted firearms with a confirmed declaration or a valid licence; importing a restricted firearm additionally requires an Authorization to Transport. Prohibited firearms remain barred. Non-residents typically bring firearms for lawful purposes such as hunting, sport shooting at competitions, or in-transit movement to a third country, and they must satisfy the officer of that purpose.

For Canadian residents returning or importing, the requirements track domestic licensing. According to the CBSA, residents importing non-restricted firearms must hold a valid PAL. Importing restricted firearms requires a PAL with the appropriate class, a registration certificate, and an ATT, and, for newly acquired handguns, an import permit — reflecting the additional layer created by the national handgun freeze. The CBSA notes that newly acquired prohibited firearms cannot be imported; grandfathered prohibited firearms held by eligible individuals require the corresponding licence, registration and authorizations, and an import permit from Global Affairs Canada. In practice, these permit requirements make importing handguns and prohibited firearms difficult for private individuals.

The handgun freeze also affects travel in a specific way: Public Safety Canada notes that the October 2022 measures froze not only domestic transfers but also the ability of individuals to bring newly acquired handguns into Canada. As a result, a resident who purchases a handgun abroad generally cannot import it, subject to the narrow exemptions in the law.

Travellers should also account for ammunition and magazine rules, which continue to apply on import. Magazines exceeding the permitted capacity for their designed firearm type are themselves prohibited devices under the Criminal Code, so an over-capacity magazine that is legal in another country may be seized at the Canadian border even when the firearm itself is admissible. Documentation is essential: the CBSA emphasizes carrying the licence, registration certificates, authorizations, and any required permits, and declaring everything accurately. Because border determinations turn on the specific firearm's classification and the traveller's paperwork, the CBSA and RCMP advise confirming a firearm's Canadian classification and the required permits before travelling, rather than at the point of entry, since a misclassified firearm can result in refusal of entry for the goods, seizure, or prosecution.

Hunting & sport shooting

Hunting and sport shooting are the principal lawful, everyday uses of firearms in Canada, and the legal framework is split between federal and provincial authority. The federal Firearms Act and Criminal Code, administered by the RCMP, govern who may possess a firearm and of what class; the provinces and territories govern hunting licences, seasons, permitted species, and where and how one may hunt or shoot. A hunter therefore typically needs both a federal firearms licence (a PAL) and a provincial or territorial hunting licence, and often a hunter-education certificate issued by the province.

For hunting, non-restricted rifles and shotguns are the standard tools, and a PAL with a non-restricted endorsement is sufficient to acquire and use them. According to the RCMP's classification rules, most common bolt-action, lever-action, pump and many semi-automatic rifles and shotguns fall in the non-restricted class, provided they are not on a prohibition list and meet the barrel-length and configuration criteria. Magazine capacity limits apply while hunting as they do generally: most magazines for a semi-automatic centre-fire long gun are capped at 5 cartridges under RCMP rules, and migratory-bird hunting carries its own federal capacity limits for shotguns in addition to firearm-classification rules.

Restricted firearms, chiefly handguns, occupy a different niche. The RCMP states that restricted firearms may be possessed for permitted purposes that include target practice, target shooting competitions, and collecting, and their use is confined to approved shooting ranges rather than field hunting. Handguns are generally not used for hunting in Canada, and their acquisition by individuals has in any case been frozen since October 2022 under the measures codified by Bill C-21, with limited exemptions — Public Safety Canada notes exceptions for certain sport shooters training or competing in Olympic or Paralympic disciplines, and for holders of a rare Authorization to Carry. Sport-shooting clubs and ranges must themselves be approved by the provincial Chief Firearms Officer, and membership in an approved club is a common basis for demonstrating a valid purpose to own restricted firearms.

Safe-handling and transport rules follow the firearm to the field and the range. A non-restricted firearm must be transported unloaded, while a restricted firearm bound for an approved range must be transported unloaded, locked, and in a locked container under an Authorization to Transport, as described above. On approved ranges, use is subject to range rules and to the general Criminal Code prohibitions on careless use. Provinces further regulate matters such as discharging a firearm near roads or dwellings, hunting hours, and the use of firearms while intoxicated, and these provincial offences operate alongside the federal ones.

Because the practical rules — seasons, allowable firearms and calibres for specific game, blaze-orange requirements, and licence tiers — vary by province and territory and change from year to year, hunters and sport shooters are directed to the relevant provincial wildlife or natural-resources authority for the current details. The federal layer determines what firearm one may lawfully own and how it must be stored and transported; the provincial layer determines when, where, and at what one may lawfully shoot.

Penalties

Firearms offences in Canada are set out mainly in the Criminal Code (R.S.C. 1985, c. C-46), with additional offences under the Firearms Act, and they cover unlicensed possession, unauthorized acquisition, careless use and storage, possession of prohibited firearms and devices, and trafficking and smuggling. Penalties are graduated: they scale with the seriousness of the conduct and, importantly, with the class of firearm involved, so that offences relating to restricted and prohibited firearms are treated far more severely than those relating to non-restricted ones. Because the exact statutory ranges vary by offence and by whether the Crown proceeds summarily or by indictment, this article describes the structure qualitatively rather than assigning a specific term to each offence.

At the lower end, regulatory-style breaches — such as improper storage, transporting a firearm otherwise than as authorized, or letting a licence lapse — can be prosecuted as offences carrying fines and potential imprisonment, and can also trigger administrative consequences such as licence revocation. Under the Firearms Act framework administered by the RCMP, a person whose licence is revoked loses the legal authority to possess firearms and must dispose of them. Public Safety Canada notes that Bill C-21 strengthened these administrative tools, including automatic revocation in certain protection-order situations and a "yellow flag" measure — in force since March 7, 2025 — allowing a licence to be suspended for up to 30 days while eligibility is reviewed. A "red flag" mechanism allows courts to order the temporary removal of firearms from a person considered a danger.

More serious offences carry substantial terms of imprisonment. Possession of a prohibited or restricted firearm without the proper licence and registration, possession of a firearm knowing its possession is unauthorized, and using a firearm in the commission of an offence are indictable matters that can result in multi-year prison sentences, and some carry mandatory minimum penalties, though the availability and length of mandatory minimums have been the subject of legislative change and court challenges. The most severe firearms-specific penalties attach to trafficking, smuggling, and illegal manufacturing: according to Public Safety Canada, Bill C-21 increased the maximum penalty for firearms trafficking and smuggling from 10 to 14 years' imprisonment, and it created new offences addressing "ghost guns" — privately made firearms and the unlawful possession of digital blueprints (such as 3D-printing files) used to manufacture them.

Beyond imprisonment and fines, a firearms conviction commonly brings a weapons prohibition order, barring the offender from possessing firearms for a defined period or for life, and forfeiture of the firearms involved. Sentencing also reflects aggravating factors such as links to organized crime or the involvement of a prohibited weapon.

Readers should note the deliberate generality above regarding specific terms. Exact penalty ranges, mandatory minimums, and the precise elements of each offence are governed by the current text of the Criminal Code and Firearms Act and are best confirmed against the consolidated statutes on the federal Justice Laws Website, since these provisions are periodically amended. The one specific figure stated here — the 14-year maximum for trafficking and smuggling — reflects the amendment made by Bill C-21 (Royal Assent December 15, 2023) as described by Public Safety Canada.

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