Updated Firearms Licensing Statutory Guidance

The Home Office has published new statutory guidance to Chief Constables on Firearms Licensing. There are a number of changes, including to background checks, references, home visits, and medical checks. A new requirement to check social media activity has also been added. These changes apply both to new applications and to renewals. The guidance applies across England, Scotland and Wales (although air rifles in Scotland are administered separately). Members are advised to familiarise themselves with the revised guidance, and, for renewals, to check well in advance what the specific requirements of their local Firearms Licensing Unit are. As an example, Bedfordshire/Hertfordshire/Cambridgeshire FLU currently requires applications to be submitted 20-24 weeks ahead of the licence expiry date (https://www.cambs.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/fi/bch/firearms-licensing-service-update/).

The statutory guidance can be accessed at https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/68909a84486754ec288783c0/Firearms_licensing_statutory_guidance.pdf