If you want to shoot with a firearm that requires a permit or a permit-free firearm, you must always apply for a permit beforehand. You can apply for a permit for a single firing or a permanent permit.
Generally, firearms are objects designed for offense or defense, signaling, hunting, range injection, marking, sport, or play, with projectiles propelled through a barrel.
It is recommended that you read the regulations of the firearms law in detail before submitting your application.
If possible, you must specify in the application where you intend to shoot, for example, address, district. If you are shooting on behalf of an enclosure operator, you must present their permit/order and, if necessary, provide further information on the enclosure operator.
You do not need a permit to shoot a firearm if you are
- want to shoot in a shooting range, for example your shooting club;
- as a hunter you want to shoot during authorized hunting practice or you want to shoot animals that are subject to nature conservation law and have a corresponding permit from the nature conservation authority;
- wish to shoot as a traditional shooter at an event where it is customary to carry weapons for a special occasion, and the head of the traditional shooting association has been granted a valid exemption permit in accordance with Section 16 (3) of the Weapons Act;
- wish to shoot with a long gun at shooting ranges at an approved sporting event, for example biathlon competition;
- want to use weapons that can only fire cartridge ammunition during a theatrical performance or similar, or to scare away harmful birds;
- want to shoot with compressed air, spring-loaded weapons andCO2 weaponswith less than 7.5 joules, marked with an "F" sign, with the consent of the holder of the house right in fenced areas, for example for paintball activities;
- at sporting events, on behalf of the organizers, want to use alarm or signal weapons to indicate the start or beginning of a competition, if such signaling is required;
- fire signal weapons during emergency and rescue exercises, if this is part of the exercise.
You may be denied a shooting permit if you have not resided in Germany within the last 5 years.
In order to obtain the shooting permit, you must
- have the appropriate age and
- Your need,
- your reliability under weapons law,
- your personal suitability,
- have liability insurance covering personal injury and property damage in the amount of 1 million euros.
If you handle weapons and ammunition without a weapons permit, you may be committing a criminal offense.
If you select a location under "Localization" the contact details of the responsible authority and, if applicable, locally valid information will be displayed.