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- Application resources
Please view our new videos with important information for your applications
- Concierge Team
Weapons Licensing have a dedicated Concierge Team who triage all incoming general enquiry calls to our public on contact number (07) 3015 7777. The primary purpose of this team is to provide consistent, professional and timely advice as Weapons Licensing's first point of contact.
Weapons Licensing have identified increased call volumes on Monday and Thursday mornings, and we request your patience and understanding during these times. Enquiries can also be made by using the Weapons Licensing general enquiry form.
- Firearms Amnesty 2021
From 1 July 2021, new legislation was put in place to provide the public with an opportunity to register or surrender previously unregistered firearms without fear of prosecution while delivering the firearm to an approved licensed dealer or police station.
All states and territories firearms registries have agreed to be involved in an ongoing national firearms amnesty and the Queensland Government has passed legislation to allow this.
Persons surrendering firearms will be encouraged to do so at an approved licensed dealer, rather than at a police station. For this reason, communication on this site will be in relation to surrendering at a dealer approved by the Queensland Police Commissioner to participate in the national firearms amnesty. Approved licensed dealers.
People surrendering firearms will be required to contact the approved licensed dealer or police station before delivery of the firearm to arrange the surrender. If people surrendering a firearm to a dealer or police station do not make contact beforehand, they are required to have a reasonable excuse for not doing so.
If a person wishes to register a firearm to their weapons licence, they are required to supply their details and apply for a Permit to Acquire.
Please view our Frequently Asked Questions page for more Amnesty-related information.
All approved Queensland licensed firearms dealers participating in the National Firearms Amnesty
- Performance Audit on Regulating Firearms
In January 2020 the Queensland Audit Office (QAO) began a performance audit on the regulation of firearms in Queensland.
The objective of the audit was to assess whether the Queensland Police Service effectively regulates the acquisition, possession, use and disposal of registered firearms to ensure community safety. The audit scope included all legal firearms regulated between January 2015 to December 2019.
The report found QPS could be more effective in the regulation of registered firearms.
The report’s findings and recommendations are, in some cases, opportunities presently known to the QPS, with a number of projects already underway to renew business processes and ICT systems.
The findings and recommendations of the QAO report have been reviewed and the QPS has accepted all recommendations.
The QPS has established a Firearms Oversight Committee, chaired by a Deputy Commissioner, to implement the recommendations and associated bodies of work.
The report can be accessed on the QAO's website.
- Licence renewal applications
Licence renewal applications remain a priority to ensure these applications are processed within 42 days of expiry of the licence.
Renewals are processed in order of licence expiry date.
Licence renewal applications lodged at least one day before the expiry date ensure the licence remains valid until 42 days after expiry, or otherwise decided.
- New licence applications
The Assessment Team are processing a large volume of new licence applications, please visit our homepage to see the average current timeframes for these applications.
A Weapons Licensing representative will contact you if any further information is required in relation to your application, after your application is assessed. Incomplete applications and applications which require further investigation may take longer to be processed.
Weapons Licensing understands that occupational applications have an impact upon applicants’ livelihoods and businesses and, therefore, these types of applications will be assessed as soon as possible
Read more about when your weapons licence application will be processed.
Status updates
It is not necessary to contact Weapons Licensing for status updates on your application.
If you have received a confirmation receipt from Australia Post or an email confirmation from Weapons Licensing (online applications), you can be assured that your application is progressing through a queue in order of receipt.
If there is an issue with your application, Weapons Licensing will contact you during the assessment stage to advise you and you may be required to provide further information.
Weapons Licensing are experiencing extended delays. Frequent status enquiries about applications that have not yet been assessed have an adverse impact on our service delivery time frames.
- Dealers and armourers
Dealer and armourer licences will be renewed as per normal business practices, but there may be delays with new applications until inspections can be carried out.
- Clubs, ranges and galleries
The decision on the continued opening (or otherwise) of clubs, ranges and galleries rests with the governing bodies of the organisations, subject to any other government directives.
It is requested that if you require the club, range or gallery you operate to close that you disseminate advice to your members as it may have a flow-on effect to members completing the required participation shoots for their licences.
- Permits to acquire and police certification for importation (B709)
Police certification for importation (B709) applications are being processed in order of receipt, with most applications being processed within 21 days.
The B709 will be issued for 6 months; it cannot be extended or re-issued. You will be required to lodge a new application for a B709 should one expire.
Permit to Acquire (PTA) applications are being processed in order of receipt, please visit our homepage to see the average current timeframes for PTA’s.
The PTA will be issued for 6 months in accordance with Section 45 of the Weapons Act 1990.
- Storage of firearms
You are responsible under the Weapons Regulation 2016 for storing your weapons securely, where persons who are not legally authorised cannot gain access to them. This includes ensuring that your safe keys or combination codes are not accessible to unauthorised persons. For this reason, you are encouraged to keep your keys concealed in a different location, away from where your safe storage is located.
Read more about weapons storage.
Did you know - If you have previously been broken into, statistics show that you are more likely to be targeted in the future. Take the time today to ensure that your weapons storage arrangements comply with your legal responsibilities.
Secure your safe key - Statistics reveal over one third of firearms are stolen as a result of offenders locating keys to safe storage facilities. Therefore, it is important for all licensees to secure their keys in a covert location, well away from storage facilities.
- Online licence validation
You can use our Validate licence card to check the validity of a Queensland weapons licence. Please note that this service is not to be used in place of physically sighting a Queensland weapons licence card.
- Replica weapons / gel blasters
There is a new safety framework for replicas, including gel blasters that closely resemble firearms.
This framework ensures that gel blaster activities can continue to be safely enjoyed in Queensland. The framework supports gel blaster enthusiasts, supports small businesses that sell gel blaster equipment and supplies, and ensures community safety.
Weapons Licensing has been working closely with the industry, explaining the new framework and assuring participants that, with a few changes like storing their gel blaster in a sports bag with a bike lock and not carrying it openly in public, they can continue to safely enjoy this popular pastime.
Further, owners of replica firearms or gel blasters that closely resemble firearms should have a reasonable excuse for owning one. Weapons Licensing has sought legal advice regarding this and can confirm that the term “reasonable excuse” is a very broad term and it is taken to mean anything that would not be considered unreasonable.
When implemented, it is hoped that these changes will reduce the number of incidents.
In the lead-up to these changes, the Queensland Police Service has delivered information sessions detailing the amendments as well as information on the “STOP and Think” campaign, which is aimed at gel blaster users, collectors, retailers, venue operators and the broader community.
Weapons Licensing has worked closely with other Government agencies and community stakeholders to achieve an outcome that is in everyone’s best interests. Weapons Licensing will continue to engage with relevant stakeholders and assist them understanding the new framework.
The new framework took effect from 1 February 2021 to allow time for stakeholders and the community to adjust to the changes.
The legislation and regulation changes can be found via the below links:
What does this mean?
A gel blaster that closely resembles a firearm will be considered a replica firearm. A gel blaster that does NOT closely resemble a firearm will NOT be regulated under this framework. This new framework only applies to gel blasters that closely resemble a firearm. Replica firearms are NOT considered firearms.
For replica collectors (not gel blaster users):
Replica Category R firearms WILL be removed from Collectors firearms licences. Deactivated / Inoperable Category R firearms will remain on Collectors firearm licences.
- Replica firearms are NOT a category of weapon.
- Replica firearms do NOT require a licence.
- Replica firearms are NOT registered with Weapons Licensing.
- You are NOT required to be a member of a Gel Blaster Association to support a reasonable excuse when possessing a replica.
- You can import, sell and own as many replicas as you like.
- It is reasonable to possess a replica firearm until you use it in an unreasonable way. Please review the “STOP and Think” material for more information.
- The B709A import process relating to Gel Blasters and Replica firearms will NOT be changed.
- Weapons Licensing Group Policy Updates
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