Who can have a gun license in Germany?

A shooting in Hamburg once again raises questions about gun ownership in Germany. The possession of arms is regulated in this country by the Arms Law of 2002, which conforms to the European directive that establishes the EU standards in terms of possession of weapons by civilians.

By law, a gun possession card is required (Waffenbesitzkarte) to have or acquire a firearm and, also, a weapons license (waffenschein), if you also want to carry or use a weapon. That means collectors, for example, only need the card. Hunters, for their part, do not need a weapons license either, as long as they have a hunting license (jagdschein) and only use your weapons for hunting.

If you only have the possession card, you can “carry” the weapon rather than carry it. This implies that it cannot be charged and must be kept in a closed case if it is carried in public. German law is silent on whether or not license holders must keep their gun concealed or unloaded in public.

A license to carry a weapon (waffenschein) is only granted in exceptional cases: essentially when the applicant can prove that he or she is in greater danger than the general public and that carrying a gun will keep them safer. German law does not have any provision stipulating whether a weapon must be concealed or carried in public or not.

There is also a minor arms certificate (Kleiner Waffenschein), easier to obtain, and which is necessary if one wants to carry flare guns, air pistols, blank pistols or others that shoot irritants. The cost of the application along with the required insurance can be up to $540.

German law differentiates between weapons of war and other weapons. The former are regulated by another specific law.

In Germany it is illegal to possess or use any type of weapon of war. These include automatic rifles and submachine guns (except World War II or earlier antiques), or barrels or breeches for such weapons. Pump-action shotguns are also prohibited by the Weapons Law. Some (but not all) semi-automatic weapons are defined as weapons of war.

Anyone applying for a license in Germany must:

be at least 18 years old, have the necessary “reliability” and “personal fitness”, demonstrate the necessary “specialist knowledge”, demonstrate a “necessity”, and have at least 1.1 property and personal injury liability insurance a million dollars.

Local authorities are responsible for processing applications and verifying the applicant’s reliability, personal fitness and need.

Depending on where you live, the competent authority may be the law enforcement office (Ordnungsamt) or the Police.

Among other criteria, the law says that applicants are unreliable or lack personal fitness if:

• Have been convicted of any crime in the last 10 years.
• Their circumstances lead one to think that they could use weapons recklessly.
• They have been members of an organization that has been banned or declared unconstitutional.
• In the past five years they have engaged in or supported activities considered a threat to German interests.
• If they have been in preventive police custody on more than one occasion in the last five years.
• If they are dependent on alcohol, drugs or are mentally ill.

Any applicant under the age of 25 must also provide a certificate of “mental fitness” issued by a public health office or psychologist.

Those who apply for a weapons license must pass an exam or have acquired specific training. There are state exams covering technical and legal aspects of firearms, safe handling, and shooting skills.

Specialized knowledge can also be verified with other exams, as long as they cover the same areas: these include tests for hunting licenses or for full-time employment in the arms trade for three years.

Completing certain gun training courses that include a final exam is also recognized as “specialized knowledge.” On top of all that, official shooting clubs can conduct their own tests.

The law establishes that applicants must prove some type of need to acquire a weapon. It may be “economic or personal interests that deserve special recognition, especially in the case of hunters, shooters, collectors of weapons or ammunition, an expert in weapons or ammunition, a manufacturer or seller of weapons, security firms or people in danger” .

Persons who demonstrate that they are under unique threat of being a victim of a crime may also be declared “needed” to possess a firearm. In practice, being a member of a shooting sports club may also demonstrate a “need” to own a gun.

A version of this article was first published in 2020. It stated that hunters in Germany they should carry a weapons license (Waffenschein). But what they need is a hunting license (Jagdschein), information that has now been corrected.