The Estonian parliament recently adopted amendments to the Weapons Act that that simplify procedures concerning the acquisition, possession and use of firearms while reducing the administrative burden on both gun owners and businesses; this is the first step in liberalising the Estonian firearms’ policies.
The Weapons Act and the Explosives Act were amended with the aim of enhancing public safety, improving oversight of firearms handling, ensuring the reliability of registries and data protection, reducing unnecessary administrative burdens and supporting national defence readiness and the public’s willingness to defend the country.
The country’s interior minister, Igor Taro, said that Estonia’s current situation regarding firearms and their use is already satisfactory, but the country’s laws have remained unchanged for too long and have failed to keep pace with developments in the surrounding environment.
“The security situation is one of the reasons why we have begun modernising the Weapons Act to make our firearms policy more liberal,” Taro said in a statement.
“We have also long believed that firearms-related matters have, in some respects, been overregulated, and people simply give up on applying for a firearms license when they see the bureaucratic maze they have to navigate. That is why we have embarked on a broader overhaul of the Weapons Act, and these amendments represent the first step in that process.”
The law now allows individuals to maintain larger ammunition reserves to strengthen national defence readiness. Photo by Jay Rembert on Unsplash.
Allowing larger ammo reserves for national defence
The amendments bring the Weapons Act into compliance with the European Union’s Firearms Directive and clarify the definitions of firearms and ammunition. They also streamline regulations governing the handling, storage, use and supervision of firearms and ammunition, the interior ministry said.
In particular, the law introduces a more risk-based approach to firearms storage requirements, reduces the administrative burden on collectors with smaller firearms collections, and allows individuals to maintain larger ammunition reserves to strengthen national defence readiness.
The legislation also clarifies the rules governing the use of firearms and the transportation of firearms and ammunition. It establishes a business activity notification procedure for shooting ranges and businesses engaged in the sale of certain types of firearms.
In addition, the amendments modernise regulations governing the firearms registry, extend the validity period of firearms acquisition permits and the deadlines for handling inherited firearms, and grant the Police and Border Guard Board more clearly defined discretionary authority when revoking permits.
