The Arms Act requires a Registry to be established on 24 June 2023, which will record and track licence holders’ possession of arms items. These provisions were introduced in 2020 to strengthen the control and regulation of firearms to address concerns about a lack of oversight of the number, type and location of firearms, making it difficult for Police to prevent their use for criminal purposes.

The Act provides for regulations to be made to prescribe the detail on what information will be in the Registry, and the timing and other matters for implementation. The regulations will contribute to the purpose of the Act to promote the safe possession and use of firearms and impose controls on the possession and use of firearms and other weapons.

Find out what the Registry means for you

Legislation:

• Arms Act 1983
• Arms Amendment Regulations 2023 – New Zealand Legislation

Once involved in an activating circumstance, licence holders will register all of the arms items in their possession at that time.

These arms items include:

• firearms (excluding antique firearms)
• restricted weapons
• prohibited magazines
• major firearm parts
• pistol carbine conversion kits.

Licence holders will provide applicable information on each of the items, such as:

• make
• model
• identification marking
• type
• action
• calibre or gauge.

Licence holders will also record, in relation to arms items, any:

• sale or supply
• purchase or receipt
• import or export
• manufacture or modification
• loss, theft or destruction.

Firearms licence holders must record the importation of ammunition.

Dealers and ammunition sellers must record sales of ammunition.

Licence holders are not required to register ammunition; and purchases of ammunition between dealers and ammunition sellers, or between individual firearms licence holders, will not be recorded.

Licence holders will be able to access to the Registry information to verify the licence, endorsement, and permit to possess status of people who they are buying from or selling an arms item to, similar to how they are already able to do through the online firearms licence checker portal.

The regulations also cover a number of administrative requirements for the efficient and effective establishment and ongoing operation of the Registry. These include that the regulations will:

• require firearms licence holders to place identification marking (serial numbers) on any arms items not already marked, and enable Police to make exceptions to marking requirements if this would significantly affect integrity or value – for example, for heirloom or museum pieces
• require those with powers to manage the property of deceased or incapacitated people to provide information on arms items that were or are possessed by those people
• provide for shooting clubs and shooting ranges to record in the Registry information they must already provide to Police
• require dealers to provide information on the types and quantities of arms items they intend to take to a gun show
• outside of existing information access agreement provisions for government agencies, limit access to the Registry to: Police for its lawful functions; and licence holders to view their own information and verify the licence, endorsement and permit to possess status of people they are buying from or selling to
• provide for information for the Registry to be provided in a manner or form to be determined by the Commissioner, to ensure the necessary flexibility as the Registry develops
• provide time frames for meeting requirements for recording information about arms items and ammunition
• set a deadline of 31 August 2028 for all licence holders to register their arms items if they have not already done so, and
• provide for the Registry to hold records of firearms licence holders for the duration of their life plus 3 years.