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Does anyone know how to go about importing a UK legal gun from Europe? Poland specifically?

Nelly2014 wrote:Does anyone know how to go about importing a UK legal gun from Europe? Poland specifically?

what are you wanting to buy ? pm me if you want

You'd be surprised how easy! As long as the firearm is acquired legally in Poland, and transported legally across Europe, once at the juxtaposed UK border if driving, or the Red channel at the airport and declare the firearm as an importation to the U.K. You will need your FAC with the vacant slot and that acts as your import licence. UKBF will enter it on your ticket. Pay whatever duty/excise is due, bring it home. Inform the police within the usual 7 days.

Sim G wrote:You'd be surprised how easy! As long as the firearm is acquired legally in Poland, and transported legally across Europe, once at the juxtaposed UK border if driving, or the Red channel at the airport and declare the firearm as an importation to the U.K. You will need your FAC with the vacant slot and that acts as your import licence. UKBF will enter it on your ticket. Pay whatever duty/excise is due, bring it home. Inform the police within the usual 7 days.

Wow, that sounds so easy. Thanks

Dellboy wrote:

Nelly2014 wrote:Does anyone know how to go about importing a UK legal gun from Europe? Poland specifically?

what are you wanting to buy ? pm me if you want

Have pm'd

If you driving yourself it's a doddle.

This is how it worked from Belgium, I guess it's the same in Poland.....I've not bought a gun there (Poland) but I have driven there with my own firearms with no issue.

Get a European Firearms Pass from your FEO. Go to foreign gunshop; show British FAC with permission to aquire whatever firearm you want, along with your EFP.

Shop sells you the gun, you put it in the car and drive to the Eurotunnel terminal, show FAC, EFP to the British Border Force chap who enters the details on your FAC or refuses to do so and says to do it yourself and notify your FEOs yourself (they really don't like dealing with legal firearms!).

Drive home, notify FEO of your new aquisition.

What was ineresting is that a Belgian gunshop was quite happy to sell me a .22 pistol based on by '.22 long barrel pistol' slot on my FAC so I thought to buy it, store it in Belgium but have it added to my UK FAC and EFP.....but decided against it as being a bit too dodgy

Do it before January, because after that it won't be so easy.

"Directive 91/477/EEC provides for a specific authorisation procedure for the
movement of firearms from one Member State to another Member State. A detailed
description is set out in an annex to this notice.

After the end of the transition period, these rules no longer apply to movement of
firearms between the United Kingdom and the EU. Rather, the EU rules on import
and export of firearms (see below) apply. EU firearms pass issued to persons in the
United Kingdom is no longer valid in the EU."


Most of you voted for this...so happy days

walesdave wrote:If you driving yourself it's a doddle.

This is how it worked from Belgium, I guess it's the same in Poland.....I've not bought a gun there (Poland) but I have driven there with my own firearms with no issue.

Get a European Firearms Pass from your FEO. Go to foreign gunshop; show British FAC with permission to aquire whatever firearm you want, along with your EFP.

Shop sells you the gun, you put it in the car and drive to the Eurotunnel terminal, show FAC, EFP to the British Border Force chap who enters the details on your FAC or refuses to do so and says to do it yourself and notify your FEOs yourself (they really don't like dealing with legal firearms!).

Drive home, notify FEO of your new aquisition.

What was ineresting is that a Belgian gunshop was quite happy to sell me a .22 pistol based on by '.22 long barrel pistol' slot on my FAC so I thought to buy it, store it in Belgium but have it added to my UK FAC and EFP.....but decided against it as being a bit too dodgy

Have done exactly this myself on a couple of occasions. However I think it may be too late for anyone not already having an EFP as my understanding is that forces stopped issuing them some time ago.
It was confirmed this morning that EFPs will cease to have any effect from the first of January 2021.

You should either enter the details on your FAC yourself if you import it by post or you should get the seller to do it for you if you pick it up overseas (you could still do it yourself as you'll be the importer).

Customs are not the authority to sign imports on your FAC and I have been told by them that it is not their job to do that. If you personally bring the firearm in and don't fill out the FAC yourself, if they do it for you then good on them - but in what capacity are they doing it?

Your local firearms team can also sign it onto your FAC if needed although they usually complain. Just one small point, your FAC is indeed your authority to import, however many European dealers would not export to the UK without sight of an Import Licence or Open Import Licence (OIL) prior to Brexit, even though it was technically invalid. Now, post Brexit (Yes it did happen) They are even less thrilled by the idea and are insisting on an OIL before they will apply for the local paperwork.

Any reasonable RFD who imports will have an OIL, either that or they are bringing things back in the boot of his car.