General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: To the repubs who now want to move to Australia -- the Aussies have a message for ya! [View all]dutchroll
(6 posts)Yeah that's pretty much correct. You are actually allowed to own a gun in Australia but:
1) You must have a "genuine reason", eg, gun club, farmer, professional shooter, antique collector. These are listed in the legislation. "I'm scared of baddies" and "may need to overthrow the Government one day" are not considered "genuine reasons" in Australia.
2) Your "genuine reason", if approved, will determine what type of gun you are allowed to own
3) You must get a gun licence and complete a safety course
4) You must get a "permit to acquire" from the police (28 day waiting period) for each gun you acquire
5) The gun dealer must fill out gun registration paperwork and file it with police when you purchase
6) The gun must be kept locked in a secure vandal-proof container or safe at all times when not in use
7) The police will conduct periodic checks of your gun security
8) Handguns are very strictly controlled and to own one outside the security industry you must be a registered member of an approved pistol club, period.
Self-loading centre-fire rifles are prohibited except for law enforcement/military, and professional vertebrate pest animal control.
It is generally considered very boring in most sections of Australian society to talk about guns. Approved substitute topics for guys are beer, women, cars, and football or other sports.