National Firearms Amnesty

About the amnesty

Although Australia has some of the strongest gun control laws in the world, illicit firearms remain a threat to community safety. All Australian governments have agreed to the Permanent National Firearms Amnesty to reduce the number of unregistered firearms in the community.

The Permanent National Firearms Amnesty began on 1 July 2021. By 30 June 2023, Australians had surrendered 29,733 firearms and weapons and 1,243 firearm parts and accessories.

The Australian Government is committed to working closely with state and territory counterparts and relevant stakeholders to both:

  • keep the Australian community safe
  • make sure those with a legitimate need to access firearms can do so.

How the amnesty works

It is illegal to have unregistered firearms in Australia. Through the amnesty, anyone in possession of unregistered firearms or related items can hand them in anonymously and without penalty. You can also surrender unwanted firearms that are registered.

Police stations and licensed firearms dealers in most states and territories can receive unregistered or unwanted firearms.

If a person does not surrender an unregistered firearm and is found in possession of it, they may face criminal penalties, including imprisonment.

Here are some examples of unregistered firearms:

  • firearms that should have been registered or surrendered during the 1996-1997 buyback but were not
  • firearms handed down to family members as part of deceased estates
  • firearms possessed by people who do not have the appropriate type of licence.

Unregistered firearms carry great risk to the Australian community. It is proven that they can end up in the hands of people with criminal intent.

The last National Firearms Amnesty was held over a period of three months in 2017 and resulted in over 57,000 firearms being handed in across Australia. The Permanent National Firearms Amnesty gives Australians another opportunity to improve community safety.

Individual states and territories manage arrangements for the surrender of firearms.

All states and territories allow people to surrender of any kind of firearm to a police station, but some aspects of the amnesty are different between jurisdictions. The differences include:

  • whether you can surrender a firearm to a participating licensed firearms dealer
  • what happens to surrendered firearms (whether they are registered, sold or destroyed)
  • which items can be surrendered. 

States and territories may have different rules about surrendering the following items:

  • firearm parts
  • sound suppressors
  • magazines
  • ammunition
  • non-firearm related items such as knuckledusters or bows.

How to use the amnesty

Visit Crime Stoppers Australia for details about the Permanent National Firearms Amnesty arrangements in your state or territory.

Annual report

We publish an annual report detailing key outcomes from each year of the Permanent National Firearms Amnesty.

Read the annual reports for the Permanent National Firearms Amnesty.