Weapon Permits in Ukraine

 

• Permit for smoothbore firearms
• Permit for rifled firearms
• Permit for a second shotgun, purchasing a second shotgun
• The fine line of self-defense
• Regulatory legal acts

What must be done to obtain a permit for a smoothbore firearm?

First, gather the documents

1. Health certificate.

Obtain form 127/o, called the “medical certificate for obtaining a weapon permit”. You can often hear about possible workaround options that significantly “simplify” life and imply the banal purchase of such a certificate from medical workers.

But at the medical institution I contacted, the following procedures had to be completed:

• finger blood sampling;
• electrocardiogram;
• blood pressure measurement, taken before and after squats;
• collection of morning tests.

Each doctor’s approach was by no means formal and included a short conversation confirming the patient’s sanity. And since I like to talk, sometimes the conversations dragged on.

2. Certificate of no criminal record.

The certificate must be obtained from the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine.

In theory, you can apply to the relevant department to obtain the certificate. But in practice I entrusted this to professionals who lawfully obtained the certificate in my name for a reasonable fee.

The services of the firm I turned to were as follows:

Since I was in no hurry, I paid less.

3. Certificate confirming completion of weapon handling courses.

To obtain this document, you can use two options.

Method No. 1.

Apply to the central department of the permitting system in your city (address in Kyiv: 18a Yerevanska St.), where you take a theoretical exam after paying 120

Method No. 2.

Attend a weapon handling course consisting of theory and practice. This method, in my opinion, is preferable and concludes with a qualifying shooting from a sports pistol, and it costs only 10 more.

Second, make the first visit to the Permit Department (ORS)

Having gathered all certificates and set yourself in a positive mood, you come to the permit department of your district — this is where the weapon will be registered, since this procedure is carried out at the place of its storage.

All departments accept visitors according to the same schedule:

– Tuesday: from 14:00 to 18:00;

– Thursday: from 18:00 to 20:00;

– Saturday: from 10:00 to 13:00.

Upon arrival, you need to fill out the appropriate application. After that you will be given receipts that must be paid:

• 39 – for the permit to purchase;
• 9 and 18 – for the services of the permitting system;
• 51 – insurance payment (as of April 2012);
• 138 – for the certificate of the right to store and carry weapons.

All receipts can be paid at any bank.

After you hand all paid receipts to the inspector, the permit processing mechanism is activated, in which your participation is no longer necessary. The only requirement made of you is to come and collect the documents after the time allotted for the procedure has elapsed.

Third, make a return visit to the ORS

After two weeks you can call the ORS and ask whether the permit is ready. If you receive a positive answer, you can immediately go and collect the voucher authorizing the purchase of a weapon. The voucher is valid for three months, so when receiving it it makes sense to check all dates so as not to get into trouble. On the other hand, you have a full three months to choose the “right” shotgun and not make a mistake. Hurry in this matter is unnecessary.

Fourth, visit the store

After the hard work of choosing a shotgun and subsequently checking a specific sample for operability, you only need to pay for the purchase and leave the detachable part of the voucher with the seller. You receive the other half of the voucher and the shotgun, for the storage of which you are now responsible. Storage conditions can be found in Instruction 622, but the main requirements are that the shotgun must be stored unloaded and in a safe.

Fifth, register the purchased shotgun at the ORS

After purchase, the shotgun must be taken for registration within ten days. The procedure itself is quite simple: you need to write an application indicating the make and serial number of the shotgun. Then the application together with the second half of the voucher is handed to the inspector. You leave the ORS with only one shotgun; you are not given any documents. That’s when copies come in handy. Although the law does not have strict requirements for having copies, they will not be superfluous.

Until you receive the permit, the shotgun must not leave the safe, let alone be used.

Sixth, make a third visit to the ORS

After the period specified by the inspector, often about a week, you should contact the ORS, calling in advance, to receive the documents. Having obtained the permit, you become the full owner of the shotgun, able to transport it and even shoot it, but only in places specifically designated for this, and also to purchase ammunition for it.

The permit is valid for three years.

 

Purchasing a second shotgun

If you want to purchase a second shotgun, the ORS requires not all documents but only the certificate of no criminal record. The sequence of actions and timing are similar to the procedure for obtaining a permit for the first shotgun. The payments will be required in the same amounts.

If you have two permits with different validity periods, you can re-register them within a single procedure, or you can continue to renew two separate permits. The choice of scheme is up to you.

Summary

As of today we have the following figures. The cost of processing a permit for a smoothbore firearm is:

– 255 – for official expenses;

– 580 – for related expenses.

As for timeframes:

– 2-3 weeks is the processing time for a purchase permit;

– 1-3 weeks is the time to receive the plastic permit.

 

What must be done to obtain a permit for a rifled firearm?

The procedure for obtaining a permit for a rifled firearm in Ukraine is very similar to the procedure for smoothbore firearms, although there are a number of features aimed at tightening control over this type of weapon. It is regulated by the following acts:

• Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 576 of 12.10.1992 “On the permitting system”;
• MIA Order No. 622 of 21.08.1998, which establishes the instruction concerning the manufacture and use of firearms, cold and pneumatic weapons.

According to Order No. 622, the right to acquire a hunting rifled firearm is available to Ukrainian citizens over 25 years old. The number of weapons owned by one person is not limited, but if the number of barrels exceeds three units, they must be stored in a specially equipped place equipped with a security alarm.

A permit to acquire a rifled firearm can only be obtained after studying the technical material on weapons and the rules for their use, based on which a qualifying assessment is held.

The permit for a rifled firearm consists of two parts: a permit to acquire and a permit to carry and store.

To obtain a permit to acquire, you must apply to the territorial department of the administrative police service and provide the inspector with the following documents:

• a petition for issuing a permit, written to the head of the police department;
• a completed application;
• a health certificate containing a conclusion on the absence of factors preventing the use of weapons;
• a certificate of no criminal record;
• a copy of the insurance contract;
• a document confirming completion of training on technical material and rules for weapon use;
• a receipt for payment of the state fee.

One of the features of the permit to acquire, carry and store a rifled firearm is that it is signed by the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, his deputies, and heads of regional MIA directorates.

The fee for issuing permits is set according to a unified tariff approved by the Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 1060 of 28.12.1995, namely:

• 3.40 – for providing consultation;
• 8.50 – for registration of a weapon unit;
• 8.50 – for document processing.

When coming to obtain a permit to acquire a weapon, you must present a passport or another identity document.

After purchasing a weapon, it must be registered with the police within 10 days to obtain the permit to store and carry the weapon; for this the following documents are submitted:

• a petition for issuing a permit, written to the head of the police department;
• a duplicate of the permit to acquire a weapon, which contains a store mark about the sold weapon, or another document confirming the purchase of the weapon;
• three photos sized 3×4;
• a copy of the insurance contract, only if it was not submitted when obtaining the permit to acquire a weapon;
• a receipt for payment of the state fee.

After the period required to process the documents, the applicant must contact the police department and collect the ready certificate.

It should be remembered that all persons who have obtained a permit for both smoothbore and rifled weapons are registered in the MIA system by entering their data into the automated “Arsenal” system. In addition, a file is opened for each owner in the corresponding administrative police service department.

According to the law, there is a possibility of transferring a weapon from one owner to another, with all documents processed at the police department where the weapon is registered. All data about the previous owner are entered into the permit, while its duplicate is given to the new owner for registration of the weapon at the place of residence.

 

The fine line of self-defense

Art. 36 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine

The concept of “necessary defense” deserves special mention.

Analyzing part 1 of Art. 36 of the Criminal Code, necessary defense is understood as actions committed to protect one’s rights and interests or the rights and interests of another person, society, and the state as a whole from a dangerous encroachment by causing harm, within the framework of necessity and sufficiency in the specific situation.

For actions to be recognized as necessary self-defense, the following conditions must be met:

• the presence of an act of encroachment;
• that act must fall under the definition of socially dangerous;
• the encroachment must be real in nature;
• the self-defense must be timely.

It should be noted that the law does not require mechanical equality of means of defense. Thus, if threatened with a cold weapon, the defender may respond with a firearm. However, causing clearly excessive harm, even though the encroachment could have been stopped with less significant damage, is recognized as exceeding the limits of necessary defense, which, in turn, entails criminal liability in accordance with part 3 of Art. 36 of the Criminal Code in the form of corrective work for up to 2 years, restriction of liberty for up to 3 years, or imprisonment for up to 2 years (Arts. 118, 124 of the Criminal Code).

How the criteria of necessary self-defense will be applied if both parties had firearms, in light of the adoption of this law, is not yet known.

 

List of used regulatory legal acts:

• Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine resolution “On the permitting system” No. 576 of 12.10.1992;
• Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine order “On approval of the instruction on the procedure for manufacturing, acquiring, storing, accounting, transporting and using firearms, pneumatic and cold weapons, domestically produced devices for firing cartridges loaded with rubber or similar non-lethal projectiles, and the specified cartridges, as well as ammunition for weapons and explosive materials” No. 622 of 21.08.1998;
• Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine resolution “On approval of the unified tariff for services for the acquisition, storage, accounting, transportation of firearms, ammunition for them, explosive materials, as well as regarding items that are subject to the permitting system” No. 1060 of 28.12.1995;
• Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine resolution “On the right of ownership of certain types of property” of 17.06.1992 No. 2471-XII.