Order Fixing September 1, 2024 as the Day on Which Sections 21.2, 26 and 45 of An Act to amend certain Acts and to make certain consequential amendments (firearms) Come into Force: SI/2024-28

Canada Gazette, Part II, Volume 158, Number 14

Registration
SI/2024-28 July 3, 2024

AN ACT TO AMEND CERTAIN ACTS AND TO MAKE CERTAIN CONSEQUENTIAL AMENDMENTS (FIREARMS)

Order Fixing September 1, 2024 as the Day on Which Sections 21.2, 26 and 45 of An Act to amend certain Acts and to make certain consequential amendments (firearms) Come into Force

P.C. 2024-718 June 17, 2024

Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, under subsection 73(1) of An Act to amend certain Acts and to make certain consequential amendments (firearms), chapter 32 of the Statutes of Canada, 2023, fixes September 1, 2024 as the day on which sections 21.2, 26 and 45 of that Act come into force.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order.)

Proposal

This Order in Council, pursuant to subsection 73(1) of An Act to amend certain Acts and to make certain consequential amendments (firearms) [former Bill C-21], fixes September 1, 2024, as the day on which sections 21.2, 26, and 45 of that Act come into force.

Objective

The objective of this Order is to set the coming-into-force date for the new licence requirements to acquire firearm parts (i.e. firearm barrels, slides for handguns and other parts as may be prescribed) and to import firearm parts, cartridge magazines, and ammunition. This would complete the implementation of measures introduced by former Bill C-21 to combat the public safety risks associated with unlawfully manufactured firearms (“ghost guns”) and align import requirements with the domestic regime for acquisition of these items. These measures are also responsive to recommendations to regulate the sale and import of firearm parts from the Mass Casualty Commission report, the Quebec coroner’s report released on February 29, 2024, and the third report of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security, A Path Forward: Reducing Gun and Gang Violence in Canada.

This Order supports the Government of Canada’s ongoing commitment to reduce firearms crime and address the prevalence of ghost guns to keep Canadians safe. The measures being brought into force strengthen controls over the importation and domestic transfer of these items by ensuring that only individuals holding a valid firearms licence are authorized to obtain them.

This Order also sets the coming-into-force date for amendments to regulation-making authorities in the Firearms Act to align with substantive measures introduced in former Bill C-21. These amendments add firearm parts, cartridge magazines, and ammunition to existing regulation-making authorities governing manufacture, transfer, import, export, possession, and disposal. The amendments also provide regulation-making authorities to establish a definition of “protection order.”

Background

Under the Firearms Act, it is currently unlawful to transfer a firearm or ammunition to a person who does not hold a valid firearm licence. Furthermore, a firearm licence is required to import a firearm, but not to import ammunition. Non-residents entering Canada may temporarily import firearms by completing a Non-Resident Firearms Declaration (NRFD) which, once confirmed by a border services officer (BSO), serves as their temporary firearm licence and, in the case of a restricted firearm, as a registration certificate for the firearm. While they also must inform the BSO of ammunition in their possession pursuant to the Customs Act, non-residents do not currently need a firearm licence to bring the ammunition into the country.

In order to strengthen firearms laws in Canada, the Government introduced former Bill C-21 in February 2021. The Bill introduced amendments to the Firearms Act that would require individuals to present a valid firearms licence to a BSO or complete an NRFD form, in order to import ammunition into Canada. This measure was intended to align import requirements with the domestic regime for the acquisition of ammunition. After Parliament was prorogued in 2021, former Bill C-21 died on the Order Paper. It was reintroduced in the House of Commons on May 30, 2022.

During clause-by-clause review by the House of Commons Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security (SECU), amendments to the Firearms Act were adopted to require that individuals hold a valid firearms licence to domestically transfer and to import firearm parts and cartridge magazines. At the same time, amendments were introduced to the Criminal Code to define a “firearm part” and incorporate the term into related offences. Former Bill C-21 received royal assent on December 15, 2023.

Upon royal assent, the requirement that a cartridge magazine may only be transferred to an individual that holds a valid firearm licence came into force. This requirement has been communicated to firearms businesses.

This Order sets the coming-into-force date for the remaining licence requirement provisions of former Bill C-21, which will require that individuals present a valid licence to import cartridge magazines, certain firearm parts, and ammunition and that an individual holds a valid licence for domestic transfers of firearm parts. This Order completes the licence requirement regime to capture firearm parts and align domestic transfer and importation requirements for firearms parts, cartridge magazines and ammunition. The definition of “firearm part” and amendments to related offences in the Criminal Code are being brought into force through a separate Order in Council. That Order sets the coming-into-force date of those provisions as September 1, 2024, in alignment with the Firearms Act provisions being brought into force by this Order.

This Order also brings into force clause 45 of former Bill C-21, which amends section 117 of the Firearms Act to provide regulation-making authority related to (i) the definition of “protection order”; (ii) the possession and manufacture or transfer of cartridge magazines and transfers of firearm parts; (iii) the importation, exportation, authorization to transport, and related declarations of firearm parts and cartridge magazines; and (iv) the disposal of ammunition, firearm parts, and cartridge magazines. While no regulations are being proposed at this time related to the licence requirement for imports and transfers of firearm parts, cartridge magazines, and ammunition, these regulatory-making provisions are being brought into force to permit the development of future regulations, if and when needed.

Implications

Provisions that set out the requirement that firearm parts may only be domestically transferred to an individual if that individual holds a valid firearm licence and that individuals require a valid firearm licence to import firearm parts, cartridge magazines, and ammunition into Canada were set to come into force on a date fixed by the Governor in Council to ensure operational readiness by implementation partners, including the Canadian Firearms Program (CFP) and the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA). This included updates to the NRFD to enable non-residents to declare the importation of firearm parts, cartridge magazines, and ammunition. CBSA operational bulletins and customs notices at ports of entry and mail processing facilities were also updated. All operational elements required to implement these requirements are now in place.

Public Safety Canada, in conjunction with the CFP and the CBSA, will communicate the coming into force of these measures to the public via each organization’s website. The CFP will provide information to key clients (e.g. businesses, industry associations) and operational units (i.e. chief firearms officers, the Registrar of Firearms and the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police). The CBSA’s memoranda and customs notices to importers will also be updated to reflect the new requirements. The amended NRFD will be available for download on the CFP’s website.

Impact on firearm businesses and individuals in Canada

These measures impose limited additional administrative burden on businesses. Businesses and individual sellers will need to confirm that the buyer has a valid firearms licence before transferring firearm parts to that individual. Verification that the individual buyer holds a valid licence may be done by inspecting the buyer’s firearm licence card, or through similar verification for online sales, similar to existing requirements for transfers of ammunition and cartridge magazines. Individuals will no longer be able to obtain firearms parts, or import firearm parts, cartridge magazines, or ammunition unless they hold a valid firearms licence.

Impact on importation of firearm parts, cartridge magazines, and ammunition

Individuals will be required to declare all imports of ammunition, cartridge magazines, and firearm parts to a BSO and show a valid firearms licence in order to lawfully import these items. If a firearm part or cartridge magazine is being imported through the mail, the individual may receive a customs notice stating that the package has arrived at a mail processing centre and instructions on how to present their firearms licence for further processing and delivery as applicable. CBSA will hold the item until a firearms licence is presented or will consider it to have been forfeited, in accordance with the Storage of Goods Regulations. It should be noted that ammunition cannot be imported through the mail.

Non-residents entering Canada will be required to declare any firearm parts, cartridge magazines, or ammunition in their possession to a BSO. Non-residents who are not in possession of a valid Canadian firearms licence will be required to complete an NRFD at the time of importation. Once the form is confirmed by the BSO, it will thereafter serve as a temporary firearms licence for up to 60 days (the form may be extended, in 60-day increments, by the chief firearms officer of jurisdiction).

Privacy considerations

Personal information is collected by the CFP through an application for a firearms licence (whether a new application or renewal), which is recorded in the Canadian Firearm Information System. Through this process, applicants acknowledge that the information contained in the application is obtained under the authority of the Firearms Act and that it will be used to determine eligibility and to administer and enforce the firearms legislation. This information is protected by the Privacy Act. There is no requirement for individuals or businesses transferring ammunition, firearm parts, or cartridge magazines to provide any information to the CFP or keep business records on these activities. Consequently, no new privacy concerns are engaged by these new mechanisms with respect to licence holders.

For non-residents who do not hold a licence, personal information is collected by CBSA via the NRFD. The form requires that the non-resident provide information as prescribed by the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness. The amendments to the form pursuant to this new mechanism are limited to the addition of a privacy notice and the creation of fields enabling the non-resident to declare the temporary importation of ammunition, magazines, or firearm parts. No new personal information has been added or will be collected on the form.

Consultation

In December 2021, SECU was tasked with studying gun control, illegal arms trafficking, and the increase in gun crimes committed by members of street gangs. Experts and stakeholders were invited to testify before the Committee in a series of meetings held between February 3 and February 17, 2022. Stakeholders were also invited to provide written briefs to the SECU. As a result of stakeholder testimony, SECU released a report titled A Path Forward: Reducing Gun and Gang Violence in Canada. This report contained 34 recommendations, two of which called on the Government to regulate the import and transfer of firearm parts and cartridge magazines (recommendations 27 and 28). These recommendations were incorporated into former Bill C-21 as amendments during clause-by-clause study.

The Government held discussions and technical briefings on former Bill C-21 with a wide range of stakeholders following their adoption at SECU and received no feedback specific to these measures. Stakeholders also had an opportunity to appear and provide submissions during the Senate study of the Bill in the Standing Senate Committee on National Security and Defence. No submissions or in-person testimonies concerned the licence requirement for firearm parts, cartridge magazines, or ammunition.

Contact

Firearms Policy Division
Public Safety Canada
Email: ps.firearms-armesafeu.sp@ps-sp.gc.ca