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Ampumaharrastuksen jatkumisen osoittaminen en
Demonstrating continued participation in shooting sports
Not all holders of firearm permits have to demonstrate their continued participation in shooting for sports or recreation. You must demonstrate continued participation in shooting sports if your permit is valid until further notice and your intended use is:
- hunting
- shooting sports
- recreational shooting
- reservist activities (training contributing to military capability)
- demonstrations, filming and other similar presentations.
and your firearm is:
- pistol
- small-calibre pistol
- revolver
- small-calibre revolver
- specially dangerous firearm
- self-loading single-shot firearm.
In addition, the obligation to demonstrate continued participation applies to you only if you have been granted a permit to possess a short firearm after 12 June 2011 or a specially dangerous firearm or a self-loading single-shot firearm after 14 July 2019.
You must demonstrate continued participation in your activity every 5 years from the date when you acquired the firearm.
Depending on your activity, you can prove this by submitting to the police:
- a valid hunting card and a certificate of the game management fee paid
- proof provided by a shooting instructor on active participation in shooting for sports and recreation
- proof provided by a game management association on active practice of trapping or of catching animals below ground
- reliable proof of the use of a firearm for the purposes of a demonstration, filming or another similar presentation
- proof provided by the National Defence Training Association (MPK) of active participation in firearms training contributing to military capability
You may be requested to provide additional information on your activity.
With fixed-term possession and firearm permits, you must give proof of active participation in an activity when you renew the permit. If you do not renew the permit, it will expire.
Be sure to demonstrate your active participation in a shooting activity
Active participation means that you have practised your activity at least 4 times during the last year (12 months) with the firearm for which you want to prove active use.
Exceptions may be made if you have special reasons why you have not been able to participate in the required number of activities. You must present these special reasons to the police in writing. A special reason may be, for example, an illness or a posting abroad.
With regard to specially dangerous firearms and self-loading single-shot firearms, instructions on how to demonstrate continued participation will be provided later on. As these obligations were imposed by the 2019 amendment to the Firearms Act, you will not have to demonstrate continued activity with these types of firearms until 2024.
As a permit holder, you are responsible for submitting proof of your continued activity to the police.
If you apply for a new firearm permit or renew your fixed-term possession or firearm permit, the activity you have demonstrated for the application will also be recognised for your previous permit. This leads to a situation where you have to provide an account of your continued activity once every five years. However, recognition only applies to the types of firearms whose permit corresponds to the proof of activity which you attach to the application for a new permit. For example, proof of activity submitted for a permit to acquire a revolver is not recognised for a rifle permit.
You don’t have to demonstrate continued activity for each firearm separately. For example, if you have permits for several pistols and revolvers granted on the basis of shooting sports, you will only need to present proof once.
Report the continuation of a recreational activity electronically
You can submit an online notification of the continuation of shooting sports at Police.fi/online without visiting a police station to do so. In most cases, notification through online services is enough. After notification, you will receive further instructions if anything else is required.
If your interaction requires or you want to visit a police station, make an appointment beforehand through the Police.fi/online service. You can find the contact information of police stations at Contact information - Police (Police.fi).
Notification is free.
You can find PDF forms (Ase 06 fi and Ase 07 fi) at Lomakkeet - Poliisi (in Finnish).
Download and print the Firearms up to date poster (in Finnish)
Ampumaharrastuksen jatkumisen osoittaminen QA otsikko en
Demonstrating continued participation in shooting sports – Q&A
Ampumaharrastuksen jatkumisen osoittaminen haitari en
You must demonstrate continuation in your shooting sport if you have a permit valid until further notice for the following firearms:
- a handgun (a small-calibre pistol, small-calibre revolver, pistol, revolver) also issued on hunting grounds, for which a permit was issued after 13 June 2011
- a firearm which has a semi-automatic operating mode and for which as permit has been issued since 15 July 2019
- any particular dangerous firearm for which a permit was issued on or after 15 July 2019.
Proof of continued participation must be provided every five years from the date the permit valid until further notice was issued. You must provide information that you continue to participate in the activity for which the permit was issued. You may also demonstrate that you participate in some other activity for which the firearm concerned is well suited.
The obligation to demonstrate continued participation of an activity applies to all holders of handgun permits issued after 13 June 2011 as well as to holders of semi-automatic firearms for which a permit was issued on or after 15 July 2019.
The reverse side of the permit card may feature the wording: “Reliable proof of continued active participation to be demonstrated every five years”. The absence of such wording does not necessarily mean that the obligation to demonstrate does not apply to you. It is always the responsibility of the permit holder to find this out.
You must submit proof of continuation of an activity within five years of the issue of a permit valid until further notice for the firearm concerned. The new five-year period begins from the provision of proof.
You don’t need to provide demonstrate continuation of an activity for each firearm separately.
For example, if you have permits for several pistols and revolvers issued on the basis of shooting sports, you only need to demonstrate proof once.
If you have permits for several similar weapons, you don’t need to demonstrate continuation of an activity for each firearm separately.
If you apply for a new firearm permit or you renew a temporary possession or firearm permit, the activity you have demonstrated for the application will, subject to certain requirements, will also be recognised for the previous permit. After that, you must then submit information on the continuation of an activity once every five years. However, recognition only applies to the types of firearms for which you have a permit corresponding to the proof of activity that you attach to the application for a new permit. For example, proof of activity submitted for a permit to acquire a revolver is not recognised for a rifle permit.
If you already have a permit for a particularly dangerous firearm or a firearm whose mode of operation is semi-automatic, only proof of activity attached to the corresponding application for the same type of firearm is recognised.
From you own or nearest shooting club, hunting association or game management association.
By submitting one of the following based on the intended us of your firearm:
- proof provided by a shooting instructor of active participation in shooting sports and recreation
- a valid hunting card and receipt for the game management fee paid
- proof provided by a game management association or active practice of trapping or of catching animals below ground
- reliable proof of the use of a firearm for the purposes of a demonstration, filming or other similar performance
- proof provided by the National Defence Training Association (MPK) of active participation in firearms training contributing to military capability.
Besides the above, the police may ask you to provide other information on your activity.
The shooting instructor determines the reliability of the certificates, shooting range diaries or other information provided by the shooter.
If there is any disagreement or ambiguity, the shooting instructor must contact the police.
A hunter may demonstrate active participation in their activity by presenting a valid hunting card and receipt for the game management fee paid.
As a permit holder, it is your responsibility to ensure that you submit proof of the continuation of an activity to the police. If it transpires that you have failed to demonstrate the continuation of an activity, the police may contact you. If you do fail to submit proof within the time allowed, the police may cancel the permits in respect of firearms subject to the obligation to notification. This means you yourself should make sure you demonstrate active participation!
A person obtained a permit valid until further notice for a rifle on 11 November 2022. The 5-year period begins from that date. The same person obtained a new permit for a semi-automatic firearm on 1 June 2023, when the person submitted to the police reliable information on a shooting activity. In which case, the new 5-year period for both permits began on 1 June 2023.
A person obtained a permit valid until further notice for a short firearm on the basis of sports shooting on 11 November 2022, from which date the 5-year period begins. The same person was issued with a new permit for a short firearm on the same ground on 1 June 2023, when the person proved to the police in their permit application reliable information on a sports shooting activity. The new 5-year period for both permits began on 1 June 2023. When continuation of the activity is proved in 5 years in 2028, one proof is sufficient for both permits.