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Moving firearms across national borders

On this page, you will find information about what to do when you need to transfer a firearm from one country to another. For example, you could be moving abroad or participating in a shooting sports or hunting event. Taking firearms abroad depends, among other things, on your place of residence and whether the country is a member state of the European Union or not. Depending on the matter, it will be either the local police department or the National Police Board’s Firearms Administration that will grant the licence for moving firearms.  

Definitions

It is useful to know what the different terms mean if you need to move a firearm to or from Finland. 

In the context of firearms, firearm components, cartridges and specially dangerous projectiles:

a) import means transport to Finland from a non-EU member state

b) export means transport from Finland to a non-EU member state

c) transfer means transport from one EU member state to another member state

d) transit  means transport from a non-EU member state via Finland to a non-EU member state.

Acquisition permit if you live abroad

With regard to both private transfers and private exports, you cannot buy a firearm in Finland if you only have a licence that you obtained abroad. You will also need a Finnish authorisation (acquisition permit for persons living abroad). If you need a private transfer permit, the local police department in Finland will handle your application. If you live abroad and you need an acquisition permit for private exports, the National Police Board’s Firearms Administration will handle your application. The seller must fill in their section of the acquisition permit (details of who is selling or handing over the firearm to a person living abroad). On the basis of this notification, the police department will remove the firearm from the information on the former permit holder/person handing over the firearm and mark the firearm to have been transferred abroad.  

Note that the person living abroad does not have the right to possess the acquired firearm in Finland. The seller must deliver the firearm to the address given by the buyer abroad.

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How to move a firearm between countries? 

Under the headings below, you will find more information on the situations when you need to move a firearm from one country to another. You can use the definitions on the main page to check which of the scenarios corresponds to your situation. 

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