Sport Firearm Permit

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Would you like to obtain a firearms permit for sporting purposes in Gorzów Wielkopolski, Racławie, or another city? This process is governed by national regulations. In the guide below, you’ll learn how to apply for a firearms permit for sporting purposes in Poland.

Statutory Requirements

Any citizen wishing to obtain a firearms permit for collection purposes—in Gorzów Wielkopolski, Racławie, Poznań, or any other city in Poland—must meet the requirements set forth in the Firearms and Ammunition Act:

• 21 years of age or older,
• mentally healthy – this requires psychological evaluations to assess our mental state,
• not dependent on alcohol or other psychoactive substances,
• who has a permanent residence in the Republic of Poland,
• He has no criminal record and has not been convicted of any intentional or unintentional crimes.

These are the basic requirements you must meet if you want to apply for a sports firearm permit in Gorzów, Racławie, or any other city.

How do you become a competitive shooter?

First, you need to join a shooting club, where you become a full member after paying the membership fee. There, you’ll learn how to shoot and gain the necessary knowledge about firearms, etc. You’ll also take a course to obtain a shooting license. The next step is to pass the theoretical and practical exams to obtain a Shooting License from the Polish Shooting Sports Association (PZSS). The Shooting License is a document confirming mastery of the basic skills required to handle firearms. It also certifies that you are qualified to participate in shooting sports. It is issued for three disciplines: pistol, rifle, and smoothbore shotgun.

A shooting permit entitles the holder to:

• practicing shooting in the discipline for which it was issued,
• applying for a PZSS athlete’s license authorizing participation in sports competitions,
• applying for a shooting referee license,
• applying for a firearms permit for sporting purposes, pursuant to the Firearms and Ammunition Act.

The requirements for obtaining a firearms license are as follows:

• the applicant must be at least 18 years of age,
• membership in a club affiliated with the PZSS for at least 1 month,
• submission of a properly completed application for a shooting permit,
• pass the firearms license exam.

The sporting firearms exam consists of a theoretical and a practical portion. The theoretical portion takes the form of a multiple-choice test (10 questions) and covers:

• the provisions of the Weapons and Ammunition Act,
• regulations governing the storage and transport of weapons,
• PZSS sports competition rules,
• safety rules for handling sporting firearms,
• the design, operating principles, and technical specifications of sporting firearms,
• knowledge of the provisions of the Criminal Code regarding weapons-related crimes.

The practical portion of the sporting firearms exam, on the other hand, takes place at a shooting range and includes:

• verifying compliance with the shooting range rules,
• testing the ability to handle a firearm properly (assembling and disassembling the firearm, loading and unloading it, engaging and disengaging the safety, and knowing how to proceed in the event of a malfunction),
• a shooting test using a randomly selected type of weapon.

The primary emphasis is on safety. Accuracy and concentration (when shooting at a target) come second. The exam fee is 400 PLN. The fee is the same regardless of the number of disciplines you take. It’s therefore worth taking the exam for all types of sporting firearms at once. It’s not possible to “expand” your sporting firearms permit later. If you want to add additional disciplines, you’ll have to retake the entire exam.

For an additional fee of 60 zł, you can receive your permit in “plastic” form. The document in this form has no additional value—the police are only interested in the paper version anyway. It’s only useful if certain shooting ranges allow you to shoot with a range-provided firearm without a supervisor or instructor. Besides, it looks nice.

Various clubs and companies organize courses to prepare people for the shooting license exam. These courses usually cost around 400–500 zł and last 1–2 days. The value of such a course varies—sometimes they’re very well run and you can actually learn a lot (especially if you’re just starting out in shooting). Sometimes, however, it’s better to invest that 400–500 PLN in a few trips to the shooting range and read the laws and regulations at home. The end result will likely be the same. After about a month, you should receive your license by mail.

Once you have obtained a permit, you can apply for a PZSS license for sporting firearms. This license entitles you to compete in shooting sports in specific disciplines. It is issued for one calendar year and must be renewed annually for the following year. The cost of the license is:

• 50 zł for the issuance of a license, which must be paid to the club; the club then applies to the PZSS for licenses for its members,
• 25 zł to the regional PZSS account as an administrative fee; this payment is also made at the club, which forwards it to the PZSS on behalf of its members.

To maintain your license, you must accumulate a certain number of competition starts:

• four events for the main discipline (usually the pistol),
• two events each in the remaining disciplines (rifle and shotgun).

In total, you must compete eight times, which can often be achieved by participating in a major competition twice a year. For example, if during the year I competed in the following events: sport pistol, centerfire pistol, sport rifle, and smoothbore shotgun.

This means I have competed twice in the pistol event, once in the rifle event, and once in the smoothbore shotgun event. Having competed twice in this type of competition means I have enough competitions under my belt to renew my license.

It’s best to apply for a competition license immediately after receiving your shooting certification. It’s worth noting here that you should avoid applying for a license toward the end of the year, because if you receive it in November, for example, you may not be able to complete the required number of competitions to renew it for the following year.

It’s best to ask your shooting club about the licensing procedure itself, since the club applies for the license on your behalf and pays all the fees. You can now ask the club to issue a certificate of membership in the shooting club—this is a required attachment to the application for a firearm permit for sporting purposes.

Medical Examinations

Before taking the PZSS firearms license exam, you must obtain a medical certificate from a sports medicine physician. The next medical examinations are conducted before submitting your application to the WPA. To obtain a certificate confirming that you have undergone these examinations, you must visit doctors who are authorized to perform medical and psychological examinations for individuals applying for or holding a firearm permit.

The medical examination is intended to assess the applicant’s overall health (ophthalmological consultation, blood sugar test, ECG for individuals over 40, and nervous system examination).

ATTENTION! A medical certificate serves as the basis for issuing a firearms permit for a period of 3 months from the date the certificate was issued.

A psychological evaluation involves taking psychological tests designed to assess the applicant’s level of intellectual development and describe their personality traits—including how they function in difficult situations—as well as to determine the applicant’s level of social maturity.
NOTE! The psychological evaluation serves as the basis for issuing a firearms permit for a period of 3 months from the date the evaluation is issued.

A visit to the administrative proceedings department of the provincial police headquarters

To obtain a permit for a sporting firearm, you must submit:

• application for a firearm permit for sporting purposes,
• 2 photographs (3 cm x 4 cm),
• copies of your ID card or passport (originals for inspection),
• a copy of the shooting license (the original is available for inspection),
• a copy of the license (the original is available for inspection),
• medical certificate,
• psychological evaluation,
• certificate of membership in a shooting club,

Next, you must make the following payments:

• for the decision – 242 zł,
• for a permit (certificate for the purchase of a firearm): 17 zł per permit,

ATTENTION! If you pass the PZSS exam, you are exempt from the WPA exam. If you wish to apply for a sports firearm permit in Racław, you must submit your application to the Provincial Police Headquarters in Gorzów Wielkopolski. The application should be written clearly and legibly, explaining why you wish to own a firearm and how many you are requesting. It’s also a good idea to explain why you’re requesting that specific number and what you intend to use them for (which competitions you plan to enter). By the end of 2015, the police had already begun inviting applicants for interviews and asking about these details, so it’s worth including this information in your application, as it may speed up the entire process.
Individuals applying for a sporting firearms permit for athletic purposes must provide a valid reason for possessing a firearm. Under the Firearms and Ammunition Act, such valid reasons include documented membership in a shooting association, possession of the appropriate athletic qualifications, and a license from the relevant Polish sports federation. However, this must be described in the application, because it is up to us to demonstrate the existence of justified circumstances supporting the granting of a firearms permit.

If we meet the above criteria and have described them in the application, and if there are no grounds for denying a firearms permit, the police MUST issue it. However, they may limit the number of firearms for which the permit is issued. If we apply for 8, the police may determine that a permit for 3 firearms is sufficient for us. Therefore, it is worth specifying exactly how many firearms we want and for which competitions, so as not to give grounds for a denial or a decision limiting the number.

Decision

Once a positive decision has been issued, you may purchase a firearm. After the purchase, you are required to register it with the WPA within 5 days of the date of purchase. Firearms owned for sporting purposes may only be used at a shooting range. For safety reasons (e.g., to protect a larger number of firearms during transport), it is permissible to carry a firearm on your person.

Duration of the entire procedure

It is difficult to estimate how long it will take to obtain a firearms permit for sporting purposes. The minimum period of club membership required to apply for a permit is 3 months. After that, obtaining the license takes another few weeks. The process at the WPA usually takes one to two months. In summary, if we are committed and nothing gets in the way, we will obtain the desired sports firearm permit in about 6 months. This timeframe is similar to that for obtaining a permit for a collector’s firearm.

The Actual Costs of Obtaining a Firearm Permit for Sporting Purposes

When preparing a cost estimate for the project, we must take into account all the costs we will incur, including:

• Shooting club membership fee – varies by club,
• membership fee – varies by club,
• The cost of the PZSS firearms license exam – 400 zł,
• certificate from a sports physician – approx. 50 zł,
• plastic license – 60 zł,
• license – 75 zł,
• ammunition – it's up to you,
• travel costs to the shooting club – it's up to you,
• medical examinations – from 350 to 600 PLN,
• application for a firearms permit – 242 zł,
• promesa – 17 zł each,
• safe – it's up to you,
• weapon – it's up to you,
• Equipment and accessories—it's up to you,

The cost of obtaining a firearms permit for sporting purposes will also vary depending on the shooting range you use, the shooting club, and the price of the firearm you choose. Our shooting range near Gorzów offers excellent conditions for preparing for the permit—we are also a shooting club.

Summary

How many firearms can be obtained under a sports permit? When applying for a firearm permit for sports purposes, the WPA generally allows applicants to include a request to purchase up to 6 firearms.
After obtaining the permit and license, it’s a good idea to participate in as many shooting competitions as possible. Some WPA branches, when issuing subsequent authorizations to purchase firearms, take into account the number of competitions entered (you should check with your specific WPA branch for details).

It’s also worth noting that you can apply for a permit for both sporting and collector’s firearms on a single application form, which greatly simplifies the process. On the first application, you may request up to 5 sporting firearms and up to 10 collector’s firearms, for a total of 15 firearms.
Sport shooting is a very exciting hobby and has many enthusiasts in our country. Participating in competitions motivates us to improve our shooting skills, and the competition itself adds an extra thrill. As the text above illustrates, obtaining a firearm permit for sporting purposes is not impossible. If you have a competitive spirit and love firearms, sport shooting is the perfect activity for you!