Hey everyone,

I'll "hopefully" be in France come August 2011 for 3 to 4 years (maybe longer if I can snag a okay job ) and I was wondering what the law is on Hunting Rifles and Handguns.

I know there are a fair few categories depending on the guns you wish to shoot with but I am really lost so was wondering if someone could help me out... or maybe I should just wait until I get there then ask someone at a gun store for advice

I also have a question regarding if it is true that if you study in France for two years or more you can apply for Citizenship (providing you meet everything else), if it is are Private universities included in this as I am looking at Paris School of Business

Cheers,

ML

There are a number of websites that can advise you. Gun laws have become stricter, though I am not a shooter.
Take a look at this item, but if you carry out a search, there are many others.
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/in...4151952AAWjeGW And welcome to the Forum.

So you have to be part of a gun club for six months? seems fair and a bit more regulated than the UK

From what I can tell it seems that if you comply with the regs it should be a walk in the park

Cheers

The site that CJM provided is helpful. However I'd like to add a few additional points.

The site states, "You must have undergone police checks as to your suitability to own a gun" TRUE
"Have a clean offence record." TRUE
"You must have no record of any kind with Social Services/DDF" TRUE
"And be known in your community for your high morals." Debateable. Although I would indeed describe myself as one with high morals and virtues I think it's safe to say that I am virtually unknown in my small local community. But one does need to get an 'Avis Préalable' (Carte-Verte) from your shooting club president before a Cat.1 or Cat.4 gun can be purchased, and if one was known as a nuisance or trouble-maker this could be refused.
However if it's for hunting you would probably want a shotgun or a long-arm with rifled bore which are designated Cat.5 (somewhat less restrictive) and I'm almost certain that these can be purchased without the requirement for a 'Carte-Verte'.
As the site indicated, a lock-up safe is mandatory. When purchasing this, make sure you ask for a receipt in your own name, and take a photo of it as extra proof. Also buy a trigger lock (mandatory) at the same time.
One last point. The hunting rifles referred to above in Cat.5 are in the main bolt-action rifles. Semi-automatic rifles even in .22lr calibre are classed in Cat. 4 and along with revolvers and semi-automatic pistols are more restrictive to own - permission request of which is through your local police department and then the Prefecture. From the time of application to delivery of the permit can take from 3 months (in the provinces) to 18 months in and around Paris. So, it's no walk in the park but with a clean record, a perfectly prepared dossier, and much patience, you should be ok!
Come back to me if any more info is required.

Ah that is a great explantation, cheers Tweedpipe when I go in Jan next year I'll go and ask around a little bit more

Anyone know of anything for my second question?

Why on earth do you want a gun in France?

This is old, for the most part, very civilised, Europe, not the wild west.

If you want to kill the local wild life, there is a hunting season which lasts from about 1st October to about 28th February, it varies by department.

You need a gun licence and insurance, which is fairly expensive. You also have to wear high visibility jackets, and not shoot near any roads.

Hunting is very popular in rural France and there are lots of clubs for les chasseurs...it would probably be a great way of getting to meet lots of French old/ middle aged men....if your liver is up to it.

To rob a bank

/Sarcasm

I would like to continue to hunt over in France like I do over here.

The whole idea of seasons is new to me, if you're on private land are you still restricted to the hunting season?

I'm fairly sure you are still restricted to the hunting season, leastways I have never meet a hunter in the woods round here outside the hunting season...and I stay on the roads wearing red anoraks / fleeces in the hunting season although my French friends think I'm over cautious and won't be accidentally taking for a misshapen wild boar by the chasseurs....

The season varies by department, the local Marie will be able to tell you the dates. Alternatively if your French is good you can find the relevant administrative order "arret" on the internet.

You can range shoot with hand guns, And Clay Shoot as well owning a gun doesn't mean you have to "shoot at the wildlife". I have always kept my shooting skills up to date since my childhood and Army days. Personally I think that the French gun and hunting laws are more civilised than the UK " Where banning firearms has had pretty much no impact on gun crime"


The hunters around here stand on the road, Saves getting your boots muddy.

Catherine, I am not a shooter, but the French as English respect the seasons. Licence and cost are what they are.The French use better ID equipment than we do in England. In the Vendee hunting is active; I would love to speak French well enough to follow the day. That to me is part of integration, making friends and respecting the French culture.

The hunting season is strictly observed here, private land or not, to allow the animals to breed and raise their young, otherwise there would be nothing left alive within a year or two!

The hunters also have to buy a boar tag from the mairie - they have the right to take only one or two each per season. It seems to work well enough as we still have a lot of boar here.

It can be tricky being out and about during the season - I put bells on my horse and dogs to try to alert hunters - and sing at the top of my voice, eek - and I avoid riding/walking on a Wednesday or Sunday if possible.

And it has to be admitted that gardening without rabbits is bliss.

Hi, I was picking blackberries on our boundary in September when two great blasts went off on the other side of the hedge. I immediately started singing "La Marseillaise" (couldn't think of anything else on the spur of the moment) at the top of my voice and peered through the brambles. You should have seen the faces of the two hunters! Anyway, I kindly reminded them that they were too close to habitation and where was the wild boar they were shooting at? It turned out that their victims were small birds...

I belong to the gun club (club de tir) in Carcassonne - target shooting. I use a .22LR - mainly for the budget! Ammo is MUCH cheaper when you shoot 100-200 rounds in an afternoon!!

One thing is that to belong to the club, you must first get an "aptitude" signature from your local GP - "medecin traitant" (which means you first have to register with one and to do that you have to already have a carte vitale - or E whatever it is, I guess - if you are not a French permanent resident?) that you are (presumably) in a stable mental state and not likely to go out shooting around the local houses!

This is a formality which they have tightened up since a young guy took a shot at J. Chirac on the Champs Elysees a few years ago with a .22 LR rifle, having recently joind a gun club. Whether one's local GP can certify one's sanity is another question!!!

Having said all that, the chasseurs (hunters) have special rules with which I am unfamiliar and the licence requirements (how to obtain) are probably different!

The licence for "tir sportif" looks like this (credit card size) with the GP signature on the back above your own and that of the club president.

Most of the members of our club are also hunters and the president knows all the rules, so a local club could be a good place to start.

ROGER O
(Missed this reply earlier).
I've just sent you a PM.