Statutory Instruments
2026 No. 1050
ARMS AND AMMUNITION
The Firearms (Amendment) Rules 2026
Made
23rd September 2026
Coming into force
29th September 2026
The Secretary of State makes these Rules in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 26A(1), 26B(1), 27(2), 28(2) and 53(1)(a) and (b) of the Firearms Act 1968(1).
Citation, commencement and extent
1.—(1) These Rules may be cited as the Firearms (Amendment) Rules 2026 and shall come into force on 29th September 2026.
(2) These Rules extend to England and Wales and Scotland.
Amendments to the Firearms Rules 1998
2.—(1) The Firearms Rules 1998(2) are amended as follows.
(2) In rule 3 (firearm certificates), after paragraph 4(iv) insert—
“(v)the holder of the certificate must, without undue delay, inform the chief officer of police by whom the certificate was granted, if they are diagnosed as suffering from, or are treated for a relevant medical condition(3), or if their symptoms relating to an existing relevant medical condition which they have previously disclosed, have worsened since the certificate was granted;
(vi)the holder of the certificate must, without undue delay, inform the chief officer of police by whom the certificate was granted, if they consult any medical practitioner who is not their General Practitioner or a General Practitioner from the same practice, regarding a relevant medical condition, and they must provide contact details of the medical practitioner and details of the treatment received.”.
(3) In rule 5 (shot gun certificates), after paragraph 4(iv) insert—
“(v)the holder of the certificate must, without undue delay, inform the chief officer of police by whom the certificate was granted, if they are diagnosed as suffering from, or are treated for a relevant medical condition, or if their symptoms relating to an existing relevant medical condition which they have previously disclosed, have worsened since the certificate was granted;
(vi)the holder of the certificate must, without undue delay, inform the chief officer of police by whom the certificate was granted, if they consult any medical practitioner who is not their General Practitioner or a General Practitioner from the same practice, regarding a relevant medical condition, and they must provide contact details of the medical practitioner and details of the treatment received.”.
(4) In Schedule 1 (form of application for firearm and shot gun certificates, and firearm certificate)—
(a)for the form in Part I (form of application for the grant or renewal of a firearm and/or shot gun certificate) substitute the form in Schedule 1 to these Rules (form of application for the grant or renewal of a firearm and/or shot gun certificate);
(b)for the form in Part II (firearm certificate) substitute the form in Schedule 2 to these Rules (firearm certificate).
(5) In Schedule 2 (shot gun certificate), for the form in Part II (shot gun certificate) substitute the form in Schedule 3 to these Rules (shot gun certificate).
Transitional arrangements
3. An application for the grant or renewal of a firearm certificate or a shot gun certificate may continue to be made using the application form which is replaced by rule 2(4)(a) if it is received on or before 29th October 2026 by the chief officer of police for the area in which the applicant resides.
Sarah Jones
Minister of State
23rd September 2026
Home Office
Schedules
Rule 2(4)(a)
Schedule 1 Form of application for the grant or renewal of a firearm and/or shot gun certificate
Rule 2(4)(b)
Schedule 2 Firearm Certificate
Rule 2(5)
Schedule 3 Shot Gun Certificate
1968 c. 27. Sections 26A and 26B were substituted for section 26 as originally enacted by section 37 of the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1997 (c. 5). Section 27(2) was amended by section 23(5) of the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988 (c. 45). Section 53 was renumbered by section 61(3)(a) of the Offensive Weapons Act 2019 (c. 17). There are other amendments to the Firearms Act 1968 and the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988 which are not relevant to these Rules.
S.I. 1998/1941; relevant amending instruments are S.I. 2013/1945, S.I. 2013/2970, S.I. 2014/1239, S.I. 2017/1281, S.I. 2018/1042, S.I. 2019/1419, S.I. 2021/464, S.I. 2021/1172 and S.I. 2026/304. There are other amendments to S.I. 1998/1941 which are not relevant to these Rules.
A “relevant medical condition” is a medical condition which is listed in the section entitled “Medical Information” of the application for the grant or renewal of a firearm and/or shot gun certificate in Schedule 1 to these Rules.