The Basics of Gun Laws in Hungary
Gun laws in Hungary are a product of the country’s unique historical circumstances and have evolved over several centuries. The framework for current gun legislation can be traced back to the 19th century when Hungary was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and weapons legislation was derived from the Habsburg Monarchy’s hunting and public safety regulations. These regulations were somewhat relaxed during the interwar period of the 20th century, and the rise of fascism and communism in the following decades brought more stringent controls over personal liberties, including the use of firearms.
Following the fall of the Soviet-backed socialist government in 1989, Hungary’s gun legislation underwent significant changes, looser restrictions were introduced, but the country has since moved toward a more disciplined and secure approach to firearms ownership. The 2004 Hungarian Firearm Act established clear regulations on the possession, carrying, and use of firearms, introducing a permit system that requires both registration and licensing of guns. To obtain a firearm, individuals must meet certain qualifications, including passing psychological and practical shooting tests and undergoing a two-year probationary period . The country also employs a strict system of categories and licensing to control and classify individuals into those who may own and carry firearms and those who cannot do so for safety reasons.
In practice, the laws also reflect a broader societal view on the use of firearms and nature of gun ownership. For example, in 2011, Hungary’s new Fundamental Law (Constitution) encompassed the right to own a firearm for self-defense among others. However, despite these constitutional protection, gun crimes still attract significant prison sentences. Furthermore, amendments to the Criminal Code since 2010 have increased penalties for gun crimes, a stance supported by popular demand for stricter control of illicit weapons.
Moreover, Hungary is a party to several international arms control agreements, including the UN Arms Trade Treaty and the European Union’s Common Position on the Control of Arms Brokering. The police force oversees gun ownership in Hungary, primarily through an independent department whose primary task is the granting of licenses to private and legal entities. Supervisory and consultative functions are performed by the National Defense and Security Service.
Requirements for Gun Ownership
Prior to the purchase of any weapon, the applicant must obtain a "permit for acquisition and possession of firearms," which is accomplished by first completing a medical and psychological evaluation, along with a criminal record check. The applicant must be over 18 years of age and possess a permanent residence permit. In addition, the applicant must qualify for one of the government approved categories, such as sport, hunting, historic/antique weapons, trade or self defense. Once the permit has been granted (usually after a wait of several months as the results of the tests are validated), there is a 30-day compliance period imposed to find a weapon in the category of permit issued. Failure to comply within that time frame will result in the revocation of the permit. Hungarian law requires that all permits be renewed every five years, which involves proving continued eligibility through additional testing and documentation submission.
Gun Categories
Categories of firearms under Hungarian law
In the Act 175/2011. (XII. 23.) on Firearms and Ammunition a total of five categories of firearms are defined, in regards to the end user’s authorisation requirements. What is interesting is the clear distinction between two specific categories; hunting weapons and sport weapons. What we have to keep in mind is that the ownership of a weapon does not exclude the use of the gun for either hunting or sports, there are no provisions in the Hungarian legal system that would disallow the use of hunting guns for sport shooting and vice versa. However, the ownership of a hunting weapon shall be subject to a special Natural person of a hunting license (bérlet), whereas the possession of sport weapons shall be the subject of a sport licence, but one licence may cover a combination of both, depending on the usage of the weapon. A further legal development is noteworthy; due to the ongoing discussions between authorities, trade organisations and experts, the Hungarian Weapons Law is subject to frequent amendments. In the last two years the most important ones were the 55/2016. (XII. 22.) IM decree and 135/2016. (VI. 7.) FM decree that both contain provisions dealing in details with sport and hunting weapons. The categories of the weapons are as follows: The most important aspect of categorisation is that it is not sufficient to determine what kind of weapon is required, but also the intended use of this weapon must be given, because the acquisition requirements depend on both the category of the weapon and its purpose. Category A weapons can be possessed without any further permit, however, weapons of category B are only permitted for acquisition, domicile, transportation (subject to strict rules) and temporary keeping purposes, no more. The owner of a category B weapon cannot keep it in a temporary place for more than 24 hours, so it must be taken to a pre-approved private gun safe or weapon storage at all times. The exception to this rule is the transportation of a weapon from one temporary storage to another, where up to 24 hours for travel, and up to 24 hours for storage at the destination is allowed.
Obtaining a Firearms License
Application for permissions, whether there are transport permits, security clearing and waiting, information / forms can be found on the site of Police. Issue of a license is preceded by the issue of a preliminary registration, this is issued by the authority of the membership of shooting sport organizations, based on the resolution of such organization. A person who has already been a member of a shooting sport organization in Hungary in the previous two years cannot apply for new registration. From among the various firearms, only those belonging in a particular category can be requested. Permission is granted for a maximum of three years, while it can be revoked at any time. Applicants must be over 20 years, and have no criminal record. Then he or she should attend a shooting examination with the firearm for which they have applied. Only upon successful completion of the shooting examination does a license will be granted. If the firearm is registered to more than one person, then issuance of a license must be attached on the basis of a notary certificate, along with a declaration of consent. ATM card systems are prohibited, as is keeping of any kind of weapon or ammunition, in a negative ion field, or within 2500 meters, as these pose dangers from point of view of public safety. While carrying a weapon, it is prohibited to consume alcohol. Even if a person is legally allowed to carry a weapon, it does not mean that they may carry their weapon or ammunition. As a basic requirement, persons applying for permission to carry must be in possession of a certificate of competency. Holding this certificate is only possible with personal identification documents. You will need to produce a photo and a signature specimen. The most serious license category which can be awarded is in the highest level and serious type permission, this is a military category. It can be awarded only to EU citizens or natural persons of foreign nationality who have Hungarian residency (long-term residence permit). Permission for the handing and use of a firearm or weapon can be withdrawn for various reasons. Where the authority finds that the basic interest of the public is threatened, or where emergency measures have been taken in an area where the permission has been issued.
Prohibited and Restricted Firearms
Further on, some specific issues: first, persons not residing in Hungary can also get a gun ownership license and purchase a hand gun. However, they can only buy hand guns with smaller calibre than .22 LR. Second, in accordance with EU legislation, some unique firearms have been excluded from Hungarian licensing regime. Those are the weapons in the following categories: Third, automatic hand guns and shotguns with explosion ammunition are prohibited (a bolt action shotgun, shotgun using "pump action" mechanism, shotgun using "lever action" mechanism are licensed guns). Fourth , air weapons in a category above 7.5 Joules of muzzle energy are classified as guns of a Category III (involving a more strict licensing regime). Such guns can only be owned by persons holding a license to possess guns of a Category I or II. Shells of such air weapons are also subject to a special licensing regime. Fifth, firearms that have been rendered totally unserviceable (practically dismantled) by means that abide the law and its delegated norms are not classified as guns, therefore are not subject to licensing regime. Persons who hold gun ownership licenses for firearms above .22 LR may also possess semi-automatic guns of a Category I. However, persons dealing with historic collector’s pieces are not allowed to purchase hand guns.
Regulations on Gun Usage and Carry
Carrying a firearm in public in Hungary is generally prohibited. There are some narrow exceptions that include: (1) carrying a sidearm by an armed security officer during the course of their duties; (2) carrying a hunting weapon (that is unloaded, in a case, or broken down) by a hunter who is taking it to their place of domicile or other legally permitted location; and (3) carrying a non-restricted air gun by a person that is at least 18 years old. Gun owners are permitted to carry their handguns for the purpose of target practice at shooting ranges as long as they transport them pursuant to the above requirements in the notes to the "Purchasing & Possessing Firearms" section above. Hungarian law prohibits the carrying "of loaded, easy-to-use, dangerous" air guns, rifles and shotguns, either open or concealed. Dangerous air guns are defined as those that fire metal, plastic or paper projectiles at a speed of over 500 feet per second. Easier to use air guns are generally those that are spring-loaded or have a separate firing mechanism. Guns must be carried in the proper, unloaded secure transporting case, and the bolts and/or firing mechanisms of rifles and shotguns must also be removed. Guns must be assembled upon reaching the "shooting field or place of game hunting" and disassembled thereafter immediately. Carry permits are issued to professionals who are required to carry weapons due to their employment, such as armed security officers and members of armed forces, police, special services, etc. In addition to general requirements for gun ownership, these permit holders must meet specific medical, psychological and ability criteria established by government regulation. Carry permits are revoked when the holder turns 65 years of age if the permit is not renewable at that time.
Gun Law Offenses and Punishments
Violations of gun laws in Hungary can lead to significant legal and financial penalties. The most common legal consequences for violating firearms laws are fiscal penalties. The maximum fine is generally HUF 500,000 for the illegal manufacturing of a weapon and up to HUF 1 million for the illegal possession of a weapon. Such fines are decided later by the authorities based on the manner of the violation and correspond to approximately €1,600 and €3,200, respectively. The director of the National Tax and Customs Administration has argued that administrative fines for illegal possession would be set at HUF 300,000 in the future.
However, in addition to administrative penalties, firearms offences may also result in criminal punishment under the Hungarian Criminal Code, such as:
• purchase, take-over or possession of weapons without the necessary authorisation or licence (three months to two years);
• self-manufacturing of weapons (up to three years);
• production of ammunition without the necessary authorisation or licence (up to three years); or
• manufacture for sale, sale or introduction into the country of war weapons, conversion of weapons into military weapons, and illegal development of weapons (three to ten years).
It is important to note that it is also a criminal offence to cause a weapons license to be withdrawn. Moreover, if a license is withdrawn because it was obtained through false information, all related contracts become invalid.
In 2016 the government implemented a new central firearms registry to counter illegal possession of firearms. The Registry provides key information about the ownership of firearms provided by the Chief Police Commissioner, who is currently responsible for maintaining it. Once the Registry is complete, violations of gun ownership laws should be more easily discoverable.
Comparison with Other Nations’ Gun Legislation
Hungary’s gun laws are generally more permissive than many countries in Western Europe. For example, Germany has stringent restrictions on gun ownership, which require gun owners to be 18 or older, pass mandatory testing, and provide a positive gun ownership reason. Switzerland, while more permissively regulated than most states in the EU, has very strict gun laws by U.S. standards, with no exception for carrying a concealed weapon for self-defense. In Switzerland, for civilians to buy ammo, they need a weapons purchase permit for both large and small calibers. Within the EU, the only countries more permissively regulated than Hungary are Finland and Czech Republic; however, even in these countries, the issuing of permits for hand guns can be much more restrictive than in Hungary.
Hungary’s gun regulations are slightly stricter than most of those in North America. For example, Canadian gun laws are more restricted than those in the U.S., but are generally easier and more straightforward than those of many EU member states. Beyond being more regulated than those the U.S., Canadian gun laws can be fairly nuanced, particularly with regards to restrictions on purchase and storage of guns . For example, in Ontario, non-restricted guns (which include all rifles and shotguns) must be stored unloaded, and taken apart or trigger-locked, while restricted guns must be stored in a locking container and also taken apart or trigger-locked. Even though Hungary does not have the yoke of restricting storage for handguns, or any gun for that matter, it is locked within an ONU-approved storage system, and cannot be transported unless in a locked box or container.
Notable exceptions to the more restrictive Canadian gun laws and storage laws compared to those in Hungary are Quebec and Newfoundland. The Quebec Provincial Police Force, like their Hungarian counterparts, is charged with coordinating the licensing of gun activities. However, gun owners in Quebec are legally required to present copies of all storage and transportation certificates if stopped at a roadside check; a provision that does not exist under Hungarian law. When it comes to the issuance of permits for concealed carrying of a firearm, the laws of Newfoundland and Quebec are similar in nature to those of Hungary.