11/04/2019
Hello All
As you are all aware the New Zealand Government is currently undertaking amendments to the Arms Act in relation to the terrorist attack in Christchurch. ASNZ reviewed the proposed changes and asked you all to make submissions on parts of the amendment we believed could affect Airsoft. In addition Ben Allen went to speak to the Select Committee on behalf of ASNZ and present the concerns we identified.
We are delighted to let you all know that our concerns were well received and have resulted in changes to the proposed Arms Act amendments. ASNZ primarily identified an issue that could have resulted in parts requiring a permit and accessories like sights becoming prohibited items, as some can be attached to a now prohibited firearm. The Select Committee has clarified that these items, if intended for use on non-prohibited items, are therefore not prohibited items. In addition to this clarification the Select Committee has changed a section of the Arms Act amendment that would have required a permit for Restricted Airgun parts.
The select committee noted the following in their report back to Parliament regarding Airsoft & Paintball:
Under the Arms Act at present, a person must have a permit to import a restricted airgun. This is any airgun that looks like a restricted weapon, military-style semi-automatic firearm, or pistol. The bill would keep and extend this requirement to include any airgun that looks like a prohibited firearm as defined in clause 5, section 2A. Currently, a person does not need a permit to import any part of a restricted airgun. We believe this is appropriate. However, we note that the bill as introduced would require a permit to import any part of a restricted airgun. We believe this was inadvertent and not the intent of the bill. We recommend deleting the reference to “restricted airgun” in clause 19, section 18(2A)(b), so that a person would not be required to have a permit to import any part of a restricted airgun.
We are pleased that airsoft and paintball organisations and competitions will be unaffected by the bill and we support the amendment to section 18(2A)(b) to make this clear.
ASNZ’s interpretation of the final Arms Act amendment’s effect on Airsoft are as follows:
An import permit will continue to be required for Restricted Airguns that look like military style fi****ms. In addition a permit will be required for Restricted Airguns that look like now Prohibited Fi****ms. This means Restricted Airguns that look like magazine fed semi-automatic rifles and shotguns will require a permit for import.
We would like to thank everyone who made submissions about this to the Select Committee as suggested by ASNZ. Our concerns have been heard and the outcome has been favourable. We are attaching a video containing Ben Allen’s presentation to the Select Committee, along with the Select Committee presenting our concerns for final consideration for the Arms Act amendments. That video can be watched here - https://youtu.be/Ce8UTot_DUg
ASNZ will continue to monitor this situation and will act as needed to protect our sport. Make sure you keep up to date on what ASNZ is doing via your club’s ASNZ rep.
Regards
ASNZ Committee
