The law
The Firearms Control Act,
and where to read it
Sentry counts down to a date set by statute, so this is the statute. Below is what the current law is made of, how it is arranged, and the provisions the app acts on — each with a link to the official text.
What this page is
A guide with links, not the Act. Sentry does not host the statute — the official copy on gov.za is a scan of the 2000 text with no amendments applied, and re-typing legislation is how a wrong number gets published. The citations and structure here were read from SAFLII, South Africa: Consolidated Acts, consolidated to 14 April 2023 and last reviewed for changes on 3 October 2025.
What the law is made of
Four documents, not one
"The Firearms Control Act" in practice means the 2000 Act as amended, plus the regulations that carry the forms and procedures. Reading only the principal Act will tell you things that are no longer true.
Firearms Control Act 60 of 2000
The principal ActAssented 4 April 2001 · G. 22214 of 10 April 2001 · in force 1 July 2004
Licence categories and their validity, competency certificates, renewal, safe custody, dealers and gunsmiths, unfitness, offences and penalties.
The gov.za copy is a scan with no searchable text, and is the Act as enacted — it does not show any amendment since 2000.
SAPS resource centre
The copy SAPS publishes (PDF)A Juta consolidation hosted by SAPS, updated to 31 January 2014. It predates the repeal of section 113(1) to (3) and (5) and the 2023 amendments to Schedule 2, so it shows some provisions as law that are no longer in force. Useful for checking an official host, not for relying on.
Firearms Control Amendment Act 43 of 2003
AmendmentG. 25863 of 22 December 2003
Definitions and technical expressions, apprenticeship to a gunsmith, notice of firearm-free zones, and transitional continuation of a gunsmith registration certificate.
Firearms Control Amendment Act 28 of 2006
AmendmentG. 30210 of 22 August 2007
Substituted the section 27 validity table, among much else. Commenced in two tranches, in January 2011 and March 2012.
Still not fully in force. The remainder of this Act is unproclaimed, so part of it is law and part of it is not.
Firearms Control Regulations, 2003
RegulationsGN R.957 in G. 25153 of 30 June 2003
The forms, procedures and prescribed information the Act requires an application to be accompanied by.
gov.za files this page as "Firearms Control Act: Regulations". The regulations have been amended since; treat this copy as a starting point, not the current text.
And six statutes that are not about firearms
The two Firearms Control Amendment Acts are the well-known ones, but the Act has also been amended by these — several reaching it through the unfitness provisions. An amendment history that lists only 2003 and 2006 is wrong.
- Civilian Secretariat for Police Service Act 2 of 2011
- from 1 December 2011
- Criminal Law (Forensic Procedures) Amendment Act 6 of 2010
- from 18 January 2013
- Protection from Harassment Act 17 of 2011
- from 27 April 2013
- Dangerous Weapons Act 15 of 2013
- from 2 January 2014
- Criminal Law (Forensic Procedures) Amendment Act 37 of 2013
- from 31 January 2015
- Domestic Violence Act 116 of 1998, as amended by Act 14 of 2021
- from 14 April 2023
What Sentry acts on
The provisions behind every date in the app
Renewal of firearm licences
“The holder of a licence issued in terms of this Chapter who wishes to renew the licence must at least 90 days before the date of expiry of the licence apply to the Registrar for its renewal.”
This is the deadline Sentry counts down to. Not the expiry date — 90 days before it.
A licence lodged in time stays valid
“If an application for the renewal of a licence has been lodged within the period provided for in subsection (1), the licence remains valid until the application is decided.”
Lodge inside the window and a slow decision does not leave you unlicensed. Miss the window and this protection does not apply.
Where the application goes
“delivered to the Designated Firearms Officer responsible for the area in which the applicant ordinarily resides or in which the applicant’s business is”
The DFO at that station is also the authoritative source for where an application stands — ahead of any status page, including what Sentry shows you.
Period of validity of licence or permit
The table below is section 27's, substituted by section 18 of Act 28 of 2006 with effect from 10 January 2011. Sentry reads these same periods from config/licences.php.
How long each licence lasts
| Section | Licence or permit | Valid for |
|---|---|---|
| s13 | Licence to possess firearm for self-defence | 5 years |
| s14 | Licence to possess restricted firearm for self-defence | 2 years |
| s15 | Licence to possess firearm for occasional hunting and sports-shooting | 10 years |
| s16 | Licence to possess firearm for dedicated hunting and dedicated sports-shooting | 10 years |
| s16A | Licence to possess firearm for professional hunting | 10 years |
| s17 | Licence to possess firearm in private collection | 10 years |
| s18 | Permit to possess ammunition in private collection | 10 years |
| s19 | Licence to possess firearm, and permit to possess ammunition, in public collection | 10 years |
| s20 | Licence to possess firearm for business purposes, other than as game rancher and in hunting A business licence for game ranching and hunting runs 10 years instead. | 5 years |
These are the periods Sentry uses to work out an expiry date, read from the same configuration the reminder engine reads. Competency certificates track the licence they relate to; muzzle-loader competency lapses 10 years after issue.
How it is arranged
Twenty-one chapters and four schedules
If you are looking for one thing, this is where it lives. Chapter 6 is the one most owners need: it runs from the requirement for a separate licence per firearm through renewal, validity and termination.
- 1 Introductory provisions s1–2
- 2 Prohibitions s3–4
- 3 Special provisions in respect of certain devices s5
- 4 Competency certificates, licences, permits, authorisations and accreditations s6–8
- 5 Competency certificates s9–10A
- 6 Licence to possess firearm s11–30
- 7 Licences issued to particular categories of persons — dealers, manufacturers and gunsmiths s31–72
- 8 Import, export and carriage in-transit of firearms and ammunition s73–82
- 9 Storage, transport and carrying of firearms and ammunition s83–89
- 10 Control of ammunition and firearm parts s90–94
- 11 Exemptions s95–101
- 12 Declaration of persons as unfit to possess firearm s102–105
- 13 Inspections s106–109
- 14 Search and seizure s110–116
- 15 Presumptions s117–119
- 16 Offences, penalties and administrative fines s120–122
- 17 Organisational structures s123–132
- 18 Right of appeal s133
- 19 Compensation s134–137
- 20 Special powers relating to amnesties and firearm-free zones s138–140
- 21 General provisions s141–154
- Schedule 1 Transitional provisions
- Schedule 2 Crimes and offences giving rise to unfitness enquiry by court
- Schedule 3 Laws repealed
- Schedule 4 Penalties
The full text as consolidated to 14 April 2023, chapter by chapter, with every section anchored. The ten provisions that are not in force yet are marked as such rather than left to read like the rest.
Before you rely on this
What this page cannot do for you
It is not the Act. It is a map of it, and it can be out of date. Where this page and the official text differ, the official text is right.
It is not legal advice. Sentry tells you a date is coming. What you must do about it is between you and the Firearms Control Act, and a question for an attorney or your DFO — not for us.
Part of the law is not in force. The remainder of the 2006 Amendment Act is still unproclaimed. Any summary that treats the amendments as fully commenced, including a summary on this page, is simplifying something real.