Whether you shoot clays, game, rifle or FAC air, the certificate in your pocket changed on Tuesday 29 September. The Firearms (Amendment) Rules 2026 came into force that day across England, Scotland and Wales, adding standing medical reporting conditions to every firearm and shotgun certificate and replacing the application form with a revised Form 201. The Home Office has allowed one month of transition: old-style applications are accepted until 29 October, after which only the revised form will be taken.
For a show community of certificate holders, first-time applicants and the exhibitors who serve them, this is the sector story of the autumn, and it touches every discipline on the floor at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC), Birmingham, next February.
What has changed for every certificate holder?
Three things. First, the medical duties: for the five-year life of the certificate a holder must tell their police force if they are diagnosed with or treated for a relevant medical condition, for which the Home Office gives depression and dementia as examples, if an existing condition gets worse, or if they consult a doctor outside their own GP practice about such a condition, online and private services included. Second, the form: the revised Form 201 asks for every member of the applicant’s household, including under-18s, and any second home where firearms will be stored, so that police can check security there and notify the force that covers it. Third, the deadline: a completed old-style application must reach the police by 29 October to count.
The rules were made under section 53 of the Firearms Act 1968 on 23 September and are set out in Home Office Circular 013/2026.
What have the police and ministers said?
Sarah Jones, the policing minister, said: “Public safety must always come first when it comes to firearms licensing. The UK already has some of the strongest gun controls in the world, but these changes will strengthen safeguards further by closing loopholes and helping ensure firearms do not fall into the wrong hands.”
Chief Constable David Gardner, the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) lead for firearms and explosives licensing, said: “The vast majority of firearms licence holders understand and support the need for statutory requirements for possessing firearms, whether for sport, recreation or work.”
Police Scotland, in a notice circulated through the Scottish Association for Country Sports, promised “a pragmatic approach to these new conditions in order to avoid unnecessarily criminalising certificate holders”, with enforcement considered only where there is “clear evidence of intentional dishonesty and/or an attempt to undermine the requirements of the licensing process”. NPCC advice to forces in England and Wales is expected to align generally with that.
What does the sector want next?
A single licensing authority. The Countryside Alliance backed the changes as closing loopholes but renewed its case for a centralised authority for England and Wales in place of 43 forces, and BASC said the same on 30 September. Bill Harriman, BASC’s director of firearms, said: “The real solution to improving public safety and efficiency is the position BASC has long advocated for – that is for firearms licensing in England and Wales to be removed from the current structure of 43 separate police forces and delivered through a dedicated national authority with common standards, clear accountability and appropriate resources.”
What does it mean for the show community?
For visitors, a certificate renewed this winter will be on the new form, and anyone buying a gun on the floor in February does so on a certificate that now carries the reporting duties; nothing about the sale itself has changed. For exhibitors, the counter will field the questions through October, and the shooting organisations with stands at the show are the places to send them. For the applicant planning a first certificate in time for the British Shooting Show, 12 – 14 February 2027 at the NEC Birmingham, the revised Form 201 is the one to start on now.
What happens next
The transition closes on 29 October. Holders should note the duties, report relevant changes promptly and keep a dated copy. The full story, with the detail of the conditions, the forms and the organisations’ responses, is on ShootingUK, and the link is below.
Useful links
ShootingUK – the full story: what certificate holders must now tell police
Home Office – the announcement of the strengthened licensing rules
Home Office Circular 013/2026 – the changes in full
BASC – the association’s response and its firearms advice
Frequently asked questions
When did the Firearms (Amendment) Rules 2026 come into force?
On 29 September 2026, in England, Scotland and Wales, for firearm and shotgun certificates alike.
When does the old application form stop being accepted?
Old-style applications are accepted until 29 October 2026. After that only the revised Form 201, which asks about the applicant’s household and any second home where firearms are stored, will be taken.
Does the change affect buying a gun at the show?
No. A sale on a valid certificate proceeds as before; the new rules add duties to the holder and change the application form, not the transaction.
Related articles
Drought: what it means for shooting – the sector overview format, applied to the summer’s other big story
Three stages for the British Shooting Show 2027 – where the licensing conversations will happen on the floor
British Shooting Show moves to bigger halls for 2027 – the show the new certificates will be carried to