For weeks, Ontario’s Chief Firearms Office refused to answer the one question gun owners needed answered plainly.
“Will PAL holders who continue to possess newly prohibited firearms lose their licenses, yes or no?”
Now we have two written responses. Neither gives gun owners the direct answer they deserved, and taken together, they deliver a clear warning.
The April 7 letter says the CFO does not proactively revoke a firearms license solely because a PAL holder possesses a firearm prohibited under the May 1, 2020 Order in Council, provided that person remains within the scope of the amnesty.[i]
That’s the protection being offered. It is narrow, conditional, and temporary.
That same letter also makes clear what happens when that protection ends.
If the amnesty expires or if its conditions are not met, enforcement falls to police and the CFO continues to exercise its statutory responsibilities under applicable law.
In plain English, that means the temporary shield only exists for those who remain fully compliant.
Step outside it, and both criminal enforcement and licensing consequences come back into play.
The March 13 response removes even more doubt.[ii]
It states that participation in the federal compensation program is voluntary, but compliance with federal legislation is mandatory.
It sets out the four paths the government considers lawful disposal: participate in the compensation program, export the firearm, surrender it for destruction, or permanently deactivate it.
It then states that affected firearms must be dealt with before October 30, 2026, and warns that continued possession after that date may expose individuals to criminal liability.
It also points directly to the CFO’s regulatory authority over licensing decisions, including potential license revocations.
Once the amnesty is gone or you breach its terms, your legal position changes immediately.
That’s the point members must understand.
These letters also expose the contradiction at the heart of Ontario’s position.
Premier Ford’s government says it opposes the federal confiscation scheme and will not assist it.
Yet Ontario’s Chief Firearms Officer is still administering the legal consequences of that same scheme, because the Ontario CFO is administering the legal consequences of the federal firearms confiscation scheme, despite the province’s public opposition to it.
However loudly the province distances itself politically, the machinery of compliance, enforcement, and license risk all remain in place.
The Ontario CFO would not give a simple answer. But he gave a clear warning, in writing. Members should treat it as one.
As always, the CSSA must urge all licensed owners with firearms captured by the May 2020, December 2024, and March 2025 OIC prohibitions to comply with the amnesty conditions before the 30th of October, 2026. Members should understand the risk: non-compliance may result in criminal liability and may also place their license at risk.
[i] https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/CSSA/PDF/Ontario-CFO-Response-2026-04-07.pdf
[ii] https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/CSSA/PDF/Ontario-CFO-Response-2026-03-13.pdf
3 Comments
Tom
This should not come as a surprise to any gun owner who understands the criminal code of canada. Any reasonable person who understands that policy must be based on evidence and not emotion will appreciate that the federal government has acted immorally and illegally in the banning of hunting and sport-shooting firearms. Never mind their misuse of OICs to ram their will up the population’s behind – the banning of private property from severely good people (the licensed Canadian hunters and sport shooters) is immoral to start with – what is this? are we now in the age of pre-crime??. Hopefully the SCC will see this issue for what it is – a pathetic attempt by the ruling party to vote-farm, an action that places a bunch of innocent people into very precarious positions.
Provincial/territorial/police forces rhetoric regarding “we do not support the ASFCP” is nice, but does nothing to safe-guard good people against wrongful prosecution (wrongful because Trudeau used emotion instead of facts to formulate public policy, as lieberals tend to do). You need to put pressure on your provincial government – do it NOW, they are going on extended vacation very shortly.
Saskatchewan and Alberta are taking active measures to protect their citizens against criminal prosecution for crimes they never committed, and never will commit (providing you appreciate that all the evidence does not implicate hunters and sport shooters in the commission of gun violence, and also providing that you understand the police forces, primarily RCMP, have screwed the pooch multiple times in stopping gun violence, perpetrated by individuals who may as well have had a neon sign above their heads flashing “criminal at large, cuff me now” from taking place).
Ultimately, the honest, good, lawful Canadian gun owner is paying the price for law enforcement complete incompetence, weak liberal justice system treatment of actual criminals, and, most concerning, a dictatorial/tyrannical federal government that cannot pass a single day without lying to you.
Guy TItley
The heavy-handed, one-way approach by the Liberal party on deciding what firearms are now prohibited is based on appearance or so-called “assault-style” descriptor. Granted some high-powered prohibited weapons have wartime use only. But if they were legally purchased by vetted PAL licensees, who is to decide they need to be turned in? They can have limited capacity built with the aid of qualified gunsmiths. At this time nobody really wants to turn in their legally-purchased “prohibited” firearms but unfortunately you will be potentially labelled a criminal if you do not dispose of the weapon(s) before Oct30th, 2026. The fate of your PAL is also not clear…you may or may not lose lose it. I do not possess any firearm in the list of prohibited weapons but if I did I would not risk being charged of a crime as is inferred by the information we have so far. I would NOT turn in my prohibited weapon but expeditiously work to be compensated for it. Unfortunately the declaration deadline of April 1, 2026 is long gone meaning you cannot even apply for compensation. The government also had made it clear in that they would only compensate owners provided the funds are available. Their proposed $550 compensation did not even come close to what the individuals paid for them for most of those firearms.
Being that the government will destroy recovered prohibited firearms and that they probably still have funds destined for compensation since there probably have not seen many turned in, I have a proposal to those owners: have your local or nearby Liberal MP legally take your weapon (without the firing mechanism) directly to Minister Gary Anandasangaree’s desk. Leave a letter to the Liberal weapon deliverer with a strong request of the minister to get your $550. But with this government I wouldn’t hold my breath. Unfortunately, you will risk simply losing the firearm right off his desk. You may be unjustly accused of being a criminal. Don’t risk it……let’s see what reaction you get.
This whole program does NOTHING to solve the gun violence committed by criminals……they don’t follow the rules and certainly don’t legally purchase weapons.
All of this is so unfair
Guy L Titley, Sarnia ON
Tom
There is no issue for a good person to responsibly possess anything, that by itself is not going to harm anything or anyone. Don’t fall for the rhetoric that select-fire guns are too dangerous for civilians to own. That is how we got here in the first place! As a good person, if I carry a sub-compact handgun, no one has anything to fear. If I have standard capacity mags for my ARs, you need not be afraid. If I own select-fire rifles, no one will be in danger. Any restrictions on these and other firearms categories and devices are manufactured fear-mongering by the leftist state.