Statements from federal officials raised a serious question for licensed firearms owners.
They say anyone who possesses a newly-prohibited firearm after the October 30, 2026, confiscation deadline may have their Possession and Acquisition Licenses revoked.
Those statements from Liberal government ministers and MPs raise a legal question that deserves a clear answer.
Who has the authority to revoke a firearms license in Canada?
On this issue, the Firearms Act appears to be clear.
Provincial Chief Firearms Officers control Possession and Acquisition Licences and their offices issue licences, monitor eligibility, and if necessary, revoke licenses.[i]
Federal ministers and Members of Parliament can announce policy intentions. They can introduce legislation and regulations.
But provincial Chief Firearms Officers administer the firearms licensing system.
That distinction matters.
When Ministers and MPs claim that firearms owners who keep prohibited firearms after the deadline may lose their licences, Canadians deserve to understand how these licence revocations will happen, both in law and in practice.
- Would the federal government direct those revocations?
- Would provincial Chief Firearms Officers carry them out independently?
- Or would some other legal mechanism trigger those revocations?
This affects hundreds of thousands of Canadians who hold valid Possession and Acquisition Licences.
The Obvious Next Step?
The CSSA sent the Ontario Chief Firearms Officer a respectful request for clarification.
In that letter we ask three straightforward questions.
- Does the federal government hold the legal authority to direct the revocation of firearms licences?
- Will the Ontario Chief Firearms Officer revoke licences from individuals who possess prohibited firearms after the deadline, while the federal firearms confiscation program remains incomplete?
- If so, under what legal authority would those revocations occur?
Canadians deserve to know how the government will apply the law in practice.
The CSSA encourages firearms owners across Ontario to respectfully request this clarification from the Ontario CFO as well.
Civic engagement strengthens a healthy democracy.
Citizens have every right to ask how governments plan to enforce the law.
If this issue has already been clarified publicly, we appreciate being directed to that information.
Until then, one question remains.
Who has the legal authority to revoke firearms licences in Canada?
It is a simple question. Canadian gun owners deserve a clear answer.
Download your copy of the Open Letter to Ontario’s Chief Firearms Officer
[i] https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/F-11.6/section-7.html
1 Comment
Tom
This is a very good question for the provincial authorities, considering that the banning of Modern Sporting Rifles from license-holders was an illegal and immoral activity performed by the Trudeau government for the sole purpose of vote-farming. It will be interesting to see if Ontario will stand up for Ontarians, like Alberta and Saskatchewan are standing up for their citizens. Maybe we CAN get back to fact-based policy-making, at least at the provincial/territorial level.