Limited-damage firearms.
The Federal Law «On Weapons» has been amended to introduce a new category of weapons — limited-damage firearms, including pistols, revolvers and barrel-less firearms of domestic manufacture, designed to hit a living target at a distance with a projectile of traumatic action and not intended to cause death to a person.
At the same time, definitions have been given to the concepts of «traumatic cartridge», «gas cartridge», «light and sound cartridge» and «signal cartridge».
The Federal Law introduces significant restrictions on the use of weapons, rules for the acquisition of weapons by citizens, and amendments have been made to the Criminal Code and the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation.
These changes will make it possible to apply a uniform procedure for circulation and uniform control measures in relation to weapons and cartridges with high destructive properties, to reduce the number of crimes and offenses committed with the use of such weapons, including those resulting in death or serious harm to the health of the victims.
A new type of firearm.
Article 1 of the Federal Law introduces a new type of weapon called a limited-damage firearm.
It includes short-barreled weapons and barrel-less weapons intended for mechanical destruction of a living target at a distance by a projectile of a traumatic cartridge, which receives a directed movement due to the energy of a powder or other charge, and not intended to cause death to a person.
The name of the civilian self-defense weapon, the use of which was carried out with the use of a propellant charge and projectile equipment of traumatic action, was replaced by the Law with the name: civilian firearms of limited damage and service firearms of limited damage, or firearms of limited damage with cartridges of traumatic action.
All this is done in order to limit the output parameters of the traumatic cartridge, introduce some prohibitions and, most importantly, prohibit the carrying of civilian firearms of limited damage.
The Federal Law states that it must be impossible to fire cartridges from it, including projectiles used for shooting from combat hand-held small arms, service rifled weapons and smooth-bore firearms, civilian rifled weapons and smooth-bore long-barreled firearms.
This article also provides definitions for the concepts of «traumatic action cartridge», «gas action cartridge», «light and sound action cartridge» and «signal action cartridge».
Let's take a closer look…
Traumatic action cartridge— a device intended for firing a firearm or a limited-lethal firearm, which combines into a single unit, by means of a cartridge case, the means of initiation, the propellant charge, and the projectile, and is not intended to cause death to a person.
Gas-action cartridge— a device designed for firing from a gas weapon or from a limited-lethal firearm, which combines into a single whole, by means of a cartridge case, the means of initiation and equipment in the form of tear gas or irritants.
Light-and-sound cartridge — a device designed for firing from a firearm, from a limited-lethal firearm, from a gas or signal weapon, which combines into a single whole, by means of a cartridge case, the means of initiation and equipment of a light-and-sound action and is not intended to hit a living target.
Signal cartridge— a device designed for firing a firearm or a signal weapon, which combines into a single unit, by means of a cartridge case, the means of initiation, the propelling charge and the projectile to be fired to produce a light, smoke or sound signal and is not designed to hit a target.»
Restrictions on the use of weapons.
The Federal Law establishes the parameters of muzzle energy when firing traumatic cartridges from civilian smooth-bore long-barreled firearms, which should not exceed 150 J, and from civilian limited-damage firearms — 91 J.
Civilian weapons and cartridges for them must comply with the forensic requirements established by the federal executive body responsible for the development and implementation of state policy and legal regulation in the sphere of internal affairs (hereinafter referred to as the OVD), and agreed upon with the federal executive body responsible for the provision of public services, management of state property in the sphere of technical regulation and metrology (hereinafter referred to as Rostekhregulirovanie).
Forensic requirements form the basis of restrictions established on the circulation of civilian and service weapons.
The Law establishes limits for civilian and service weapons for traumatic cartridges.
As stated above, they should not exceed 150 and 91 J. However, the Federal Law and Article 6 of the Federal Law «On Weapons» (hereinafter referred to as the Law «On Weapons») grant the right to the Internal Affairs Directorate, agreed with Rostekhregulirovanie, to reduce the output parameters of weapons and traumatic cartridges specified in the Law if they have technical characteristics that do not meet forensic requirements.
In accordance with paragraph 10 of Article 10 of the Law of the Russian Federation «On the Police», the internal affairs agencies are responsible for issuing permits for the storage or storage and carrying of civilian and service weapons, transportation, import to the territory of the Russian Federation and export from the Russian Federation of the said weapons and ammunition for them, as well as permits for the storage and use of certain types and models of combat hand-held small arms received for temporary use from the internal affairs agencies, permits for the storage and transportation by road of explosive materials for industrial use; to monitor compliance with the rules for the circulation of service and civilian weapons established by federal law.
Article 6 of the Law «On Weapons» (Restrictions imposed on the circulation of civilian and service weapons) has been significantly amended. Thus, the prohibition on the use of gas weapons capable of causing moderate harm to the health of a person located at a distance of more than one meter has been excluded from the article.
The article has been supplemented with paragraph 21, prohibiting the carrying and transportation of pneumatic weapons in a loaded or equipped state within the boundaries of populated areas.
Let us present its contents in full: “carrying and transporting pneumatic weapons in a loaded (equipped) state within the boundaries of populated areas, as well as the use of such weapons within the boundaries of populated areas outside of buildings and areas specially adapted for sport shooting in accordance with the requirements established by the federal executive body exercising functions for the development and implementation of state policy and legal regulation in the sphere of internal affairs.”
This means that pneumatic weapons for self-defense purposes are difficult to carry or transport. Although, in accordance with Article 37 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, such a possibility exists.
Since the meaning of this article is that carrying pneumatic weapons is permitted only for the purpose of transporting and carrying them to the place of their use for shooting.
According to the drafters of the law, pneumatic weapons can be used for self-defense purposes only in buildings and areas specially adapted for sport shooting.
Clauses 8 and 9 of Article 6 of the Federal Law establish prohibitions on the sale or transfer of cartridges for civilian weapons to persons who do not legally own such civilian weapons, with the exception of the transfer of cartridges to persons involved in sports organizations in types of sport related to the use of firearms, or who undergo shooting training in educational institutions, and also prohibit the storage of cartridges for civilian weapons by persons who do not legally own such civilian weapons.
Article 12 of the Federal Law states that persons who have an unexpunged or unexpunged conviction for a crime committed intentionally, or in respect of whom a court has imposed a ban on engaging in certain professional or entrepreneurial activities in the sphere of arms circulation, or holding positions related to the registration, storage, issuance or use of firearms, ammunition and cartridges for firearms, are prohibited from working in organizations with special statutory tasks.
Persons who legally own weapons and have the right to carry them are prohibited from having weapons with them while participating in rallies, meetings, demonstrations, processions, pickets, religious rites and ceremonies, cultural and entertainment, sports and other public events, with the exception of persons directly participating in sports events with the use of sporting weapons, Cossacks participating in rallies of Cossack societies, religious rites and ceremonies, cultural and entertainment events associated with wearing the Cossack uniform, persons participating in religious rites and ceremonies, cultural and entertainment events associated with wearing national costume, in areas where wearing bladed cold weapons is an accessory to such costume, as well as persons authorized by the organizer of a certain public event to ensure public order and the safety of citizens, compliance with the law during its holding.
Organizers of cultural, entertainment and sports events have the right to temporarily store weapons belonging to citizens in accordance with this Federal Law.
It is prohibited to expose weapons if there are no grounds for their use, as provided for in the first part of this article (except for cases provided for by the legislation of the Russian Federation).
Rules for the acquisition of weapons by citizens.
The Federal Law completely replaces Article 13 (Right to acquire weapons by citizens of the Russian Federation) of the Law «On Weapons», which states that the right to acquire smooth-bore long-barreled self-defense firearms, civilian firearms of limited destruction, sporting weapons, hunting weapons, signal weapons, cold bladed weapons intended for wearing with national costumes of the peoples of the Russian Federation or Cossack uniforms, is enjoyed by citizens of the Russian Federation who have reached the age of 18, after receiving a license to acquire a specific type of weapon from the internal affairs agencies at their place of residence.
The age at which citizens of the Russian Federation can obtain permission to store or store and carry hunting smooth-bore firearms may be reduced by no more than two years by decision of the legislative (representative) body of state power of a constituent entity of the Russian Federation.
Citizens of the Russian Federation have the right to acquire gas pistols, revolvers, signal weapons, cold bladed weapons intended for wearing with national costumes of the peoples of the Russian Federation or Cossack uniforms on the basis of a license to acquire weapons with subsequent registration of the weapon within two weeks with the internal affairs agencies at the place of residence.
A license to acquire weapons may only allow registration of no more than five units of the specified types of weapons.
The license is issued by the internal affairs agency at the place of residence of a citizen of the Russian Federation and is simultaneously a permit for the storage and carrying of the specified types of weapons.
The license is valid for five years.
Upon expiration of the license, it can be extended in the manner prescribed by the Federal Law.
Mechanical sprayers, aerosols and other devices loaded with tear gas or irritants, electric shock devices and spark dischargers of domestic production, pneumatic weapons with a muzzle energy of no more than 7.5 J and a caliber of up to 4.5 mm inclusive are not subject to registration.
Citizens of the Russian Federation have the right to purchase them without obtaining a license.
Citizens of the Russian Federation have the right to acquire smooth-bore long-barreled firearms specified in paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of Part Two of Article 3 of the Law (self-defense weapons, sporting weapons, hunting weapons) for self-defense purposes without the right to carry them on the basis of a license issued by the internal affairs agencies at their place of residence.
Citizens of the Russian Federation who have been issued hunting licenses or membership hunting licenses have the right to acquire sporting and hunting smooth-bore long-barreled firearms and hunting pneumatic weapons.
Sporting smooth-bore long-barreled firearms, sporting pneumatic weapons with a muzzle energy of over 7.5 J and hunting smooth-bore long-barreled firearms may be purchased for participation in sports related to the use of firearms by citizens of the Russian Federation who have been issued a sports passport or a document confirming participation in sports related to the use of firearms by a sports organization or educational institution, in accordance with the statutory tasks performed by these organizations in the field of physical culture and sports.
Citizens of the Russian Federation who have been granted the right to hunt in the prescribed manner have the right to acquire hunting firearms with a rifled barrel, provided that they are engaged in professional activities related to hunting or have owned a smooth-bore long-barreled hunting firearm for at least five years.
Citizens of the Russian Federation who have been issued a sports passport or a certificate confirming their sports title in a sport related to the use of sports firearms, have the right to acquire long-barreled sport firearms with rifled barrels and cartridges for them, as well as long-barreled hunting firearms with rifled barrels and cartridges for them, for sports activities, provided that they are high-class athletes in the said sport or have owned smooth-bore long-barreled sport firearms for at least five years.
Citizens of the Russian Federation who are high-class athletes and who have been issued a sports passport or certificate confirming their sports rank in a sport related to the use of such sports weapons have the right to purchase short-barreled sporting firearms with rifled barrels and cartridges for them.
At the same time, the right to acquire hunting firearms with rifled barrels and sporting firearms with rifled barrels is granted to the specified categories of citizens, provided that they have not committed offenses related to the violation of hunting rules, rules for the production of weapons, arms trade, sale, transfer, acquisition, collection or display, registration, storage, carrying, transportation, transport and use of weapons.
The list of professions, the occupation of which gives the right to acquire hunting firearms with rifled barrels, is established by the executive authorities of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation.
The list of sports, participation in which gives the right to acquire sporting firearms with a rifled barrel, is established by the federal executive body exercising functions on the development and implementation of state policy and legal regulation in the sphere of physical culture and sports, in agreement with the federal executive body exercising functions on the development and implementation of state policy and legal regulation in the sphere of internal affairs.
The total number of hunting firearms with rifled barrels, sporting firearms with rifled barrels, smooth-bore long-barreled firearms acquired by a citizen of the Russian Federation must not exceed five units, limited-damage firearms — two units, except in cases where the listed types of weapons are collectibles.
Citizens of the Russian Federation who have a permit from the internal affairs bodies to store and carry hunting firearms have the right to acquire hunting cold bladed weapons.
Hunting cold bladed weapons are registered by a trade organization when selling these weapons in the manner prescribed by the federal executive body exercising functions for the development and implementation of state policy and legal regulation in the sphere of internal affairs.
Firearms, limited-damage firearms or hunting pneumatic weapons with a muzzle energy of over 7.5 J acquired by a citizen of the Russian Federation are subject to registration with the internal affairs agency at the place of residence within two weeks from the date of acquisition.
In the event of a change in place of residence, a citizen of the Russian Federation is obliged to apply to the relevant internal affairs agency within two weeks from the date of registration at the new place of residence with an application for registration of the weapon belonging to him.
A citizen of the Russian Federation shall be issued a permit for storage by the internal affairs agency at the place of residence upon registration of a smooth-bore long-barreled self-defense firearm; upon registration of a hunting long-barreled firearm, a sporting long-barreled firearm, a pneumatic weapon or a limited-damage firearm, for a period of five years on the basis of a document confirming the legality of the acquisition of the relevant weapon; upon registration of a sporting short-barreled firearm with a rifled barrel, for its storage and use at a shooting range for a period of five years without the right to carry.
The permit shall be extended in the manner prescribed by Article 9 of this Federal Law «On Weapons».
To obtain a license to acquire weapons, a citizen of the Russian Federation must submit to the internal affairs agency at the place of residence an application drawn up in the prescribed form, a document certifying citizenship of the Russian Federation, documents on completion of appropriate training and periodic testing of knowledge of the rules for the safe handling of weapons and the presence of skills for the safe handling of weapons, a medical report on the absence of contraindications to the possession of weapons related to visual impairment, mental illness, alcoholism or drug addiction, and other documents provided for by this Federal Law.
To obtain licenses for the acquisition of firearms and (or) pneumatic weapons with a muzzle energy of over 7.5 J for sports, a citizen of the Russian Federation must submit a petition to the All-Russian sports federation, accredited in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation, for the issuance of a corresponding license indicating the type of sport associated with the use of sports weapons.
Citizens of the Russian Federation who acquire civilian firearms, civilian firearms of limited destruction, gas pistols, revolvers or hunting pneumatic weapons for the first time, with the exception of citizens who have a permit to store or store and carry firearms, citizens serving in state paramilitary organizations and holding military ranks or special ranks or class ranks, or those discharged from these organizations with the right to a pension, are required to undergo training in order to study the rules for the safe handling of weapons and to acquire skills in the safe handling of weapons.
The list of organizations that have the right to conduct training for individuals in order to study the rules for the safe handling of weapons and to acquire skills in the safe handling of weapons is determined by the Government of the Russian Federation.
Requirements for the content of training programs for individuals, for the purpose of studying the rules of safe handling of weapons and acquiring skills in the safe handling of weapons, and the procedure for coordinating these programs shall be established by the federal executive body exercising functions on the development and implementation of state policy and legal regulation in the field of education, in agreement with the federal executive body exercising functions on the development and implementation of state policy and legal regulation in the sphere of internal affairs.
A license to acquire weapons is issued to citizens of the Russian Federation after they have completed the appropriate training and have tested their knowledge of the rules for safe handling of weapons and the skills to safely handle weapons, and in the absence of other grounds preventing their receipt.
Citizens of the Russian Federation who are owners of limited-damage firearms, gas pistols, revolvers, civilian smooth-bore long-barreled self-defense firearms are required to undergo testing of knowledge of the rules for safe handling of weapons and the skills of safe handling of weapons at least once every five years.
Testing of knowledge of the rules for safe handling of weapons and the skills of safe handling of weapons is carried out by organizations determined by the Government of the Russian Federation, in the manner established by the federal executive body exercising functions on the development and implementation of state policy and legal regulation in the sphere of internal affairs.
Citizens of the Russian Federation who are acquiring weapons for sports for the first time, when receiving a sports passport or a document confirming their involvement in sports involving the use of firearms, in a sports organization or educational institution, in accordance with the statutory tasks performed by these organizations in the field of physical culture and sports, are required to undergo a test of knowledge of the rules for the safe handling of weapons and the presence of skills in the safe handling of weapons in the All-Russian sports federation accredited in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation, in accordance with the program for studying the rules for the safe handling of weapons and the presence of skills in the safe handling of weapons, agreed upon with the federal executive body exercising functions for the development and implementation of state policy and legal regulation in the field of internal affairs.
A license to acquire weapons is not issued to citizens of the Russian Federation:
1. who have not reached the age established by this Federal Law;
2. who have not submitted a medical certificate of the absence of contraindications to the possession of weapons;
3. who have a criminal record for committing an intentional crime;
4. who are serving a sentence for a crime committed;
5.who have repeatedly committed within one year an administrative offence that encroaches on public order or the established order of management, or an administrative offence in the area of illegal trafficking of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances or their analogues, as well as the consumption of narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances without a doctor’s prescription;
6. who do not have a permanent place of residence;
7.who have not submitted to the internal affairs bodies documents confirming that they have completed the appropriate training and have tested their knowledge of the rules and skills for safe handling of weapons, and other documents specified in this Federal Law;
8. have been deprived of the right to acquire weapons by a court decision;
9. are registered with health authorities for mental illness, alcoholism or drug addiction.
The list of diseases in the presence of which the possession of weapons is contraindicated is determined by the Government of the Russian Federation.
Citizens of the Russian Federation who are owners of civilian firearms, civilian firearms of limited damage, gas pistols, revolvers, sporting pneumatic weapons, hunting pneumatic weapons are required to submit to the internal affairs bodies at least once every five years a medical certificate stating that there are no contraindications to owning weapons related to visual impairment, mental illness, alcoholism or drug addiction.
It is prohibited to purchase foreign-made limited-damage firearms, their main parts, and traumatic cartridges manufactured outside the territory of the Russian Federation, since their import into the territory of the Russian Federation is prohibited.
The seller is obliged to require the buyer to present a license for the purchase of the weapon and cartridges selected by him, with the exception of those types of weapons and cartridges for which a license is not required.
Structurally similar products to weapons, air rifles, pistols, revolvers with a muzzle energy of no more than 3 J, signal pistols, revolvers of a caliber of no more than 6 mm and cartridges for them, which, according to the conclusion of the Internal Affairs Directorate, cannot be used as firearms, firearms of limited destruction and gas weapons, are acquired without a license and are not registered.
Persons who legally own weapons and have the right to carry them are prohibited from having weapons on them while participating in rallies, meetings, demonstrations, processions, pickets, religious rites and ceremonies, cultural and entertainment, sports and other public events, with the exception of athletes directly participating in sports events with the use of sporting weapons, Cossacks participating in rallies of Cossack societies, religious rites, ceremonies and cultural and entertainment events associated with wearing the Cossack uniform, persons participating in religious rites and ceremonies and in cultural and entertainment events associated with wearing national costume, in areas where bladed weapons are an accessory to the national costume, as well as persons authorized by the organizer of a public event to ensure public order and the safety of citizens, as well as compliance with the law during its conduct.
Organizers of cultural, entertainment and sports events have the right to carry out temporary storage of weapons belonging to citizens in accordance with this Federal Law.