Firearm owners whose firearm licences have expired, or are in possession of unlicenced firearms, have only until 31 January to hand in firearms and ammunition, either for destruction or renewal of a competency certificate and a valid licence.

This is when the renewed Firearm Amnesty period expires.
An initial amnesty period which was intended for a period of six months, between December 2019 and May 2020, but was thwarted by the Covid-19 pandemic. Despite this, the South African Police Service received 46 714 firearms.

A further amnesty period was announced in August 2020.The police are urging people to take advantage of this period either to hand in illegal firearms and ammunition.

According to the police, the latest National Crime Statistics once again show that firearms were the preferred weapon in the commission of most of the violent crime. “Reducing the circulation of firearms may potentially reduce the scourge of violent crimes quite significantly,” the police said.

All firearms that have been handed in will undergo ballistic testing to ensure that they have not been used in the commission of any crimes, before they can be considered for destruction.

For Firearm Amnesty enquiries, please contact FLASH Call Center at 012 353 6111 or email on cfrenquiry@saps.gov.za