NZ firearm laws

This is an updating blog on the firarms regime in NZ

For fair legal advice regarding firearm issues you are best to seek advice from lawyers. Contact COLFO lawyers Franks Ogilvie

Contact information
Level 5
Wakefield House
90 The Terrace
Wellington 6011
PO Box 10388
The Terrace
Wellington 6143
Main: +64 4 815 8050
Fax: +64 4 815 8039
Email: info@franksogilvie.co.nz

Advice from experienced NZ firearm legal specialists that LFO's should record with their personal camera demonstrating;  firearm storage facilities are accordingly locked and used as evidence of police movements and conversations. Do not rely on police body cameras functioning or used as they rarely wear them. If cops make an error using firearm warrantless search law they have attempted to reinvent the law to create a reason for the search or seizure. Such as vaguely claiming firearms are not secure without substantiating and providing proof.

As far as fireams are concerned they are a law unto themselves so get advice early...read on.

An Act party Survey of licensed firearm owners (LFO's) collected from the ACT party Fair Firearms Law questionnaire reported  a dismal score for NZ police handling of LFO's at 1.5 / 10 reflecting the deep set of police created systemic failures summarized here.

In court, Colfo's lawyer Jack Hodder Kings Council said gun and ammunition owners' property rights had been "extinguished".

"All the property rights of value are gone."

"Law experts and gun owners are genuinely concerned over police use of warrant less search powers.

On New Year's Eve, police used the Search and Surveillance Act to conduct a warrant-less search of the Christchurch home of an anti-government, pro-gun pastor Carl Bromley to seize his gun and ammunition. Police said they had received concerns about a person’s well being.

With no warrant required by using section 18 of the act, officers “ransacked” his home and took his rifle, 500 rounds of ammunition and firearms parts. Bromley has not yet received his gun back from police.

Bromley said he had made no threat with his firearms, felt police violated his privacy and were overly forceful. He questioned whether the search was lawful.

In September, 81-year-old antique gun collector Robert Keenan had 110 guns confiscated along with his licence after police suspected he was supplying guns to gang members.

Before Christmas police wrote to Keenan's lawyer confirming he was not a threat and that he could have his guns back, but said they were concerned his home could be targeted by organised criminal gangs.

But Keenan had died, never knowing his license was being returned.

Keenan’s lawyer, firearms specialist Nicholas Taylor, said he had submitted legal letters for at least 12 firearms license owners after similar raids over the last year, winning the return of weapons for each because there were no legal grounds to remove them.

Taylor said many of the police searches were of elderly men, who lived alone, and he believed it was a trend.

A police spokesperson said: “I can tell you definitively that police do not have a policy targeting older gun owners.”

Taylor said he wanted an independent authority to investigate which gun owners warranted home searches by police, as such raids could amount to a breach of privacy and the Bill of Rights.

“Police are not particularly great administrators, and why should they be. We need an independent authority overlooking these.”

The Search and Surveillance Act 2012 allows police to conduct warrant-less searches if they suspect a gun license owner is of danger to themselves or the community.

A police officer in charge of a search can seek permission from an issuing officer either in person, over the phone, or by email.

An issuing officer is authorized by the attorney-general, who can approve any Justice of the Peace, community magistrate, registrar, deputy registrar or other person to act as an issuing officer.

The law allows police to move quickly and initiate and conduct such searches without the oversight of the court.

Christchurch criminal lawyer Anselm Williams said firearms law changes had not made it easier for police to conduct warrant-less searches, but police were taking more interest in gun owners since the 2019 terror attack.

“There is no requirement that the court even know that a search is going to be conducted or has been conducted.”

These powers mean there was risk of putting fit gun owners through unlawful property searches or firearms confiscations, he said.

While police needed to be allowed to do their job, the public also needed to be satisfied they were doing it properly and within the law, he said.

“In cases where a search has been conducted unlawfully, those involved should be held to account.”

There are about 250,000 firearms licensed gun owners in New Zealand. To get a license, Kiwis need to go through police interviewing, gain references and be determined as fit to possess firearms.

The Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Christchurch mosque attacks found police had not conducted these in full on the terrorist who killed 51 people.

Superintendent John Price says since the 2019 terror attacks, police have conducted more home searches for prohibited guns.

Canterbury district Superintendent John Price agreed firearms searches had increased.

“The environment that we operate in since March 15 has been heightened. It has changed drastically.

“What we know is if someone had an ideology or a view or opinion on something like March 15, it just escalates – it is like cream rising to the top.”

ACT Party justice spokeswoman Nicole McKee said all gun owners were being treated like “violent gang thugs or ... potential terrorists”.

McKee said cases like Keenan’s were not uncommon and police needed to be careful not to overstep their jurisdiction.

“Yes, we need to make sure firearms are in the hands of fit and proper people, but we need to make sure that power is not being abused.”

Well before the mosque attack, the home of journalist and author of Dirty Politics Nicky Hager was raided by police as part of an investigation into his sources. In 2018, police apologized and acknowledged they breached his rights.

Hager, who is not a gun owner, believed police were out of their depth and the search was a waste of time.

“They took it on like they were investigating a P (methamphetamine) raid, someone selling P.”

Police admitted they inappropriately obtained Hager’s banking information, and that they obtained a search warrant despite him not being “a suspect of any offending”.

Hager said the house search was unpleasant for him and his family, with his daughter having to be accompanied by a female officer to get changed in her bedroom.

“They were doing a drug raid, on territory to do with democracy and rights, that they just weren’t equipped for. It was over the top.”

Former New Zealand Herald and Stuff columnist Rachel Stewart found herself on the wrong side of the new gun laws when in June her .22 rifle was confiscated following a Tweet she made.

Police went to her home without a warrant and handed her documentation telling her she was unfit to hold a license, confiscating her gun and ammunition.

Police cited a specific tweet, as well as “consistent Twitter posts in which you demonstrate a tendency to exhibit hatred towards the transgender community”.

Stewart said the confiscation came six weeks after the Tweet and showed no urgency.

“How much of a threat was I if they waited that long to confiscate my firearms?”

After making a legal submission her firearms license was posted back a few weeks later."

The following is an email from ACT regardinganother weird action by police

"Here's an absolute doozy from the Firearms Safety Authority. They've asked an Afghanistan veteran to get a police check... from the Taliban!

I've been shown emails between the Firearms Safety Authority and an Officer of the New Zealand Army applying for a renewal of his firearms licence.

The applicant was told that, because he has spent more than six months in Afghanistan in the last ten years, he needs a criminal record check from the local Afghan authorities.

The incredulous applicant had to explain to the FSA that he was in Afghanistan serving Her Majesty in hostilities between New Zealand’s armed forces and the Taliban.

The Taliban, being the current authority in Afghanistan, would be the same group from whom he would now have to request a positive reference.

Experiences like this are exactly why licenced firearms owners have become fed up with the way Police exercise their powers through the FSA.

Veterans often want to maintain their interest in and skills with firearms after leaving the armed forces. But they’ve told me they are often treated with suspicion by the Police, as if they are all unstable and PTSD-addled. This is an utterly disrespectful way to treat those who fought for peace overseas.

ACT’s coalition commitment secured a transfer of responsibility for the FSA from Police to another department – work that Firearms Minister Nicole McKee is now progressing."

Another doozy;

Following quote is an excerpt from a police statement that was used as the sole basis for suspension of a licensed firearm owner's license, a law abiding citizen holding a pilot's license. The ammunition, parts and firearms were properly stored as prescribed within the storage and transportation of firearms and ammunition guide and approved by previous police vetting and according to three witnesses was locked.

Police adamantly ignored facts and claimed they relied on the following policeman's statement as expertise; “I am not familiar with the requirements around storage of firearms however this did not appear to be adequate.”

An image the untrained policeman recorded of the locked firearms storage on his mobile phone disappeared from the police record. A cupboard for ammunition the untrained policeman alleged had no lock was properly locked according to the three witnesses, including images supplied as further evidence of the locked cabinet without external screw heads according to requirements.

The evidence was supplied to police firearm resolution whom ignored and then failed to define any exact fault, despite requests what was wrong. NZ police responded vaguely and continuously claiming that storage was not up to date or the ammunition or firearms were unsecured. Consequently the LFO, witnesses and the public remain uninformed on how to improve firearm and ammunition storage as police provided no evidence of the alleged fault.

The only relief within the present system via district court. A further addition for taxpayer and LFO costs. A lawyer was employed and the license was returned.

When the LFO went to local station recover the license from the arms officer the LFO stated he had done nothing wrong. The arms officer pathetic response " was lucky to get it back" and defensively "it was his word against the police" and refered specifically to the policman whom had admitted in writing he was untrained and not familiar with the firearms act regulations and lied. No explanation of any fault was offered for the LFO to improve storage of the firearms. The same arms officer had held the same position for several years indicating that police are dissinterested in following law and are actively treating firearms property and the law as a recreational police domain.

ACT's Nicole McKee reviewed the police conduct; "Police are making criminals of firearm owners. I would hope that a regime we implement will make things better, but I fully expect that there will teething problems in any new regime, its how we deal with it that matters. First and foremost it means taking LFOs on the same journey as us, not excluding them and treating them like gang members".

Recently a police prosecutor was fined $20000 after proven in court he withheld defense evidence. This is an overdue first and needed accountability for a fair system where police are held personally responsible like everyone else in NZ however it illustrates police are not capable in the role as ad hoc arbitrator for firearms resolution. Their job and function is biased toward prosecution. The not so bright political parties that envisioned and wrote the present and clearly unbalanced system into law applying police as the arbitrator; NZ First, Labour, Greens , National.

A district firearm officer ordered registered firearms belonging to one LFO must also be registered by another LFO whom was storing the firearms, a double registration. There is no requirement in the firearms act or any provision within the police firearm register. Gun City commented that local firearm officer interpretations of the act will vary from town to town.

NZ police information security audit scored low reflecting the publicly known events of unsecured storage of firearm owners identities lost or stolen and discovered in criminals possession also emailed to wrong recipients. Resulting in theft of firearms and personal I.D. theft has reinforced LFO's registration concerns that police are unable to repair security breach failures.

In December 2002, reported that the Canada registration project was running vastly above initial cost estimates. The report showed that the implementation of the firearms registry program has had significant strategic and management problems throughout. Taxpayers were originally expected to pay only $2 million of the budget while registration fees would cover the rest. In 1995, the Department of Justice reported to Parliament that the system would cost $119 million to implement, and that the income generated from  fees would be $117 million. This gives a net cost of $2 million. At the time of the 2002 audit, however, the revised estimates from the Department of Justice were that the cost of the whole gun control program would be more than $1 billion by 2004-05 and that the income from license fees in the same period would be $140 million.

At the same time according to Pharmac, the NZ health system cannot afford 280 million for special treatment drugs to save and prolong lives.

ACT Party policy election claims;

ACT has always stood up for LFOs and always promised that any policy would include thorough consultation with the LFO community. You can make your voice heard and provide feedback by emailing firearmspolicy@act.org.nz.

Some highlights of ACT’s policy include:

• Creating a separate, truly independent Firearms Safety Authority for licensing administration
• Scrapping the firearms registry
• Introducing a three-tier licensing system which recognizes that all firearms pose a threat in the wrong hands, and that licensing the individual is the key to preventing misuse. This system will adopt a risk mitigation approach without outright banning possession of semi-automatics.
• Instant license disqualification for gang membership
• Recognizing overseas offenses in the vetting process.

As per the abuse examples described NZ police tend to extend restrictions toward abiding LFO's where police patently lack requisite training and are keen to exert their fertile imaginations, abundant time, tax funded resources available and no care, all while avoiding confrontations with Gang patches as per police representive Chris Cahill's statement; “outside of Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, there’d be very few police districts that would have enough staff to enforce the new rules on a group of gang members in patches.”

Take the law abiding guns and thow them into the crushers and avoid the gang patches is the police rep's fervent message.

Police use the new ad hoc gang assembly laws for lawfare which is actually illegal according to the present bill of rights against groups of more than five, shooting clubs and to shut down freedom of speech such as Destiny Church on a bike ride to telegraph Brian Tamaki's opinions that don't mesh with a police version resulting in ad hoc raids by cops whom have no memory regarding actual law as per the iterated examples and the prosecutions of award winning journalists whom are simply publishing established facts police don't like.

“The act also allows for a subtle but important broadening of the scope of gangs to be included in schedule 3 compared to the NGL. Police’s Gang Harm Insights Centre has and continues to assess gangs that may meet the new criteria.” 

The vague may meet new criteria will be applied to any group they don't like.

Luxon commented in the news on March the 15 "NZ should be more inclusive". A reversal of him creating laws for control of vaguely designated groups within society.

So the following survey is from Berkley USA. A haven for all things left:
"Globally, New Zealand and Sweden swapped places from last year to take the first and second spots on the list of most inclusive countries, respectively, with Norway holding on to third place for the second straight year.
This was the first year New Zealand came in first place, although it regularly scores very high along with Northern European countries known for their strong social safety net programs."
 
 
Polititians with selective memories whom are all in favor of banning firearms in law abiding homes ingnore the fact Tarrant the mosque lone shooter was a foreigner.

As a front man for Air NZ Luxon could  brush up on that positivity that he promised he would bring to the job. Perhaps state facts in his speech as they are, NZ was the leader in the world for inclusivity and the crime was perpetrated by a foreigner that the police firstly failed by wrongly granting the perpetrator a firearms license and now in a state of over compensating created the negative 1.5/10 survey score.

Cahill from the police union has been complaining about ACT's McKee recently as she attends to correcting the arms act problems. Cahill is living within the same police bubble that creates the score of 1.5 out ot 10.

Deerstalkers(DS) and others are supplying submissions to rewrite shooting clubs regulations that thay have discovered through trying to implement them are difficult to work with. Under an official information request to police DS are seeking proof that there is a safety issue on DS ranges that have historically been safe with only 2 out of some 14 incidences that have been notified on shooting ranges the other 12 were reported form police cerified pistol ranges and it is easy to conclude that the police regualted ranges are worse for safety than DS ranges. So they are simply requesting the police to proved what basis they have to support their regulations to be reviewd by ACT's McKee's panel and then base mitigating regulations on the reported risk.

ACT and Mckee are preparing to remove fireams resolution from police so thay can get on with actual work instead of imagined risks.

From our experience we had 2 concrete saws and tools stolen valued over $5000 that is a man's livelihood and no police turned up. A neighbour had a camera and police were advised and they failed to contact the neighbour. A child with clear mental issues was running around the neighbourhood with no clothes and throwing "their" own faeces and stones at property and no police turned up despite numerous locals warning Taupo police. After a prolonged period of months the behavior only stopped when the mother was evicted and the problems moved to another place. No risk assessment for the future or care about property performed.

NZ Herald reports;

"A man who tried to invade the home of a 74 year old Hamilton woman also tried to get into another address on the same street after police were a no-show at the elderly woman’s incident.

Toria Newman told the Herald last week when she heard knocking on her door at 3am on October 28, she opened it thinking it was the friend who’d left a few minutes before. However, it was a man, who increasingly aggressively asked to use the phone.

The 74-year-old has cerebral palsey and couldn’t defend herself but was able to loudly tell the man to leave.

Newman rang the police to report the incident – but police told her they were too busy to come straight away. The dispatcher told her to log a report online."

Now, another Hamilton East resident says the same man tried to get into her home three hours later on the same morning.

Meth in various Waikato towns has doubled in use.

Voting has worked in the past as shown by the Game Animal Council that was vigorously opposed by DoC was enacted by the United Future Party and Peter Dunne. Combined with NZ Deer Stalkers Assn. they have carried out research directly countering DoCs exagerated claims that Deer, Tahr and game are deemed a risk to global warming also 1080 deer repellent actual use is another example of progress toward recognizing "game" animals  as a resource.

It does look like voting is working again to rewrite the current police state control created by the last lot of polititians and police over firearms without input from owners.

Currently normal Kiwi's are put off from aquiring a gun license.

A look at the funny side of what they are capable of culminating within NZ courtesy of the Taxpayers Union;
$4,027,020 on the Oranga (Wellbeing) Project - including treating Kauri dieback with potions made from Whale-oil and music from whale song (yes, seriously) as part of the MBIE-administered National Science Challenges.

Research methods in this project included healing Kauri trees through using "sonic samples of healthy whales to construct a tapestry of rejuvenation and wellbeing.”

Commenting on this, Taxpayers’ Union spokesman Jordan Williams said “when did science become a laughing stock?”

“Kauri dieback is a natural disaster. I’m no biologist, but I can confidently say a whale-song mix-tape isn’t going to stop it. Nor are pagan potions made from whale-oil on the basis, apparently, that whales once walked the Earth and are the brothers of Kauri trees.”

“At the same time the Government’s plugging economic growth through science and innovation, we find out that the Strategic Science Investment Fund has been used to play nautical noises at trees.”

“The Taxpayers’ Union are all for blue-sky thinking. But if the Government’s chucking millions at any ‘research’ project which comes begging, a common-sense check might be needed if even this one’s made it past the keeper.”

The experiment proved one thing, that they are complete idiots.

Sister in law worked at Hunting and Fishing. To sell a $4 sling swivel had to fill out the cop forms and the customer got annoyed had to give address, probably didn't vote Act either. A register for swivels. Clearly all those whom wrote the law simply gave the keys to the cops to drive wherever the hell they thought they can and that's a police state by definition. Whom else would have thought of such a mistrusting thing to do. They have zero trust for gun owners.

To be precise it was a screw type. 3D printers are going to give them a proper melt down.
Perspective on H&F they were 100% for the semi ban, the more crazy the cops are the better for their business as it eliminates others from supplying things like swivels etc.
There was a very popular supplier on TM, ar15 and that was the end of him and his business when these new laws came in.

Lalaland or New Zealand. 
Update for the registration promise;

The ACT Party has formally invoked its "agree to disagree" clause in its coalition agreement with National over the firearms registry. Remember that Seymour didn't actually vote against this present system. He only abstained from the vote which is an important note as this blog progresses.

ACT MP and Associate Minister of Justice (Firearms), Nicole McKee, said earlier this months she asked Cabinet to consider that the recent review of the firearms registry did not meet the commitment in ACT's coalition agreement, and asked for a more thorough and independent review be conducted in the 2025/26 financial year.

She said those proposals were rejected by National.

Another episode of registration failure is at police data entry level. This one involves a simple storage of several fireams at another LFO's address and cops decided to type into the computor and register the firearms as owned by the license firearm holder at the storage address. Causing the owner and the storer time correcting the fiasco and another waste of taxpayers hard earned dollars. A serious breach considering current heavy handed treatment of firearm owners by the system. The cops are unable to enter the data correctly at a basic level, consequently they had no idea who owned the firearms therefor the registration was a waste and also in respect to registering the legal possession of the firearms a total failure.

Keep it simple for them and provide them with a multi million $ modern computor data entry system and they are still able to stumble over.

A Google AI take on the matter and what is generally known as true by the public.;

"Yes, firearm owners in New Zealand are generally required to register their firearms with the Firearms Registry, a part of the Firearms Safety Authority. This requirement applies to most firearms, including non-prohibited firearms, prohibited firearms, and certain parts or accessories."

Apparently claimed by one cop by a phone call their system cannot record the person who legally owns firearms stored at another address. This causes a real problem when selling and nobody knows this failing feature therefor are at risk when transfering a firearm to a buyer. According to the cop the registered LFO storer behaves as the firearm owner the firearm is registered on the storers license and the storer acts as the seller and transfers the firearm to buyer with license. Most will be thinking it's fine for the the owner to do a physical transfer and instead are in real legal peril. Nope the owner these days has nothing to do with it in these circumstances. Even though its one LFO handing it to another LFO that is now illegal according to the cop. They have zero trust for gun owners.

LFO's shoud be really clear and must double check on what cops are doing at the start to ensure all is correct to avoid errors. They don't tell the owner the guns are on the storers license. Going back to earlier advice here you should record phone calls and avoid claims it was your fault. Any dealings with police it is advisable to record to be safe than sorry.

Also opens another possible can of worms made legal according to the cop that storing firearms at another address you better have a great relationship unless you have a fallout and the storer claims ownership. This is amateur law writing by the other parties, Labour, National, and the rest whereby they have failed to supply a record of who owns a firearm. The present computor data storeage system cannot record a single firearm storage place and legal ownership in respect to the debacle that has been outlined here.

As an average inventor In my spare time I write patents and what can pass in NZ will need more detail in other jurisdictions such as the US. Vague and make things up seems to be a norm here.

Perhaps due to most hate the register and only a tenth have registered...they were politically afraid to make it more  detailed to include both storage and legal owner and intrusive or maybe it was a few $ too costly on the budget so the cops ommited the IT upgrade to include them both. The FSA already had to abandon their plans to require seperate registration for magazines after they discovered that magazines often have serial numbers longer than 16 digits and their database did not allow for SN's longer than that.

For firearm owners it is simple that their guns should be on their license and once again as the Kings council up the top noted all property rights have been extinguished and this is an extra example of these careless laws; If you own a gun and have it stored its on the storers license.

Dumbing it down for the cops. It is a reality, the news reports of qualifying a swim test without getting wet for the newbies to become cops. Intially it was limited to 100 or so of these newbies and that grew to admitting over 300 had not qualified.

After trying their best to sneak it past AI sums it up;

"The NZ Police is now ordering recruits to return for the assessment, which is part of the training to help officers make informed decisions in water emergencies. The Ministry of Justice is also conducting a review of the recruitment process to ensure other standards are not compromised."

Doing things by their book applies to us.

The latest from McKee and we got her all wrong, she is now acting like a Labour MP and having an Ardern with her use of regime.  A reverse of Roger Douglas, for those that are younger he created the liberal ACT party.

So read this brain wave from her;

Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee told Stuff the Arms Act currently does not specifically regulate 3D printing, adding “this is something I have publicly stated needs to be addressed”.
Those reforms would include rewriting the Act to create “a fit-for-purpose regime which has public safety, effective regulatory processes and compliance at its heart”.

So these will get that same registration. They are incapable of writing fit for purpose law. It will be another mess.

3d printers aren't new overseas and here she is having an Ardern. "Regime"..it appears so and will add another later of messy guano. A while ago it was drones. No other country regulates 3D printers or other similar tools.

Currently May 25, it is generally an hour long wait to contact the firearm safety authority via phone. With only a portion of the of registered firearm owners using the system. She wants to add more.

They were having a paranoid episode over drones while Ardern was in, so now its printers as if they have nothing better to fix and unable solve the meth problem easily arguably the biggest root problem for crime here.

Get a bow guys?

You can mount them on a wall for display with your other trophies, no need for a costly H&F safe, able to transport one legally unlike the impossible to actually transport a gun and stay overnight anywhere, no need to register the feather on an arrow or a swivel.

At the local archery club are a number whom like the freedom and thought about trying to obtain a gun and decided wasn't worth going through the hoops of cops who make up their own laws. 

I have personally fired cheap Chinese carbon arrows hundreds of times in my back yard, worn down the paint on the bow grip and they are still going ok. I'd be questioning it as a recreation If it was at ammunition costs plus the bow is a fraction of  gun costs.

Ok let's a have a look at arrow vs ammo cost. 308 @ $4 each and since a properly placed broadhead will kill a Moose the same as a 308. Conservatively shot an arrow 500 times for target is $2000 @ the 308 cost per round and each shot from a bow requires a little more skill than a rifle. .22 @ 4c is a different story but our arrows at time of typing are only $10 each so 1/2 cost of mighty economical .22 and you also cannot shoot .22 it in the back yard these days like a bow also a bow will not cause hearing loss when you get old plus you are definitely healthier after firing that many arrows.

Another one of the great things is that there is no more tedious bore cleaning after shooting your bow. For a fussy guy like me includes costly Boretech and repititious time.

Have a look at ELK bow hunt videos from the USA they are really great. I'd argue better than rifle hunts as it invokes more interaction with the deer.

We have some bow gear at great prices.