Fire-arm Training and accreditation

Fire-arm Training and accreditation

Our associated partner is an accredited fire-arm training service provider. This include an accredited
fire-arm club for dedicated shooting membership. We can assist applicants for fire-arm motivations.
We will also assist with the legal requirements for business firearm operations and registers
administration.

Firearm Control Act and Requirements

The FCA adopts a broad definition of “firearm,” which includes

  • any device that can “propel a bullet or projectile through a barrel or cylinder by means of burning propellant, at a muzzle energy exceeding 8 joules (6 ft-lbs)”;
  • anything with the capacity to “to discharge rim-fire, centre-fire or pin-fire ammunition”;
  • any device that can be “readily altered” to be any of the above-listed firearms;
  • any device designed to discharge any projectile of at least .22 calibre at a muzzle energy of more than 8 joules (6 ft-lbs), by means of compressed gas; or
  • any barrel, frame, or receiver of a device mentioned above.

However, the FCA excludes various devices that would otherwise be considered firearms under this definition.  Explosive-powered tools designed for industrial application for splitting rocks or concrete, or for application in the mining or steel industry for removing refractory materials, are not considered firearms.  Also not considered firearms are stun bolts used in slaughterhouses, antique firearms,air guns, tranquilizer firearms, paintball guns, flare guns, and deactivated firearms. In addition, the FCA authorizes the Minister of Safety and Security (the Minister) to exclude any other device.

The FCA stipulates limited exceptions in which prohibited firearms may be licensed for private and public collections as well as for use in theatrical, film, or television productions.  However, the FCA Regulations impose rigorous requirements that need to be met for the proper utilization of these exceptions.

The FCA also authorizes the Minister to add any firearm to the prohibited firearms category if doing so is “in the interest of public safety or desirable for the maintenance of law and order.”

Right's to possessing a firearm.

In South Africa, the right to possess firearms is not guaranteed by law.  The FCA imposes a general ban on the possession of firearms except in limited circumstances, and they may be possessed only with a license, permit, or authorization issued under the provisions of the FCA.

Certain firearms are categorized as prohibited firearms and cannot ordinarily be possessed or licensed under the FCA.  These include any

(a) fully automatic firearm;

(b) gun, cannon, recoilless gun, mortar, light mortar or launcher manufactured to fire a rocket, grenade, self-propelled grenade, bomb, or explosive device;

(c) frame, body, or barrel of such a fully automatic firearm, gun, cannon, recoilless gun, mortar, light mortar, or launcher;

(d) projectile or rocket manufactured to be discharged from a cannon, recoilless gun or mortar, or rocket launcher;

(e) imitation of any device contemplated in paragraph (b), (c), excluding the frame, body, or barrel of a fully automatic firearm, or (d); or

(f) [altered firearm].

Competency Certificates, Licenses, Permits, Authorizations, and Accreditation

The FCA requires accreditation before a license for certain activities or businesses related to firearms can be issued. These include public collectors or museums; hunting associations or sport-shooting organizations; collectors’ associations; shooting ranges; those that provide training in the use of firearms; those that provide firearms for use in theatrical, film, or television productions; game ranchers; those that run hunting businesses; those that use firearms for business purposes; and government institutions.

Competency Certificate

The FCA requires that an application to possess a firearm, trade in firearms, manufacture firearms, or be licensed as a gunsmith be submitted to a Firearms Officer for the area where the applicant currently maintains or will in the future maintain his or her residence or business.  A first-time application for a competency certificate may be granted only if the applicant is at least twenty-one years old; is a citizen or a permanent resident; is a “fit and proper person” for the license he or she is seeking; is stable and does not have a proclivity for violence; does not have a substance-abuse problem; has no conviction within the five years immediately preceding the application for certain crimes related to violence, dishonesty, recklessness, or instability; has not “become or been declared unfit to possess a firearm” under the FCA or the 1969 AAA within the five years preceding the application; and has completed all the required tests on his understanding of the FCA, the training and test for the safe and effective use of a firearm, and all other applicable training and tests for the specific license he or she is seeking. Competency certificates are not permanent.  A competency certificate to possess a firearm, trade in firearms, manufacture firearms, or open a gunsmith business is valid for as long as the license to which it relates remains valid, unless the certificate is terminated or renewed.  A competency certificate relating to a muzzle-loading firearm is issued for ten years. The FCA Regulations impose additional requirements.  For instance, it requires anyone who provides a recommendation on behalf of any applicant to attest that the applicant is a fit and proper person to be issued a competency certificate, license, permit, or authorization; is in stable mental condition and does not have a propensity for violence; and does not suffer from a substance-abuse problem.

Personal Use

This will teach you when you can use your firearm for self-defence or lethal force (deadly force) you will also learn the following: Requirements of self-defence To shoot or not to shoot? The fundamentals of shooting Target identification How to do a safety inspection How and when to clean your firearm The parts of the firearms How to load and unload a firearm the safe way

Business Use

This will teach you how to use your firearm correctly for business purposes, and how to identify a safe direction in various environments you will also learn the following: Safe direction in a public place Safety precautions Unloading and loading of firearm How to carry a firearm in a public place The main parts of a firearm Function of the main parts of a firearm The 5 different ways to stand when shooting Sight alignment The difference between cover and concealment

Shooting Range

At the shooting range you will complete your practical shooting and the range officer will assess you on the way that you use the firearm, the way you shoot at your targets and if you are standing the correct way.

The shooting range also has the following benefits:
Indoor shooting range
On-site firearms & ammunition
Safety glasses and earmuffs included
Accredited range officer to assist you

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