Order Fixing March 7, 2025 as the Day on Which Section 34 and Subsections 35(2) and 38(1) of An Act to amend certain Acts and to make certain consequential amendments (firearms) Come into Force: SI/2025-23

Canada Gazette, Part II, Volume 159, Number 6

Registration
SI/2025-23 March 12, 2025

AN ACT TO AMEND CERTAIN ACTS AND TO MAKE CERTAIN CONSEQUENTIAL AMENDMENTS (FIREARMS)

Order Fixing March 7, 2025 as the Day on Which Section 34 and Subsections 35(2) and 38(1) of An Act to amend certain Acts and to make certain consequential amendments (firearms) Come into Force

P.C. 2025-189 February 25, 2025

Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of State (Public Safety), under subsection 73(1) of An Act to amend certain Acts and to make certain consequential amendments (firearms), chapter 32 of the Statutes of Canada, 2023, fixes March 7, 2025 as the day on which section 34 and subsections 35(2) and 38(1) of that Act come into force.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order.)

Proposal

This Order in Council, pursuant to section 73(1) of An Act to amend certain Acts and to make certain consequential amendments (firearms) [former Bill C-21], fixes March 7, 2025, as the day on which section 34 and subsections 35(2) and 38(1) come into force.

Objective

The objective of this Order in Council is to set the coming-into-force date for the new licence suspension regime in the Firearms Act, which requires a Chief Firearms Officer (CFO) to suspend a firearms licence when they have reasonable grounds to suspect that the licence holder is ineligible to hold it.

This Order supports the Government of Canada’s ongoing commitment to reduce firearms crime and strengthen Canada’s firearms control regime to keep Canadians safe.

Background

The purpose of a firearms licence is to demonstrate that a licence holder is authorized to acquire and possess firearms. To be eligible for a licence, a firearms licence applicant must complete a safety course and meet criteria set out in the Firearms Act and its regulations.

Eligibility for a firearms licence is determined by a CFO, who must consider a number of factors, including but not limited to, whether the applicant has been convicted of certain offences, has a history of violence, or has been prohibited from communicating with someone due to an order. CFOs can also take into account other firearms-related concerns related to storage, transportation, or use when determining the eligibility of a licence holder. If a person or business receives a firearms licence after being deemed eligible, they will be subject to continuous eligibility screening to ensure ongoing compliance with the Firearms Act.

Prior to the coming into force of the new licence suspension regime, if a CFO suspected a licence holder was ineligible for a firearms licence, but had not yet decided whether to revoke the licence, the licence holder maintained all authorizations associated with the licence until the CFO made a final decision on whether to revoke it.

To strengthen the licensing regime, the Government of Canada introduced a new licence suspension regime through An Act to amend certain Acts and to make certain consequential amendments (firearms) [former Bill C-21], which received royal assent on December 15, 2023. This Bill amended the Firearms Act to require a CFO to suspend a licence for up to 30 days when they have reasonable grounds to suspect the licence holder is no longer eligible for it.

Under the new licence suspension regime, a licence suspension must be initiated any time a CFO receives and reviews information that provides them reasonable grounds to suspect the licence holder is not eligible for a firearms licence, provided that the information does not warrant immediate revocation of the firearms licence.

Reasonable grounds to suspect is an evidentiary threshold that consists of two components — subjective and objective. The CFO must subjectively hold an honest suspicion that the holder of a licence is no longer eligible to hold it. That subjective suspicion must also be based on objectively discernible facts that, when all evidence has been taken in account, lead the CFO to conclude that there is a credible possibility that the licence holder is ineligible.

A licence suspension will not be initiated when there are already grounds to revoke a firearms licence. If a licence holder becomes subject to statutory revocation (e.g. as a consequence of a prohibition order issued under the Criminal Code), or if a CFO has reasonable grounds to believe that the holder is no longer eligible (e.g. as a consequence of the CFO possessing information to that effect), the licence will be revoked rather than suspended.

Any member of the public — such as a family member, friend, neighbour, coworker, and others — can contact a CFO with information about a licence holder that might be relevant to a licence holder’s continued eligibility. This can be done via the existing toll-free telephone number for contacting CFOs. For example, someone could tell a CFO that a licence holder has failed to properly store firearms in accordance with regulatory requirements, or is suspected of illegally reselling firearms.

If this information gives the CFO reasonable grounds to suspect the licence holder is no longer eligible and a revocation is not immediately required, the CFO must suspend the licence for up to 30 days and send a notice of the suspension to the licence holder.

This notice must include the reasons for the decision, the nature of information relied on, the duration of the suspension, and a copy of sections 69.1, 69.2, and 70 of the Firearms Act. These sections outline licence suspension requirements as they pertain to the CFO (e.g. notice requirements and when and how a suspension may be issued and terminated), the impacts of a licence suspension on a licence holder, and the consequences of non-compliance during the suspension. When providing the notice to the licence holder, the CFO has discretion to withhold information that in their opinion could endanger the safety of any person.

During the suspension, the licence holder’s authorizations to use, acquire, or import firearms are suspended and they are prohibited from using, acquiring or importing firearms under any circumstances. These prohibitions apply even when using a firearm is normally possible without a licence, such as when using a borrowed firearm under the licensed firearm owner’s direct supervision. If a CFO becomes satisfied the grounds for the suspension no longer exist before it expires, they must terminate the suspension and notify the licence holder. The CFO can revoke a firearms licence if the licence holder acquires, imports, or uses firearms while their licence is suspended.

The CFO must also keep a record of every licence subject to a suspension under the Firearms Act. That information will be held in the same record management systems with the same privacy protections as other personal information collected in the administration of the firearms licensing regime. As this information relates to the licence holder’s eligibility for a firearms licence, this information does not differ from information currently collected by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police’s (RCMP) Canadian Firearms Program (CFP) and CFOs as part of the firearms licensing regime.

The licence suspension regime was not brought into force when former Bill C-21 received royal assent. In order to facilitate the implementation of the legislative changes, regulatory amendments to the Firearms Licences Regulations were required. These amendments come into force on March 7, 2025. The regulatory amendments ensure that notices of licence suspension follow the existing procedures for notices of licence refusal and revocation.

The regulatory amendments set rules on how a notice of licence suspension can be sent and how long after being sent a notice of licence suspension is deemed to be received. Determining when a licence suspension notice is deemed to be received by the licence holder reflects the method of delivery (i.e. electronically, by mail, or in person) and the type of licence holder receiving the notice (i.e. a business or an individual).

Furthermore, the RCMP CFP needed time to prepare for the implementation, including making changes to administrative and information management (IM) systems.

Implications

This Order brings into force a regime that provides CFOs with an administrative tool to temporarily stop a licence holder’s use, acquisition, and importation of firearms while investigating concerns related to their firearms licence eligibility.

Impact on licence holders

A licence suspension can apply to both business and individual firearms licences. Any information that a CFO receives that leads them to have reasonable grounds to suspect a licence holder is no longer eligible for their firearms licence requires the CFO to initiate a licence suspension for up to 30 days if the licence has not already been revoked.

When a licence holder is subject to a licence suspension, they can retain possession of their firearms (i.e. they do not need to be surrendered). However, for the length of the suspension, the licence holder cannot use, acquire or import a firearm under any circumstances. There are no exceptions for sustenance hunting or the exercise of rights reaffirmed in section 35 of the Constitution Act (1982) in the legislative regime enacted by Parliament.

If a business becomes subject to a licence suspension, they also cannot acquire, use, or import firearms, but they can continue to export or sell firearms if their business licence authorizes them to do so. To be eligible to hold a firearms business licence, a business must meet certain requirements. This includes a requirement that every employee of the business who is required to handle firearms as part of their job duties must have a valid firearms licence that authorizes them to acquire the classification of firearms that the business is authorized to acquire. For example, if a business has only non-restricted firearms, employees handling those firearms must have a licence authorizing them to acquire non-restricted firearms. As with a licence revocation, a suspension may require the business to take action, such as, but not limited to, reassigning duties or suspending or terminating employment to maintain compliance with their licence requirements.

When under a suspension, firearms in the licence holder’s possession must continue to be stored and transported securely in accordance with requirements set out in the Storage, Display and Transportation of Firearms and Other Weapons by Individuals Regulations or the Storage, Display and Transportation of Firearms and Other Weapons by Businesses Regulations.

The CFO may receive information that a licence holder has used, acquired, or imported firearms during a suspension through a variety of mechanisms. For example, a business may try to confirm the validity of a suspended buyer’s licence with the CFO before selling them a firearm, notifying the CFO of an attempt to acquire firearms during a suspension.

If a licence holder does not comply with the requirements of a licence suspension, the CFO may revoke their firearms licence. Furthermore, if a licence holder knowingly imports firearms while their licence is suspended, they could be charged under section 103 of the Criminal Code for an import-related offence.

During the suspension period, if the CFO no longer has grounds to believe that a licence holder is ineligible for a firearms licence, the CFO must terminate the suspension and notify the licence holder that their authorizations are reinstated. Conversely, if the CFO determines the licence holder is not eligible during or after the suspension period, the CFO may revoke the suspended licence in accordance with the Firearms Act.

A suspension period cannot be extended. However, if a suspension expires before the CFO has determined the licence holder’s eligibility, the CFO may continue the investigation. The CFO may also issue a subsequent suspension based on new information obtained during the investigation.

Consultation

Consultations were held as part of the clause-by-clause review of former Bill C-21. Several witnesses appeared before the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security (SECU) and Standing Senate Committee on National Security, Defence and Veterans Affairs (SECD) throughout 2022 and 2023 to provide input on former Bill C-21.

Some concerns were raised by stakeholders regarding the initial licence suspension provisions in which the CFO had discretion to initiate a licence suspension when they had reasonable grounds to suspect ineligibility. Stakeholders noted that due to this discretion, there was a possibility that the CFO would not initiate a suspension despite suspecting the person was ineligible, creating an opportunity for continued harm or misuse. These concerns resulted in amendments which made it mandatory that a licence suspension be initiated once the CFO has reasonable grounds to suspect ineligibility.

Others were concerned about the continued possession of firearms during a licence suspension, with some stakeholders indicating the tool was inappropriate for use in situations of gender-based and intimate partner violence. Stakeholders noted that other tools would be more suitable to intervene when there is a risk of harm, such as calling emergency services or making a court-based application for protection, such as those under the “red flag” laws which were also introduced by former Bill C-21. Public Safety is currently communicating via numerous channels the broad range of tools available to prevent harm or firearms misuse, including calling emergency services, using court-based tools, or contacting the CFP or police of jurisdiction with concerns that do not involve immediate harm, such as those related to storage or transportation or use of licence for unlawful purposes.

Representatives of Indigenous organizations recommended altering the law to ensure respect for Indigenous treaty rights, sought clarification on how these laws would apply, and recommended that Indigenous elders and communities be consulted on decisions related to suspending a firearms licence. Representatives of some Indigenous organizations also raised concerns about the potential for the licence suspension regime to create an opportunity for people to abuse the system and target individuals, while others proposed a longer licence suspension period. A non-derogation clause was added to former Bill C-21 providing that the provisions within the former Bill are to be interpreted as upholding the rights of Indigenous peoples recognized and affirmed by section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982. Similar issues were raised as Public Safety Canada held discussions with Indigenous organizations on the implementation of former Bill C-21 in late 2024.

Parliamentary debate did not result in further amendments to the licence suspension provisions. Suspensions must meet the legal threshold, are very limited in length, and must be terminated if the investigation reveals the licence holder remains eligible. Impacted licence holders can provide information to the CFO on their continued eligibility for a firearms licence if they believe the licence suspension and related eligibility concern are not justified. If the CFO subsequently agrees that the grounds for the suspension are no longer present, they must terminate the suspension and restore the licence holder’s authorizations to use, acquire, and import firearms.

The 30-day maximum helps to minimize potential impacts on licence holders who become subject to a licence suspension but are later determined to still be eligible for a firearms licence.

Following the licence suspension provisions’ adoption at SECU, the Government held discussions and technical briefings on former Bill C-21 with a wide range of stakeholders, and received no further feedback specific to the licence suspension provisions.

Implementation

The legislative changes made through former Bill C-21 and the Regulations Amending the Firearms Licences Regulations (Notice of Suspension) come into force on March 7, 2025.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police’s (RCMP) Canadian Firearms Program (CFP) manages firearms licensing in Canada. The licence suspension regime will be implemented in a two-phase approach. Phase one implements changes to administrative and information management (IM) systems to allow the RCMP to operationalize the regime upon coming into force. Phase two will update information technology (IT) systems to automate the process, with a target completion of late September 2025. The Firearms Regulatory Services Directorate within the CFP is responsible for administering licensing (including licence suspensions), registration, and other related regulations through its federally appointed CFOs. Provincially appointed CFOs are also responsible for the administration of the Firearms Act, including administering licensing within their respective jurisdictions.

The licence suspension regime does not require the collection of new personal information, and only uses personal information which is already regularly collected and used throughout the administration of firearms licensing via an existing personal information bank. As a result, no incremental risks to personal information or requirements for risk mitigation mechanisms or strategies have been identified. A Privacy Impact Assessment is underway and will be completed prior to IM/IT implementation changes and has received interim approval from program officials and the delegate responsible for section 10 of the Privacy Act.

Public Safety Canada, in partnership with RCMP CFP, will continue to ensure public awareness of the licence suspension regime. Information is also available through the CFP Contact Centre, and existing mechanisms to communicate with firearms owners will be leveraged to help raise awareness of the new licence suspension measures.

Contact

Firearms Policy Directorate
Public Safety Canada
Email: ps.firearms-armesafeu.sp@ps-sp.gc.ca