Magazine possession in Eire

NevadaPod

Can anyone enlighten me as to the legality being in possession of pistol magazines in the Irish Republic?
I am in N.Ireland, where a permit for the appropriate firearm is required in order to possess a magazine. I have the necessary permit, so so far so good. I will be visiting the U.S. in the summer and plan on returning with a few extra mags (as you do..).
The question is:When I get off the plane in Dublin, will I be violating any laws between getting off the plane and crossing the border back into the North?

Hoping y'all can help..

Luckysasha

You could post them to your home address from wherever you purchase them in the states. This would cut out the mags transiting the Republic

NevadaPod

Thanks, Sash (!), that's my fallback position if I can't find out anything definite.

Cass

Section one of the firearms act defines a firearms, among other things, as any component part. This would include magazines.

Ordinarily your license would cover you but as you are in NI (and assuming you don't have a ROI firearms license) you'd be entering the country with a component part of a firearm with no license for it.

So i'd say no, you cannot do this. Shipping directly to your home address would be easier and possibly the more legal route. You would need to confirm this with your local authority (about the shipping).

NevadaPod

Many thanks. It's certainly a component part in the North, but my understanding was that this had its roots in the Prevention of Terrorism Act (etc), and was not the case, for example, across the water in GB.
Looks like it might be an issue down South too. I'll post, just to be on the safe side.

Thanks again.

mallards

Hi Nevada, you can ship magazines to Northern Ireland no problem from the US. I did.
The supplier wanted an import license first before shipping so I contacted the relevant department in the UK government, called the import licensing branch. They told me I don't need one to import empty magazines. I then went back to the supplier who said it wasn't for them it was for the courier they used USPS. They then said a copy of my firearm licence would also do. So I have them a photocopy. Few days later, it popped through my letter box.
Mallards

Grizzly 45

So long as it is a ten round mag,they are freely exportable from the US.Anything above that can fall foul of ITAR regulations.

NevadaPod

Yeah, had problems with shipping directly in the past - won't ship abroad or to suspected mail-forwarding addresses.
Fortunately I have enough friends and in-laws that I can ship to there, but I hate giving them the hassle. Since I'm heading over this summer I thought I'd save them a bit of bother.
With 2x 22rnd plus 2x 31rnd Glock totalling 73, it's worth a little hassle!

Grizzly 45

Why not just buy the Glock mags in Europe?The 30 rounders are available on E gun.They are a "free part " in Germany and the Germans will ship in the EU.

NevadaPod

Have bought previously from IPSC Store (at about 24-25 Euro apiece) for Glock factory without any probs. Never tried Egun. Have just bought from ETS (at 15 Euro apiece) - they do an (apparently) IPSC-legal 22-round. Clear polymer so can easily see how many in magazine.
Figured, especially at that price, they were worth a try!

But thanks for the info!

Pod.

Zxthinger

Cass wrote: »

Section one of the firearms act defines a firearms, among other things, as any component part. This would include magazines.

Ordinarily your license would cover you but as you are in NI (and assuming you don't have a ROI firearms license) you'd be entering the country with a component part of a firearm with no license for it.

So i'd say no, you cannot do this. Shipping directly to your home address would be easier and possibly the more legal route. You would need to confirm this with your local authority (about the shipping).

Hi cass, are you saying that an Irish firearms licence would cover the importation of components.

Pseudorandom

I clicked on this thread randomly and I swear it took like 5 posts before I realised that magazines are a gun component and that glossy sheeted news publications about guns aren't inexplicably illegal in Ireland

Cass

Zxthinger wrote: »

Hi cass, are you saying that an Irish firearms licence would cover the importation of components.

No, i'm saying to bring anything into the state the OP would need an Irish firearms license.

Individual Importation Form wrote:

3. It is essential that you include a copy of a current Irish firearms certificate for the firearms to be imported with your application

As he does not have one it posses another problem. Not impossible, just there are easier options for the OP.

For the importation of component parts you need an import license from the DoJ as well as your Firearms License. Some people have told me over the years that your actual license (and it alone) is all that is needed for some imports. I've yet to experience this and found for anything i've imported i've needed the import license.

That being said i have not imported every aspect/component of a firearm (only actions, barrels and ammo) so cannot say with certainty if this holds true or not for other component parts such as magazines, triggers, and stocks.

NevadaPod

Overhead in a barbers' shop in West Belfast quite a few years ago....

Barber: Did ye hear wee Hughie got himself arrested?
Customer: No, what for?

Barber: Possession of magazines.
Customer: No! The dirty wee b*****d!

Barber: No, not *those* kind of magazines....GUN magazines.
Customer: Oh........well that's alright, then.


I kid you not!

Grizzly 45

Technically in law the Liscense IS your right to own and posses the firearm and all its component parts.Ergo it entitles you to import the parts as well.Thing is; Global beuracy made it more complex.i remember when I brought in my Glock many years ago the US State dept wanted an authorisation from the DOJ to say I could import it to Ireland.At that stage a forwarded Email sufficed and a AGS certified copy of my liscense was good. If you look on the DOJ website they have got now a form for importation of firearms and ammo from EU and non EU states.Good thing is they do it for free,and take about 5 days to turnaround by fax and email.

However the problem is now twofold..From what I can gather,and using the German example.NON PRESSURE BEARING PARTS [IE bolt,barrel,chamber , etc] are so called "free parts" and you can hold them with no permit and are freely exportable.Anything of the pressure parts are a liscenseable item and you need the EU paperwork and Irish liscense to import or posses.So technically in Germany you can have a 98% complete AR15 rifle.Bar the barrel and bolt carrier.Here unless you have a liscense you would be in possesion of unliscensed firearm parts. So you could purchase the mags in the EU no problem as you are liscensed here for the firearm

So yes it does allow you to import and posses the firearm and component parts and ordering mags,grips,springs levers etc if you are liscensed isnt a biggie.It is if they are pressure bearing parts thats where paperwork between the DOJ and you and the EU dealer kicks in

Cass

You are applying a foreign logic to a domestic issue.

It doesn't matter what other countries class the parts as, and doesn't matter what they will or won't allow its what we have to do here. The DoJ dictate what can and cannot be imported and in some cases have done so regardless of the law. Not to say illegally, but more so that when the law states i can do something yet the DoJ refuse to issue the import simply because they don't want to, it goes against party policy or clashes with the wants of An Gardaí.

Grizzly 45

Has anybody ever been refused an import for a magazine for a liscnsed gun here?Or any spare parts that arent pressure bearing parts? I dont know of anyone who has.. Firearms themselve yes, as you said yourself more of the "idontlikethelookodat" clause. but not component parts.