House owners of banned assault-style firearms in Canada have till March 31, 2026, to declare their participation in a federal program providing compensation for delivering or completely deactivating their weapons.
In accordance with a launch posted on Saturday, Public Security Minister Gary Anandasangaree introduced this system in Montreal, alongside Secretary of State Nathalie Provost and Québec Minister of Public Safety Ian Lafrenière.
The voluntary initiative goals to take away harmful firearms from Canadian communities whereas making certain law-abiding homeowners obtain truthful compensation.
“Assault-style firearms don’t belong in our communities. A lot of these firearms had been designed as weapons of struggle,” Anandasangaree stated in a press release.
“Prohibiting and eradicating them from our communities is a vital a part of our authorities’s dedication to tackling gun violence and maintaining Canadians secure.”
The declaration interval for eligible firearm licence holders begins Monday, with notifications despatched on to legitimate Possession and Acquisition Licence (PAL) holders.
“The deadlines are actual, please heed them,” Anandasangaree stated on the information convention.
Submissions could be made on-line or by mail, and compensation might be distributed totally on a first-come, first-served foundation, relying on obtainable funds.
Following the declaration interval, authorized members will schedule appointments to give up their prohibited firearms to the RCMP, native police or a cell assortment unit for validation and destruction.
Since Could 2020, Ottawa has banned roughly 2,500 makes and fashions of assault-style firearms, together with the AR-15, on the grounds they’re designed for navy use and don’t have any place in civilian communities.
Prohibited firearms have to be disposed of or completely deactivated by the top of the amnesty interval on Oct. 30, 2026.
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These in possession after that date might face felony prices and lose their firearms licences.
Federal officers stated almost $250 million has been put aside to compensate members, masking an estimated 136,000 firearms.
Secretary of State Nathalie Provost stated this system marks a major step in addressing gun violence.
“For greater than 35 years, Canadians have been calling for stricter gun management measures to assist forestall lethal mass shootings,” Provost stated in a launch. “We’re taking a major step in direction of making our communities safer in the present day as we proceed the implementation of an environment friendly Assault-Model Firearms Compensation Program for people.”
House owners who select to not take part can nonetheless adjust to the regulation by completely deactivating their firearms at their very own expense, surrendering them to police with out compensation, or exporting them with the right permits.
Nevertheless, this system is dealing with resistance from a number of provinces, together with Alberta, Ontario, N.B, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, which have stated they won’t administer this system.
In the meantime, critics argue this system is expensive and ineffective.
The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) launched a press release calling on Ottawa to scrap the initiative, pointing to a pilot challenge in Cape Breton that collected solely 25 firearms regardless of a goal of 200.
“The failed Cape Breton pilot challenge ought to have confirmed to Ottawa it’s time scrap this program,” stated Gage Haubrich, the CTF’s Prairie director. “Ottawa must take heed to the regulation enforcement specialists who’re calling for assist to cease unlawful weapons reasonably than confiscating weapons from licensed gun homeowners.”
Gun homeowners’ advocates additionally voiced issues shortly after the announcement, stating that compensation could fall far wanting what was promised.
“The Canadian Coalition for Firearm Rights [CCFR] together with regulation abiding gun homeowners throughout the nation are in shock and dismay of the Federal Governments’ announcement in the present day,” the assertion learn.
“The federal government has chosen to maneuver ahead with this wasteful, ineffective and divisive program, and in a approach that betrays the belief of all Canadians who’re affected by the initiative.”
CCFR says greater than two million firearms had been reclassified as prohibited below latest bans, whereas the federal government has indicated it intends to compensate homeowners for roughly 152,000 firearms.
“They’ve additionally stated publicly that when the finances runs out, nobody else is getting paid,” the group stated within the assertion. “That is going to lead to over 90 per cent of gun homeowners being ripped off.”
This system builds on a earlier federal pilot for companies that ran from November 2024 to April 2025, which collected and destroyed greater than 12,000 prohibited firearms.
The 2026 program will embody firearms prohibited in December 2024 and March 2025, along with these banned in Could 2020.
The federal government stated that this system is a part of a broader technique to scale back gun violence, which additionally contains hiring extra RCMP and Canada Border Providers officers, limiting entry to handguns, and reviewing the nationwide firearms classification system.
For extra info, go to the Government of Canada website.
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