Who am I allowed to sell a firearm to

Selling firearms: By far the most important point is properly verifying whether a potential buyer is entitled to purchase.

Below are the most important purchase entitlements for various weapon categories.

Any adult may transfer these to any other adult, whether as a gift or for a purchase price. The only thing that needs to be checked is that the recipient of the firearm is at least 18 years old and that it is indeed a permit-free weapon.

There are two types of unrestricted firearms we would like to cover in more detail: permit-free firearms and SRS weapons.

You can recognize them by the so-called "F in a pentagon" mark. This symbol means the firearm has been tested and imparts a maximum projectile energy of 7.5 joules.

Older unrestricted firearms — i.e. air guns or spring-piston guns brought to market before 1970 — lack this mark, yet they are still freely transferable. For these "old" air and spring-piston guns, projectile energy is irrelevant; they remain exempt from WBK requirements. Newer firearms lacking the "F in a pentagon" mark, however, are subject to WBK requirements from 0.5 joules upward regardless of their actual energy (this also applies to firearms from abroad).

SRS weapons — that is, blank-firing, gas and signal weapons — are revolvers and pistols that do not fire projectiles but are designed to discharge (not fire) various types of blank cartridges or irritant gas cartridges. They can be identified, among other things, by the test seal of the Physikalisch-Technische Prüfanstalt. This seal contains the capital letters PTB inside a circle.

Although these weapons are unrestricted, they may not be carried in public without a permit — the so-called Kleiner Waffenschein. More about SRS weapons

A permit is required for these firearms. This can be one of the following:

A valid Jagdschein serves as a purchase permit for all hunting long guns — that is, all long guns not prohibited for hunting under § 19 BJagdG. So: pay attention to the expiry date of the Jagdschein! To purchase handguns, hunters also need a separate official purchase permit — a Voreintrag in a green WBK.

In summary: to purchase a long gun, showing the Jagdschein or WBK is sufficient. When selling a handgun, the buyer must have a Voreintrag for that weapon in their WBK.

The Jagdschein also entitles the holder to purchase all ammunition for long guns. For handgun ammunition, however, the buyer must have a corresponding handgun listed in their WBK.

The WBK alone is not sufficient as a purchase permit here. What matters is that the relevant firearm is listed in a still-valid Voreintrag. Since a Voreintrag is only valid for one year, the seller must pay attention to the expiry date. If the Voreintrag has already expired, the handgun must not be sold!

Certain firearms may not be acquired with a yellow WBK — for example, semi-automatic long guns. If the holder does not qualify as entitled to purchase through their Jagdschein — because they are a sport shooter, for instance — they need a green WBK with Voreintrag for firearms excluded from the yellow WBK. With the Voreintrag, make sure it has not expired. In addition, the specific firearm must not be excluded from sport shooting.

The sport shooter WBK is a purchase and possession permit for all weapon types listed in it. No additional Voreintrag is required to purchase a firearm — the WBK itself is sufficient. The sport shooter WBK is, pursuant to § 14 para. 4, a permit to acquire and possess the following types of firearms:

• Single-shot single-loader long guns with smooth and rifled barrels

• Repeating long guns with rifled barrels

• Single-barrel single-loader handguns for cartridge ammunition

• Multi-shot short and long guns with percussion cap ignition (percussion firearms).

In some German states, authorities only issue the sport shooter WBK in a limited scope — e.g. only for one of the weapon types listed above or only for a certain number of firearms. To the extent that this restriction is known to the seller because it is noted as an official entry in the WBK, they must observe it.

Bottom line: check the yellow WBK carefully to confirm whether the buyer is actually permitted to purchase the firearm!

The sport shooter WBK issued up to 31 March 2003 — unless extended by an official entry — remains a purchase and possession permit for single-loader long guns with smooth and rifled barrels.

The red WBK for firearms collectors entitles the holder to acquire the firearms covered by the collecting scope specified in the WBK. As with any other transfer of permit-required firearms, the transferor is obliged under § 34 para. 1 sentence 1 WaffG to verify the buyer's entitlement.

However, no ammunition may be purchased with a red WBK unless this permission is explicitly stated in the WBK.

While it is possible to obtain a red Waffenbesitzkarte for "firearms of all kinds", this is only approved in very rare exceptional cases. In most cases, the possession entitlement is limited to a specific collecting area.

For private-to-private firearm sales, NWR IDs are not required.