I was wondering on how difficult our firearms laws are in Australia for visitors.

Are they onerous?

To me it seems, almost no one ever gets turned away? They seem mostly administrative.

So if we say compare South Africa to Australia, thousands of clients visit or go through South Africa each year.

Which is more difficult, South Africa or Australia?

I have only taken a firearm to Australia NT once,it was a no problem

Is it a problem to hunt two different states in Australia on one trip eg. NT for buffalo and QLD for Chital

John, when I was there in june the guys from customs were very helpful and friendly. We had no trouble at all. I have been through south Africa and I already dread doing it again. There is no comparison!

quote:

Originally posted by TOP_PREDATOR:
I have only taken a firearm to Australia NT once,it was a no problem

Is it a problem to hunt two different states in Australia on one trip eg. NT for buffalo and QLD for Chital

It depends on the state mate. Some do accept the ermits ffrom other states - S Australia for example does. QLD is an interesting one because it depends who you speak to there as they dont have a definite regulation on this. I have been happy to send clients there with NT permits and havent been pulled-up yet. If you ar ehunting in QLD alone the outfitter will need to get you a QLD permit however.

Cheers
Matt

Matt

Can foreign visitors hunt in NSW without a guide? I presume they can't as the temporary licence categories only include target shooting events, and hunting with a guide?

I think for a foreign visitor hunting in more than one state, the different laws and often need to get a licence in several states is one of the most annoying and difficult parts of our gun laws.

Also I thought firearm licences were supposed to be reciprocal across ALL states of Australia ie can be used for up to three months as a "temporary" licence? It may be for residents but not for tourists.

I think this issue is one that should be brought up for change next time the Police Ministers talk about National Gun laws.

I flew into Melbourne last year with two sporting rifles and all the required paperwork , and aside from the tedious delay involved , was treated in a most friendly and helpfull manner by the Australian Customs people at the airport.

Most of the delay was in the way "they" handle fireams storage on the aircraft , and the time it takes to get the guncase from the plane and to the Customs counter . Dont ask me why - its beauracracy at work and the Aussies are good at it . By the same token the Customs officers dont make the policies - they are just the people who have to attempt to make it work.

quote:

Originally posted by NitroX:
Matt

Can foreign visitors hunt in NSW without a guide? I presume they can't as the temporary licence categories only include target shooting events, and hunting with a guide?

I think for a foreign visitor hunting in more than one state, the different laws and often need to get a licence in several states is one of the most annoying and difficult parts of our gun laws.

Also I thought firearm licences were supposed to be reciprocal across ALL states of Australia ie can be used for up to three months as a "temporary" licence? It may be for residents but not for tourists.

I think this issue is one that should be brought up for change next time the Police Ministers talk about National Gun laws.

Nitro - no some states accept other states temp licences and others dont. The NT for example doesnt - I think largely because the other states licences have different, lesser criteria and the NT is being quite strict on who they allow. They also issue a proper photo licence (same as yours and mine) whereas other states do not.

No, I dont think you can get a temp lic for NSW, unless with a guide but that situation may change with the Game Council providing access to public land, over time. A Game Lic should be a reason to come here if you meet other criteria (ie. police check).

I think that would be a good thing because I dont want to see international visitors restricted to hunting with outfitters. I dont like being restricted so why should others? The NT is very cautious about allowing it because they really dont want people doing the wrong thing OR wandering off into the scrub OR getting involved in illegal safari hunts. The NT and QLD also have little or no public land you can hunt anyhow, so you have very few reasons to do it without an outfitter. NSW and VIC are different stories and I think should be recognised. You should be able to invite a friend frm overseas to come hunt with you and do it legally.

The reality is though that the different states of Australia mght as well be different countries from the perspective of someone travelling here and that is reflected in different laws. This is a BIG country and we are lucky to have good (and mostly accessible) hunting in every state and territory. If a visiting hunter needs to apply to hunt in more than one state - I dont think that is a big issue.

Also the issues that we are discussing do need to be looked at but I wouldnt be relying on the police ministers to get it done or reach any kind of concensus. The best we can hope for is that groups like The Shooters Party and other political lobby groups effect change in each state AND that areshole Howard is removed at the next election.