Thread: PSA: Unnecessary Bureaucracy with Import Permits

Before the laws all went Pete Tong. I sold my rifles back to my Dad and brother in NZ. They signed over on the UK FAL. Police here never even raised an eyebrow at it.

Just to extend a bit on that subject . Why having to apply for an import permit when you go abroad for hunting or shooting with your guns and you re enter with your own guns on the way back is the biggest useless bureaucracy procedure ever . I don’t know if any other country doing it like that . And with the register now in place that should be waved out all together for those that have registered.

Originally Posted by Friwi

Just to extend a bit on that subject . Why having to apply for an import permit when you go abroad for hunting or shooting with your guns and you re enter with your own guns on the way back is the biggest useless bureaucracy procedure ever . I don’t know if any other country doing it like that . And with the register now in place that should be waved out all together for those that have registered.

Every country with a registry you have to sign them out and in again that I know of.

Otherwise the government looses control over them,that's what this is really all about.

I took a gun back to NZ in the old days,decided I would leave it there. Told the Norwegian police who freaked out and it took two years to get it off my licence because they couldn't decide what proof they needed to show it was in NZ.

Ridiculous really for a lump of metal, plastic and wood. The paperwork cost over the lifespan of the item far outstrips the $ value in the item itself...

Originally Posted by Friwi

Just to extend a bit on that subject . Why having to apply for an import permit when you go abroad for hunting or shooting with your guns and you re enter with your own guns on the way back is the biggest useless bureaucracy procedure ever . I don’t know if any other country doing it like that . And with the register now in place that should be waved out all together for those that have registered.

In one sense it gives you some protection. If you exit NZ witha firearm, then later return with that firearm there is no way of knowing whether you didn't just obtain / buy that firearm while overseas before bringing it back to NZ. Of course on arrival here you would rightly say it's yours and you temporarily took it overseas and are now bringing it back. But if NZ Customs did't find that believable they could well calculate a value and present you with an invoice for GST. The Import Permit proves that the firearm you re enter NZ with is the same firearm you departed with.
There are other countries that operate similar systems for similar reasons.

Originally Posted by No.3

Ridiculous really for a lump of metal, plastic and wood. The paperwork cost over the lifespan of the item far outstrips the $ value in the item itself...

Oh, dear me.
When will people realise that, in the eyes of police and politicians (well, some of them) that this has got nothing to do with the amount of bureaucracy or its incipient paperwork.
It's about CONTROL.

Originally Posted by no1_49er

Oh, dear me.
When will people realise that, in the eyes of police and politicians (well, some of them) that this has got nothing to do with the amount of bureaucracy or its incipient paperwork.
It's about CONTROL.

It isn't really - you can't control anything when you can't get your own crap sorted first.

Sorry to resurrect this thread but someone might know the answer to this.
After a 6 week wait the powers that be have agreed that I may import a trigger for my rifle.
I was sent a copy of the permit for the overseas seller and a copy for NZ Customs. I am struggling to find information on what I'm supposed to do with the customs part. Do I have to go present the permit in person? Or just ignore customs and deal with it if they don't clear the parcel?

@Fatberg,
Based on my experience you may not need to do anything with the Customs copy.
Obviously, copy your Permit to your supplier and insist they put a copy inside the package with your trigger. Upon arrival in NZ, if Customs bother to inspect, the copy contained in the package will likely suffice and the trigger should be sent on to you. An item exceeding NZD $1000.00 may attract a GST invoice to be paid befor goods release and you may be asked to supply a copy of your Import Permit with the payment ( I have been asked ). If you personally collect the item from the likes of NZ Post they may want to see your Import Permit ( think I was asked once ).
Several times I have had low value parcels arrive containing a copy of my Import Permit and goods came through without any request to see anything else.
I think the important thing is insisting your supplier puts a copy in the package. If NZ Customs inspected and found no Permit for item/s that should have one I imagine it gets handed to NZ Police and a lengthy delay follows before it's all sorted.

Where the Customs copy probably come into play is the situation where you take your own firearm temporarily from NZ for an overseas trip and return later with the same firearm. The exact same Import Permit is issued for this scenario. Upon return to NZ the Police inspect the rifle and( mostly ) make a copy of the Import Permit. Then often they walk you over to the NZ Customs counter, confirm to Customs they have inspected and Customs then retains the Customs copy of the Permit.

An important thing to remember is when your item has arrived within 30 days you need to inform either FSA or NZ Police ( can't remember which ) that you have received the item relating to the Permit. I once had an Import Permit for a rifle for an overseas hunt that was postponed due to Covid. The Import Permit lapsed and I forgot about it. NZ Police phoned asking what happened ad I was asked to email with my reason for the lapse. So, they do follow up. Good lesson.

When you leave the country for your hunt or your sport shooting competition, you are supposed a few days in advance to notify the ministry of foreign affairs (export control) who issues a temporary export permit for the firearms you are taking with you.(many do not do it, but it is supposed to be a requirement by law…I think)
In an ideal world, more simple with bureaucracy:
All it would require, is to show that same paperwork on your way back. That is it. No requirement for any import permits , lengthy wait times ( up to 2 months wait for an import permit now!). You could notify police that you are back in Nz with you firearms and that would be it.

But we are still far from that.

@30.06king thanks for the info. It seems the package passed customs without getting held up.