Helpful Hints

I hope that some of the information contained in here will be of some use to those people who fall into the second quarter of renewals and will help those people who have to re-licence in the third and fourth quarters.
This article was precipitated by a variety of complaints and comments that I and SAGA received in the manner in which applicants are treated at different firearm registration centres.
No police officer at any Firearm Registration Centre has any authority to refuse to accept an application or to demand that a licence holder hand in for destruction or dispose of firearms. All firearm licences remain valid, per ministerial interpretation of the Act, until 30 June 2009. If you choose not to re-licence a firearm you can legitimately hold onto that firearm until the expiration of that date. It is that simple. The firearm must be disposed of legally on or before that date.
A police officer cannot tell you to surrender surplus firearms if you are in excess of the numerical limitations or threaten to prosecute you should you not hand in such firearms. SAGA has received numerous reports where police officers will not accept an application for example for two handguns. This attitude is justified by the police officers because a person is not permitted to process two handguns for self-defence. In three verified examples that I followed up, the applicants had applied for one handgun for self-defence and a second for occasional sport shooting. The police officers concerned (from three different police stations in different provinces) were not aware or did not want to acknowledge that the Act provided for ownership of a second handgun.

Please note furthermore that there are no formal requirements in the Act to be categorised as an occasional sport shooter should you wish to own a second handgun, ie no club membership is necessary, no proof of participation in any organised sporting activities etc.
One can sometimes not be blamed for thinking that, because the same complaint about the police emanates time and time again from different places, someone in a high place is giving policy directives that are not in accordance with the provisions of the Act.
If you want to surrender a firearm, don't forget to complete the SAPS 523 form.
If you find yourself not being fully compliant with the Act when you apply to re-licence your firearms, do not give up and surrender any firearms. Lodge your applications and obtain your official receipt for this documentation. Inform the police officer that you require time to obtain additional documentation such as a declaration as dedicated hunter, sportsman or collector and that you will submit this documentation within a reasonable time.
You can also submit additional motivating information as well. The police do not send your application forms off to Pretoria until they have completed all of the necessary procedures such as a safe inspection, interviews, fingerprints etc. I am not going to point fingers at any specific police station but 1 am aware of at least three in Gauteng where these processes took at least eight months to complete after lodging renewal applications.
When it comes to submitting motivating documentation there are a variety of lists available from various associations' websites giving guidance as to what you should submit-Please bear in mind that in order to be granted a licence there is a two stage enquiry. The first is to determine whether you are a fit and proper person in terms of Section 9 of the Act (competency) and the second is where you qualify to be granted the licence for the purpose for which you want it.
Although there are no policy guidelines written into the Act and as far as I am aware there is no openly disclosed licensing policy, certain facets of the policy can be extrapolated from decisions of the South African Police Services. For example if you want to licence a hunting rifle you must state where, when and what you want to hunt with that particular

rifle and calibre and motivate accordingly. Once again the hunting associations provide assistance in categorising, endorsing and motivating calibres for various purposes. The hunting associations have been very successful in establishing a reasonable rapport with the South African Police Services and there is great benefit in becoming a member of a hunting association if you are a regular hunter.
The final point to bear in mind is that you can never submit too much motivating material or supporting documentation to support your application. Unlike the old Act, the new Act has been brought in line with established legal principles that would be applicable to, for example, a criminal appeal. That is, if you wish to appeal a decision of the South African Police Services in refusing your licence permit, authorisation etc. you are limited to the information in your appeal that was submitted in the original application. You cannot go outside of this information unless you obtain the permission of the Appeal Board to submit further information. This permission will only be granted in consultation with the South African Police Services and it will be refused (according to legal principles) if by allowing the submission of additional information the South African Police Services would be prejudiced and this prejudice could not be eliminated by giving them time to respond to the additional information.
This means that you must submit as much documentation as possible with your original application. The first part of this documentation is information about you as the applicant (where you live, what you do, who you are, your personal philosophy on life, whether you own property or a business, what your educational qualifications are, what your status in the community is etc.). Many people overlook the fact that although they may have a routine job, part of their job functions, for example being a safety officer and having undergone special training in this respect, must be mentioned. This type of information is important for the South African Police Services because it illustrates that your employer has delegated responsibility to you as part of a trust based employment relationship. This should illustrate to the South African Police Services that, as you are in a position of trust, you should be regarded as a responsible person.
Responsibility is the key element in the Firearms Control Act. Many people overlook the fact that roots in their community or involvement in religious or social activities are relevant. If you are a keen fisherman and part of an organised fishing club, tell the police.

Fishing and hunting activities are closely related and by telling the police that you are a fisherman you give them more information to assist your suitability to possess firearm licences for a specific purpose. It also illustrates you are willing to associate with like minded persons in structured activities. This are all components of the new legislation

When it comes to motivating for specific firearm licences provide details of, for example, your hunting history no matter how, in your opinion, immaterial. When did you start shooting? How were you introduced to hunting? Was your father a hunter or any close relative? Provide a portfolio of evidence of your hunting activities. Every hunter, even an occasional hunter, should have hunting licences and permits to transport meat, photographs and invoices as proof of payment for hunting. Keep all of these and when motivating for a licence, give the police copies of these.

On the issue of keeping copies, when you hand something to the South African Police Services, ensure that you keep a complete copy of whatever you hand in and that it is stamped by the South African Police Services acknowledging receipt. Approximately 50% of documentation at this stage is lost by the South African Police Services due to inexplicable reasons. You will avoid much inconvenience to yourself if you can provide full copies when requested.