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Until recently only the state had the right to produce and trade Category A weapons. According to Lithuanian legislation, Category A weapons include weapons used for military purposes[1].
Civilian circulation of category A weapons was prohibited. However, increased cooperation between EU countries and arms manufacturers has led to a change in regulation, removing restrictions on the possession of category A weapons by persons other than the state.
According to the current wording of the Law on the Control on Weapons and Ammunition, Category A weapons and ammunition for Category A weapons shall be prohibited in civilian circulation, except for the use by:
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- legal entities registered in the Republic of Lithuania, which produce Category A weapons,
- European natural or European legal persons engaged in the repair or processing of weapons, and
- other persons who are granted the right to do so in accordance with the provisions of this Law.
A business entity has the possibility to check if the product it wants to produce (e.g. a drone) is a weapon. To do this, the manufacturer should submit an application, along with drawings of the product and technical specifications, to the Police Department’s Expert Commission. The Expert Commission will decide if the product is a weapon or a part of a weapon.
Although there were fears that the licencing procedure itself would be extremely complicated and legally complex, the legislation proves otherwise.
The procedure consists of several stages: (i) registration of the business entity for licencing purposes; (ii) issuance of a licence; (iii) issuance of a permit to possess category A weapons.
Registration of the business entity for licencing purposes
The application to register a business entity for licensing purposes is submitted via the police website (e.policija.lt). Registration is possible through the CEO or an authorised representative (e.g. a lawyer). Registration is completed within 3 working days. Once registration is finished, the licencing enters the second stage.
Issuance of a licence
The application for a licence is submitted via the police website (e.policija.lt). In addition to the application, the following documents shall be provided: the legal entity’s corporate documents and a medical examination certificate confirming that an employee of the legal entity who works in a job directly related to the licensed economic activity does not suffer from a disease that prevents him/her from acquiring or possessing a weapon (F049/a certificate in Lithuania).
The application for a licence must indicate the names of the CEO of the legal entity and the controlling person(s)/major shareholders. The police confirmed that information on ultimate beneficial owners is also requested. If these persons include non-citizens of the Republic of Lithuania, the application must include a certificate of conviction/non-conviction of the persons concerned.
The License is issued within 30 days following submission of all required documents for licensing.
Issuance of a permit to manufacture and store category A weapons
Once the licence has been obtained, an application must be made for a permit to store Category A weapons. It is only after obtaining this permit that an economic activity (e.g. the sale or production of Category A weapons) may begin. Failure to apply for this permit within 3 years following the issuance of the licence will result in automatic cancellation of the licence.
In order to ensure the protection of weapons and their components against internal threats and their traceability from manufacture to the end user, the manufacture and storage of weapons shall be carried out in accordance with requirements approved by the Commissioner General of the Lithuanian Police.
The application for a permit to manufacture and store Category A weapons is also submitted via the police website (e.policija.lt). In addition to the application, the gunsmith(s) or person(s) who will be directly involved in the work related to the licensed activity must be indicated, and their medical certificates must be provided at the time of application.
This is the most difficult stage. However, it is not the procedures or the documents to be submitted that make it difficult, but the challenging requirements for the premises where the weapons will be stored/manufactured or traded.
In essence, the entire factory must be transformed into a safe. Proponents of such regulation base their position on the safety of citizens, but this is gradually being pushed aside. Initiatives to reduce requirements and facilitate licensing, if not for manufacturing / storing weapons, then at least for manufacturing / storing of their individual components, are already making their way through Parliament.
[1] military missiles with explosive charges and their launching devices; automatic firearms; firearms disguised as other items; ammunition with armour-piercing, explosive or incendiary shells and shells for such ammunition and their launching devices; pistol and revolver cartridges with expansive bullets and bullets for such cartridges, except for cases where such cartridges and bullets are used for hunting by persons having the right to do so; automatic firearms that have been converted into semi-automatic firearms; semi-automatic short firearms firing centre-fire cartridges, which can fire more than 21 rounds without reloading, if a magazine holding more than 20 rounds is part of that firearm or a detachable magazine holding more than 20 rounds is inserted into it; semi-automatic long firearms firing centre-fire cartridges, which can fire more than 11 rounds without reloading, if a magazine holding more than 10 rounds is part of that firearm or a detachable magazine holding more than 10 rounds is inserted into it; semi-automatic long firearms designed to be fired from the shoulder, the length of which can be reduced to less than 60 cm without losing their functionality by using a folding or telescopic stock that can be removed without the use of tools; any firearms of category A that have been converted into signal, gas or imitation weapons; mufflers; cannons, howitzers, mortars, mortars of all calibers; grenades and grenade launchers, including tear gas grenades and their launching devices; all types of bombs, torpedoes, mines, their loaded and unloaded projectiles and their launching devices; flamethrowers and all incendiary projectiles; weapons whose laser beam is used for military purposes or to destroy a target; weapons designed to chemically destroy a target; tension weapons with a total tension force exceeding 1,200 newtons (N); firearms whose design allows them to be used disassembled or which are modified in such a way that they become easily concealed; weapons that use radioactive, electromagnetic, light, heat, infrasound or ultrasound radiation, dangerous biological effects, gases dangerous to life or health or other substances or energy dangerous to life or health as a means of destroying or otherwise damaging a target; ammunition intended only for weapons of category A; rifled firearms with a calibre of 12.7 mm or larger, smooth-bore firearms with a calibre of 20 mm or larger, and all automatic firearms with a belt feed, except for hunting weapons, antique weapons and replicas of antique weapons.
Authored by:
Managing Partner – Karolina Baronaite-Birmonte
Associate – Gabriele Tamkeviciute
