AK-47 legal status

The legal status of the AK-47 varies in different localities.

In Australia

In Australia, the purchase of semi-automatic centerfire rifles has been effectively banned since 1996, and therefore AK rifles, even in semi-automatic form, are not allowed. After the bans on certain pistols in 2003, pistol and straight pull versions of the AK were declared illegal to possess, import or attempt to purchase. The only way for an individual in Australia to legally own a Kalashnikov rifle is to have a Firearm Collector's Licence and the firearm deactivated by having the rifle's action welded up and the barrel plugged or permanently restricted to blank-fire.

In Canada

In Canada since January 1 1995, the AK-47 and its variants are prohibited under the Prohibited Weapons Order, No. 13. Exceptions to this are the Valmet Hunter, the Valmet Hunter Auto, and the Valmet M78 rifles which are based on the AK action. This order created a new class of prohibited firearms in Canada (class 12.5). This classification makes the AK and its variants ordinarily illegal for purchase, acquisition, or import. Individuals in Canada who possessed and registered those firearms prior to January 1, 1995 were "grandfathered" into this class and thus can continue to possess (and under some circumstances acquire) the AK-47 and its variants.

In Europe

Much of Western Europe has enacted comprehensive national firearms laws which PReVENT the lawful ownership of AK or variants thereof. The United Kingdom, for instance, has outlawed, through the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988, semi-automatic centerfire rifles. It is possible to own AK derivatives in the UK provided they have been produced as "Manual Straight Pull" rifles which need to be manually cocked after each shot. This involves a modification to the weapon to essentially remove the gas system by permanently closing the gas port above the barrel (may also involve the removal of the gas piston). Nonetheless, AK rifles have occasionally shown up in the hands of criminals and are frequently used by Irish Republican and Ulster Loyalist rebel groups in Northern Ireland (the Provisional IRA received a substantial quantity of Romanian AKMs from Libya in the 1970s and 1980s).

In Norway it is forbidden for civilians to possess any form of fully automatic firearm unless a special permit is issued. Similar laws are in force throughout most of Europe. Fully automatic weapons are either explicitly or effectively outlawed in almost all of Europe including Russia.

In Mexico

In Mexico, the possession of the AK-47 or any of its variants by civilians is outlawed. The Federal Law of Firearms and Explosives in its Article 11 prohibits the civilian possession of this category of weapon and cartridge (lawful use of a military-style firearm using a military caliber intended round is restricted to the Mexican Army), However, the AK-47, is well known in the country as the Cuerno de Chivo (Spanish for "ram's horn"), in clear reference to the curved form of the magazine as well as the firepower for which it has been widely used by criminal organizations as their weapon of choice.

In New Zealand

New Zealand gun laws do not treat the AK-47 differently to any other gun. Full-auto versions are prohibited, except for collectors with a special permit, but semi-automatic versions are legal, although if they qualify as a Military-Style Semi-Automatic they require a special permit.

In the United States

Private ownership of fully automatic AK rifles is tightly regulated by the National Firearms Act (NFA) of 1934. The Gun Control Act of 1968 ceased importing of foreign-manufactured fully automatic firearms for civilian sales and possession, effectively halting further importation of civilian accessible AK rifles.

In 1986, an amendment to the Firearm Owners Protection Act stopped all future domestic sales of fully automatic weapons for civilian use (non-military/non-LEO). Fully automatic weapons are still manufactured in the US for military and law enforcement use. However, automatic firearms manufactured domestically prior to 1986 or imported prior to 1968 May Be transferred between civilians in accordance with federal and state law. Several Soviet and PRC rifles made it into the U.S. during the mid-1960s, when returning Vietnam veterans brought them home after capture from enemy troops. Many of these were properly registered during the 1968 NFA amnesty.

Semi-Automatic "AK-47 type" rifles, however, are legal and obtainable in most states of the United States. Certain states like California have specific restrictions which effectively ban new purchases of semi-automatic rifles like the civilian version of the AK-47.