10.—(1) On and after the commencement of this Act it shall not be lawful for any person to manufacture, sell, repair, test, or prove, or expose for sale, or have in his possession for sale, repair, test, or proof, by way of trade or business, any firearm or ammunition unless such person is registered in the register of firearms dealers.

F70[(1A) Subsection (1) shall not apply to a person engaged in the State in trade or business as a broker (within the meaning of the European Union (Acquisition and Possession of Weapons and Ammunition) Regulations 2022)) provided that —

(a) he or she stands registered in the register of brokers (within the meaning of those Regulations), and

(b) he or she does not have in his or her possession any firearm or ammunition in respect of which he or she is engaged in trade or business as a broker.]

(2) It shall not be lawful for F71[any person] to sell to any person (other than a registered firearms dealer or a person officially authorised) any firearm or ammunition, unless at the time of such sale the person to whom such firearm or ammunition is sold—

(a) produces a firearm certificate authorising him to purchase or hire (as the case may be) such firearm or ammunition, or

(b) proves to the satisfaction of F71[such person] that he is by virtue of this Act entitled to have possession of such firearm or ammunition without having a firearm certificate therefor.

(3) It shall be the duty of every person who sells a firearm or ammunition to any person (other than a registered firearms dealer or a person officially authorised)—

(a) to comply with the instructions (if any) addressed to such seller contained in the firearm certificate produced at the time of such sale by the person to whom such firearm or ammunition is sold, and

(b) in the case of a sale of a firearm within forty-eight hours after such sale to send by registered post notice thereof to the superintendent of the Gárda Síochána of the district in which the firearm certificate aforesaid was granted.

F72[(3A) (a) A person shall not sell, transfer or otherwise dispose of a firearm or ammunition for a firearm to a person who habitually resides, or to a body at an address, in a country that stands prescribed for the time being for the purposes of this section unless the superintendent of the Garda Síochána of the district in which the firearm or ammunition is kept, being satisfied that the transaction is authorised by the competent authorities of that country, also authorises it.

(b) This subsection is without prejudice to the other provisions of this section and to section 16 of this Act but subsection (4) of that section does not apply to a firearm or ammunition for a firearm carried by a person from the State for the purpose of transferring it permanently to such a country as aforesaid.

(c) In this subsection "firearm" does not include a firearm specified in paragraph (c) or (d) (or in paragraph (f) or (g) so far as either of those paragraphs relates to the said paragraph (c) or (d)) of section 4 (1) of the Firearms and Offensive Weapons Act, 1990.]

F73[(4) It shall not be lawful for any registered firearms dealer to return to any person a firearm or ammunition given to the dealer for repair, test or proof unless the person—

(a) produces a firearm certificate authorising him to have possession of the firearm or ammunition, or

(b) proves to the satisfaction of the dealer that he is entitled to have possession of the firearm or ammunition without having a firearm certificate therefor, and.]

F74[(4A) It is an offence for—

(a) a registered firearms dealer (notwithstanding subsection (1) of this section),

(b) a person engaged in the business of carrying or warehousing goods for reward, or

(c) an auctioneer who stands authorised under section 13 of the Firearms Act 1964,

to possess, use, carry, sell or expose for sale a restricted firearm in the ordinary course of business, unless authorised to do so by an authorisation under this section which is in force.

(4B) Application for such an authorisation shall be made to the Minister in the prescribed form by a person mentioned in subsection (4A) and be accompanied by the prescribed fee (if any).

(4C) The applicant shall supply in writing any further information that the Minister may require in the performance of his or her functions under this section.

(4D) An application for renewal of an authorisation may be made within 3 months before it ceases to be in force.

(4E) An application for an authorisation or its renewal shall be refused if granting it would, in the opinion of the Minister, prejudice public safety or security.

(4F) A decision on an application for an authorisation or its renewal shall be given within 3 months from the date on which the applicant submitted a completed application form.

(4G) An authorisation under this section which is in force shall, unless earlier revoked, continue in force for a period of 3 years from the date on which it was granted and, if renewed, for a further period of 3 years from the expiration of that period or, as the case may be, of any subsequent such period for which the authorisation was renewed.]

(5) Every person who contravenes any of the provisions of this section shall be guilty of an offence under this Act and shall be punishable accordingly.

(6) In this section—

(a) the expression “a person officially authorised” means a person authorised by the Minister for Defence to effect the transaction in question for the purposes of the Defence Forces of Saorstát Eireann or authorised by the Minister to effect the transaction in question for the purposes of any lawful police force in Saorstát Eireann, and

(b) the word “sell” includes letting on hire F75[, giving] and lending and the word “purchase” includes hiring F75[, receiving] and borrowing, and cognate words shall be construed accordingly.

F76[(7) The references in subsections (2) and (3) of this section to a registered firearms dealer shall, in relation to a sale of any firearm or ammunition, be construed as references to a registered firearms dealer for whom it is lawful to purchase that firearm or ammunition by way of trade or business.]