The residual class: a firearm that is not restricted or prohibited.
- Most common rifles and shotguns
- No federal registration for ordinary non-restricted firearms
Policy reference
Canadian Firearms Classification Timeline
A dated source trail for claims about firearm classes, registry rules, Orders in Council, the handgun freeze, amnesty dates, and compensation context.
18visible entries
1892first marker
2026current file
This is a source-dated reference page, not legal advice and not a firearm-status lookup. For a specific firearm, use current law, the Canadian Firearms Program, the Firearms Reference Table where applicable, and qualified advice when the answer matters.
Focus
Handguns that are not prohibited, certain short-barrel centrefire semi-automatics, certain compactable firearms, and firearms prescribed as restricted.
- Registration required
- Transport and use are tightly limited
Automatic firearms, certain short-barrel handguns, cut-down firearms below specified limits, prescribed prohibited firearms, and post-Bill C-21 newly designed semi-automatic centrefire categories.
- Grandfathering can be narrow
- Recent named prohibitions use amnesty orders
What changed when
Controls1
Registration2
Classes4
Licensing5
Registry1
Prohibitions3
Compensation1
Amnesty1
Last reviewed May 21, 2026
RCMP classes pageDate modified 2025-03-04; still lists non-restricted, restricted, and prohibited classes.May 2020 prohibitionRCMP page still states the amnesty period expires October 30, 2026.December 2024 prohibitionRCMP page still identifies 324 named makes and models and an October 30, 2026 amnesty expiry.March 2025 prohibitionRCMP page still points owners to the March 7, 2025 amendments and October 30, 2026 amnesty expiry.Classification regulationsJustice Laws shows SOR/98-462 current to 2026-03-17 and last amended on 2025-03-07.Compensation programPublic Safety Canada still says the individual declaration period has ended and uses the more than 2,500 total since May 2020.
Handgun carry, sale, registration, and central records built the early control layer.
1892control
First Criminal Code pistol permit requirement
Created early permit control around carrying pistols and vendor record keeping.
RCMP history page1934registration
First real handgun registration requirement
Required records identifying handgun owners and firearms.
RCMP history page1951registration
Centralized handgun registry under RCMP Commissioner
Centralized handgun and automatic-firearm records.
RCMP history pageClassification categories, FACs, the Firearms Act, and PAL licensing became the modern framework.
1968 to 1969classification
Restricted and prohibited weapon categories created
Created firearm, restricted weapon, and prohibited weapon categories and Order-in-Council authority.
RCMP history page1977 to 1978licensing
Bill C-51 and related provisions
Introduced Firearms Acquisition Certificates and made full automatics prohibited unless registered before January 1, 1978.
RCMP history page1991 to 1994classification
Bill C-17 implementation
Expanded screening, storage, transport, and paramilitary firearm controls.
RCMP history page1995licensing
Bill C-68 Royal Assent
Created the Firearms Act and a licensing and registration framework.
Justice Laws Firearms Act1998licensing
Firearms Act came into force
Brought the modern Firearms Act administrative regime into force.
RCMP history page2001licensing
PAL possession/acquisition licence requirement active
Required a licence to possess and acquire firearms.
RCMP history pageThe non-restricted registry ended federally while licensing and classification authority kept changing.
2012registry
Ending the Long-gun Registry Act
Removed the federal registration requirement for non-restricted firearms and ordered destruction of records except the Quebec litigation path.
RCMP history page2015licensing
Common Sense Firearms Licensing Act changes
Added classroom safety-course requirements for first-time licence applicants and regulation limits on CFO discretion.
RCMP history pageNamed prohibitions, the handgun freeze, compensation, and amnesty dates became the current public file.
May 1, 2020prohibition
May 2020 prohibition
Reclassified over 1,500 makes and models and variants as prohibited with an amnesty path.
RCMP May 2020 prohibition pageOctober 21, 2022classification
National handgun transfer freeze by regulation
Restricted individual transfer and importation of handguns with exemptions.
RCMP history pageDecember 15, 2023classification
Bill C-21 Royal Assent
Codified the handgun freeze and changed the prohibited-firearm definition among other measures.
Public Safety Canada news releaseDecember 5, 2024prohibition
December 2024 prohibition
Reclassified 324 named makes and models and variants as prohibited with amnesty to October 30, 2026.
RCMP December 2024 prohibition pageMarch 7, 2025prohibition
March 2025 prohibition
Reclassified additional named makes and models and variants as prohibited with amnesty to October 30, 2026.
RCMP March 2025 prohibition pageMay 20, 2026compensation
Assault-Style Firearms Compensation Program current public page
Confirms the individual declaration period ended and states more than 2,500 makes and models have been banned since May 2020.
Public Safety Canada ASFCP pageOctober 30, 2026amnesty
Current amnesty expiry date
Current RCMP pages state the relevant amnesty protection expires October 30, 2026.
RCMP May 2020 prohibition pageDispatch tracker
Get the trackerKeep the source trail in one place.
Use the Holdover Canadian Firearms Policy Source Tracker to record the current Public Safety, RCMP, Canada Gazette, and Justice source pages behind buyback, OIC, classification, compensation, and amnesty claims.