Sound moderator red tape almost gone

End of the variation process

The Crime and Policing Bill, which will declassify sound moderators and flash hiders as Section 1 firearms, received Royal Assent on 29 April, completing its passage through Parliament. A commencement date must now be set by the Home Secretary before the changes take effect.

Legislation commonly commences on 1 October, which would not be an unreasonable expectation, but no official confirmation has been given. For the time being, moderators continue to be treated as Section 1 firearms.

Once deregulation is commenced, the requirement to go through the variation process to acquire or dispose of a moderator for a Section 1 firearm will be removed entirely. However, possessing a sound moderator for a Section 1 firearm without a valid firearms or shotgun certificate will remain an offence. 

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Long-awaited change

Roger Seddon, shooting campaigns manager at the Countryside Alliance, welcomed the news: “This legislation will have the effect of alleviating police firearms licensing departments of a huge and unnecessary administrative burden, whilst allowing legitimate users of sound moderators to buy and sell them without having to proceed through the cumbersome, costly and time consuming variation process – all of this with zero increase in risk to public safety.”