Visiting Queensland

General Information

It is an offence to possess a weapon in Queensland (section 50 Weapons Act 1990) unless authorised under a licence or permit issued under the Act.  Persons who wish to visit Queensland and intend to possess or use firearms are required to hold a Queensland Weapons Act Visitors Licence.

A visitors licence is valid for the period of time for anyone visiting Queensland for the purpose nominated on the licence, and can be issued for a maximum period of three (3) months.  If you intend to extend your stay any longer than three months, you are required to apply for a further visitors licence to authorise your possession of firearms in Queensland.

Interstate Visitors

Whilst your interstate licence may have mutual recognition as per section 32 of the Act, if you intend to stay longer than 3 months at a time in Queensland, you will need to apply for a visitors licence to continue staying in Queensland beyond the initial 3 month period of your visit.  The application for a visitors licence must be made within the initial 3-month period.  The Authorised Officer will determine whether a visitors licence can be issued in this instance.

International Visitors

International visitors need to apply for a visitors licence as well as an Import Permit (B709) to bring your firearm/weapon into Queensland.  These must be obtained from the Weapons Licensing Branch prior to your visit to Queensland. The application process for this is provided in the Visitors Licence section.

Moving between Australian States and Territories

If you are applying for a Visitors Licence from Queensland and plan to move between different Australian States and Territories during your stay, your licence may have mutual recognition, however this is not always automatically the case. To ensure your Queensland licence is recognised by other jurisdictions, please contact the appropriate State firearm registry to establish their licensing requirements. 

Go to Quick links other state firearm registries.