How strict are gun laws in France?
Restrictive
Firearm ownership is restricted with strict licensing requirements and penalties.
France is one of 45 countries classified “Restrictive” for civilian gun ownership — 40% of the 113 with data. (Also searched as firearm laws.)
Source
- Last checked
- 7 July 2026
- How it was classified
- Classified by a language model from the source text, then checked against hand-verified reference countries.
Nearby countries
- Switzerland
- Licensed / moderate Switzerland has moderate gun laws with permit requirements for most ownership, especially for sport shooting and hunting.
- Belgium
- Licensed / moderate Firearms ownership requires justification and licensing, with some shall-issue provisions.
- Monaco
- Restrictive Monaco requires permits for most firearms and restricts long gun ownership.
- Andorra
- Licensed / moderate Allows gun ownership with licensing requirements, particularly for home defense and sport shooting.
- Netherlands
- Licensed / moderate Civilians can own firearms for hunting and target shooting with licensing requirements.
- Austria
- Permissive Most firearms can be owned permitlessly for hunting, sport shooting, and collection, with some restrictions.
Other laws in France
- Death Penalty
- Fully abolished
- School Corporal Punishment
- Banned
- Military Conscription
- No conscription
- Jury Trials
- Limited use / mixed courts
Every law in France → · How strict are gun laws around the world? →
A visual reference compiled from Wikipedia’s law-by-country articles, not legal advice. Laws change and summaries simplify — check a primary source before relying on anything here.