Traveling in Germany - taking either .22lr pistol and 10M AP

chuckjordan · Post by **chuckjordan** » Wed Feb 08, 2012 7:12 am

We're planning a trip to Germany (Austria and possibly France) this summer. I was thinking of visiting some of the shooting clubs and possibly shooting.

While I know some shooters in Germany (I already have an invite to shoot at an old Munich shooting club), I was wondering if bringing either pistol is feasible and realistic? I'm looking for your advise on items like: storage, weapons on their trains/in the car, etc.

I live in the US and know I need to get papers to bring either out of the country and don't have issues with the air travel aspect, what about being on the ground in Europe?

I know when teams compete the equipment manager normally locks the weapons.

Again, looking for advise that others (on a team?) have experienced or can provide.

Thanks

Chuck

yana · Post by **yana** » Wed Feb 08, 2012 11:15 am

Airguns in germany are limited to 7.5J, otherwise, for posession, a WBK (licence) is needed. So AP (match) shouldnt be a problem.
.22LR will require a licence, so for traveling through europe, you should normally need a european FA pass, bút you are non-EU so I suspect an import licence is needed. Wouldnt be worth the hassle imo.
Dont think they're happy with ány weapon on any airplane either nowadays..
Best, and easiest, if you can spare the $$ is to buy an AP there. (and maybe have it sent over to the US allthough that'll give tax troubles)

Richard H · Post by **Richard H** » Wed Feb 08, 2012 11:50 am

Air pistols are no problem. No one cared coming into Germany but upon leaving the police were called and they had to look at it and all that but no big issue. I wouldn't bother with .22

David Levene · Post by **David Levene** » Wed Feb 08, 2012 12:00 pm

If you do decide to travel to Europe with an air pistol, make sure it carries the "F in a pentangle" mark (most European made airguns will).

That's the accepted mark for the power rating; without it you might have trouble.

j-team · Post by **j-team** » Wed Feb 08, 2012 1:53 pm

Take both pistols and enjoy yourself.

Contact the DSB and they will help you with the import process for the .22 pistol.

http://www.dsb.de/english/german_shooting_federation/

info@dsb.de

orionshooter · Post by **orionshooter** » Thu Feb 09, 2012 12:32 am

j-team wrote:Take both pistols and enjoy yourself.

Contact the DSB and they will help you with the import process for the .22 pistol.

http://www.dsb.de/english/german_shooting_federation/

info@dsb.de

That won't help him either in France or in Austria. Unless you are prepared to show you are attending sanctioned shooting events in these countries and then obtain all the proper permits, you are risking not only confiscation of your fire arms but a loss of liberty as well. Police in these countries will cut you no slack whatsoever.

If you have an invite to shoot informally at a club chances are club members will stand in line to provide you with just about anything you want to shoot.

Enjoy your trip and don't complicate it unnecessarily.

RMar · Post by **RMar** » Mon Feb 13, 2012 8:56 pm

It has been a long time since I had to travel from the U.S. to Europe with guns. I'm sure things have changed some, specifically under what conditions can you travel with airguns and firearms.

If you figure out that you can, be sure to declare ownership of the guns you are taking out of country with US Customs before you leave the US. Take the guns to your nearest US Customs office and they will give you a little form to carry with you showing the serial numbers, makes and models of your guns. This will ease re-entry into the US. Without this form, if Customs pulls you aside and inspect your luggage during re-entry, you may have to pay fines/taxes.

Once in Germany, if you declare with German customs that you are bringing in your airgun and firearm, you'll also have to stop at German customs on the way out of the country. They will track you down if you do not do this. They are just trying to verify the guns you brought into Germany are leaving with you. If they are not sure your guns have left their country, I believe they'll send you a form that will need to filled out by US Customs proving the guns are in the US. Easing their concerns about the wherabouts of your guns is an important thing to do. The process can also take a long time, so plan to get to the airport with a lot of lead time before your flight.

Good luck if you decide to try this.

RobinC · Post by **RobinC** » Thu Feb 16, 2012 7:18 am

We travel to Germany with guns from the UK every year, match air guns are no problem, the authorities have no real interest, just check that your air pistol has the F in a pentagon mark which shows it to be under the power limit requiring a certificate should any one check, the only issue will be complying with air port security.
Fire arms are a totaly different issue, as EU citizens we have European Firearms passes which basically extend the validity of our national certificates to with in the EU, you will not have this and to get a temporary certificate in Germany will be totaly impractical unless you are competing as a member of a National team.

Forget firearms it is genuinly not practical and will just cause complications.

All the towns and most villages in Germany and Austria will have good clubs where you will be made welcome as a guest, and if in Southern Germany most will have good contact to the factories in the area, Walther, Anschutz, FWB and are a good route to get factory visits.
Have Fun.
Robin