Long wait times for permits ‘killing’ South Australian firearms businesses

SA firearms dealers are calling for action as excessive bureaucracy is pushing many to the brink of financial collapse.

Some firearms permits are taking more than two months to be processed. Picture: iStock

South Australian firearms businesses say that they are being crippled financially by “excessive” delays in the processing of permits and licence applications.

With some permits taking more than two months to be processed, businesses are being forced to warehouse large volumes of stock with those at full capacity unable to order additional stock.

An Adelaide business owner, who wished to remain anonymous, said that his business was waiting on more than 200 outstanding permits.

“A lot of our cashflow is tied up with those firearms,” he said.

“We get a deposit from a person who’s purchasing a firearm from us, and then we have to wait until that permit is approved to get the full payment.

“On average, we’re getting about three to four permits (approved) per day and we’re currently selling more (firearms) than that, so at this rate, we’re never going to catch up.”

Licensed gun dealers each have their own secure storage or armoury, with some businesses currently holding up to 400 excess firearms pending police approval.

This includes sporting firearms (shotguns, rifles, pistols) used for target shooting or for competition, hunting game, pest eradication or euthanising farm stock.

The delays aren’t just impacting dealers, some of which are at risk of closing their business, but also farmers and agricultural operators waiting on permits for “essential” tools.

The Shooting Industry Foundation of Australia (SIFA) said the issue was causing “significant financial strain” for businesses across the state.

“The issue here is that these approvals were taking two weeks in November ’24, now they are taking two months,” CEO James Walsh said.

“Dealers are sitting on hundreds of thousands of dollars in inventory because they cannot get permits processed.

“This is not just bad service; this is killing small businesses across the state.

“We also see this as a security (and) public safety risk, as businesses are being forced to stockpile large numbers of firearms in one place.”

All applications, renewals and registrations for firearms are handled by SAPOL’s Firearms Branch.

Firearm permits submitted from March 3 onwards are currently being processed for approval, according to the SAPOL website.

Meanwhile firearms licence applications and licence renewals submitted from October and December last year are currently being processed.

Under Section 23 (9) and (10) of the Firearms Act, an application for a permit to acquire a firearm must not be granted until 28 days from the date of the application.

Detective Superintendent Lauren Leverington said that efforts were being made to improve efficiency as the force experiences an increased volume of applications.

“South Australia Police are preparing to implement a new digital system to improve operational efficiency, enhance accessibility to the community and streamline our services,” she said.

Originally published as Long wait times for permits ‘killing’ South Australian firearms businesses