Guns are rarely out of the headlines in Belgium. Over the summer, a spate of drug-related shootings in Brussels put the city on high alert and sent shockwaves through the country.
But for many people in Belgium, guns have a much less sinister purpose. Despite restrictive laws, sport shooting and hunting remain important national pastimes.
In recent years, the number of legally registered firearms in Belgium has grown considerably. Between 2010 and 2019, the total number of registered firearms increased by 13% to 805,148. Wallonia is still the region with the most registered weapons (44% of Belgian registrations), closely followed by Flanders (42%) and 10% in Brussels.
Approximately 150,000 people (legally) own a gun in Belgium – primarily as members of a shooting club, according to figures from the Central Weapons Register, which is managed by the federal police. These are private individuals who own one or more weapons. Legal entities such as police districts or security firms are not included in these figures.
"To be eligible for a gun license, the Belgian gun law sets out a number of conditions," said the Flemish Peace Institute. "You need to be of legal age, have no criminal record, no history of psychiatric problems, a diploma from a theoretical test and a medical certificate."
Very importantly, you also need what the government considers a 'legitimate reason' to receive a permit to own a gun. These reasons are:
- hunting (provided you have a hunting license)
- sport shooting (provided you have a valid sport shooting licence, and only if you regularly practice that sport in a shooting club)
- exercising a high-risk profession (such as a security guard)
- defending people who are "at an objective and significant risk" (only if it is the only remaining means of protection)
- collecting firearms (collectors may possess weapons, but are not allowed to use them)
- participation in historical, folkloric, cultural or scientific activities (possession is allowed specifically for that purpose)
The gun law also provides for the possibility of "passive gun ownership." This allows, for example, heirs who inherit a legally owned weapon to keep it, provided they only keep the weapon and not its ammunition.
Over 110 firearms seized by the Brussels Federal Judicial Police, Friday 13 September 2024. Credit: Belga
What is the law in Belgium?
Belgium's "new" firearms law came into effect in 2006, following a double murder with a hunting rifle, which the killer was able to buy legally. The case shocked the country and led to political agreement to tighten gun legislation.
Since 2006, the firearms law has divided weapons into three categories:
- prohibited weapons
- freely available weapons
- weapons requiring a permit
"The old Belgian gun law assumed that all weapons not on the list of prohibited weapons were freely available," said the Flemish Peace Institute. "The new law reverses that logic: all weapons not listed as prohibited or freely available now require a permit."
Generally, the possession of firearms is prohibited in Belgium. To possess weapons requiring a permit, people must submit an application – whether they are a private individual, dealer, collector, hunter, or target shooter.
Prohibited weapons
Since the new firearms law came into effect, possession of certain weapons is no longer permitted.
This primarily concerns weapons designed for military use (including automatic firearms, such as machine guns); firearms that have been modified for concealment, are concealed in another object, or no longer meet the specifications described in the permit (a sawed-off rifle, for example); electroshock weapons, tear gas sprays, pepper sprays, nunchakus, silencers, certain ammunition (bombs, grenades).
Over 110 firearms seized by the Brussels Federal Judicial Police in Brussels, on Friday 13 September 2024. Credit: Belga/Nicolas Maeterlinck
In addition to firearms, spring-loaded and folding knives with locks, butterfly knives, throwing knives, throwing stars, brass knuckles, bladed weapons that resemble another object (such as a knife concealed in a belt or a pen), swordsticks and rifle batons that are not historical ornamental weapons, clubs and batons are also banned.
"A general and absolute ban applies to all of these types of weapons. Buying, selling, transporting, possessing, manufacturing, etc., is strictly prohibited," the law states. "If you do possess such a weapon, you must hand it in to the local police."
Illegal gun possession is still a blind spot for the police and the judiciary, as seizures are usually made in separate judicial files from various agencies, both federal and local.
Freely available weapons
These are types of weapons that people are allowed to possess without a permit. It includes weapons that have been deactivated by the Firearms test bench (Proefbank voor vuurwapens in Dutch/Banc d’épreuves des armes à feu in French), historical weapons listed in a Royal Decree, flare pistols, alarm weapons, and non-firearms (air guns and some crossbows).
Weapons requiring a permit
For these types of weapons, the person who owns one requires a permit from the governor of the province where they live. Hunters and target shooters can purchase certain weapons with a hunting permit or a target shooter's license.
Who else has such a permit?
In September 2025, many people in Belgium were shocked when Het Laatste Nieuws published images of Filip Dewinter, one of the leading members of the Flemish far-right Vlaams Belang party, with a pistol tucked in his belt at the party office in Antwerp.
While this is an unusual sight in Belgium, it is not illegal in Dewinter's case: he received his permit over eight years ago, and is one of the 15 private citizens in the country allowed to carry a weapon in public.
In general, only police officers and private security services are allowed to carry a weapon. In order for an exemption to be granted to a private citizen, that person must be able to demonstrate that they have already been threatened multiple times and have already tried various other ways to eliminate that threat.
If none of that worked, they are allowed to possess a firearm – as a last resort.
Credit: Noah Wulf/Wikimedia Commons
This was the case for Dewinter. For two years, he received police protection, which included armoured vehicles and bodyguards, due to credible death threats. Then, he learned that, as a former reserve officer and marksman, he could apply for a permit. Eight years ago, the permit was granted.
Information about the 14 other people with such a permit is not publicly available, but the Flemish Peace Institute stated that some of them are lawyers who frequently handle organised crime cases and who receive serious threats.
The assessment is made very thoroughly by the governor of the province where the person lives, to ensure that the gun is truly necessary.
When are you allowed to use a firearm?
The question of when gun owners are legally allowed to discharge their firearms is a thorny issue, according to weapons expert Nils Duquet (Peace Institute).
"For that, you have to look at the rules of lawful self-defence. You have to be in a life-threatening situation, and the use of the firearm must be necessary," Duquet told VRT.
"You have to assess whether you could have stopped the threat in some other way. For example, if you find yourself in a situation where people are only using their fists, are you allowed to shoot? The judge must decide that afterwards."
In any case, politicians who are threatened must receive sufficient protection so they can express their opinions freely. "When their life is threatened, a permit may be a solution. But the intention is not for every politician who receives a threat to carry a weapon," said Duquet.
The conditions are applied very strictly in Belgium. And according to Duquet, that is completely necessary. "We absolutely want to avoid American situations, where everyone walks around with a gun," he said.
