Gun Ownership Requirements in Uruguay
Uruguay’s current gun laws are codified in the Ley de Armas de Fuego y Municiones (Law of Firearms, Ammunition and Similar Things & Law 19.101), which went into effect on January 21, 2014. It is a complete reform of the firearms law that has been in effect since 1997. Since 2008, authorizations or permits have been required for the possession, carrying, sale, manufacture and commerce of weapons, ammunition, explosives and fireworks. The 2014 law eliminated the requirement to be able to purchase or carry a firearm in order to obtain an authorization for possession. It also moved the function to issue the permits in Montevideo, the capital of Uruguay, and to make the process the same throughout the country. Previously, the permits were issued by the district police where the applicant lived. Therefore, the new permits will be issued by the Ministerio del Interior (Ministry of the Interior) in Montevideo .
The new law eliminates the license for individuals that want to have weapons now. According to this law, if an individual owns a weapon she has ninety days to obtain the necessary authorization and if the individual already has it, he or she does not need to renew it. For possession, permit holders must have health insurance and a mental health certificate. The permit will not be valid if the permit holder has received a domestic violence sentence or has violated non-molestation or exclusive home rights orders. In the case of a renewal of a permit and the existence of domestic violence it will be denied even if the domestic violence case was consolidated. To carry a firearm, a person must have attended a weapons handling course and have a certificate of qualifications issued by a Ministry of the Interior authorized person.
Legal Status of Firearm Possession and Use
In order to legally acquire and own a gun in Uruguay, certain legal requirements must be met. The first requirement is that you must be at least 18 years of age. Following this, you need to have formed a foundation in psychology. This is basically a psychological evaluation, which can be done by any professional psychologist who meets the Uruguayan requirements for a psychologist. Include some kind of professional qualification with your request. As for permits, you will of course need a gun permit in order to possess a firearm legally in Uruguay. This requires you to pass a gun safety course and to register with a local police station (in Montevideo, that’s usually on 18 de Julio or Ciudad Vieja). You will also need to have an identification card (nombre or DNI) to go with that.
Article 2 of Law No. 9.340 of 3 March 1934 establishes that there is no ownership of firearms for persons under the age of eighteen (18). A foreigner or a resident must also have a psychological report issued by a qualified specialist (psychologist, psychiatrist, etc.), with the following consideration: The formalities required to obtain the necessary permits are carried out at the Dependencias de Armas y Explosivos de las Jefaturas (Arms and Explosives Dependencies of the Chief Constables of the Republic). You are obliged to attend and submit yourself to the physical control of the gun that you intend to acquire, as well as the preparation of your identification as an effective owner. For this, the Jefes Referentes de Armas y Explosivos (Chief Officers of Arms and Explosives) will decide or hear from the central administration office of the Ministerio del Interior (Ministry of the Interior).
Types of Firearms Allowed Under Uruguayan Law
For civilian use, the law in Uruguay permits individuals to own both short and long weapons. Long weapons are those intended to be fired with two hands, such as rifles and shotguns. Short weapons, however, are divided into two subcategories based on their barrel length: revolvers, pistols and guns with a barrel of twelve centimeters (12 cm) or longer are classified as long-barreled short weapons. Other guns with a barrel shorter than this are classified as short-barreled short weapons.
Short-barreled short weapons (which are already strictly controlled) present a greater risk of illegal use by criminal organizations and are therefore available only under very specific circumstances agreed upon with the Ministry of Interior. In addition to being foreign tourists, civilians may acquire such weapons for use by approved officers, protection for family residential guards and security guards, self-defense in businesses where regulations prohibit the storage of long-barreled short weapons, and other legally authorized purposes. Civilians may also acquire long-barreled short weapons for the same reasons pre-established by the Ministry of Interior for short-barreled short weapons.
The law makes no distinctions between automatic weapons and semiautomatic weapons. While civilians are forbidden from acquiring machine guns, semiautomatic guns are permitted. There are two major types of semiautomatic weapons. Double-action weapons are pulled back once to cock the hammer, after which the gun fires by being counter-pulled by the finger. Single-action weapons are able to fire immediately after pulling the trigger. Pistols are one example of a single-action weapon.
License Conversion and Firearm Registration Procedures
A firearms and ammunition possession license is valid for ten years. If the license is granted to a legal entity or to a natural person for a firearm used commercially, it will be valid for the duration of the company or self-employed person’s business registration with the corporate register. Licenses may be renewed up to six months in advance. Once a person or entity has obtained a firearms and ammunition possession license and has completed all regulatory compliance with the Ministry of the Interior, they are authorized to acquire one or more firearms. The Ministry of the Interior maintains a register of all licensed firearms owners and their respective firearms. If a firearm is acquired, its permanent owner must inform the Ministry of the Interior so that each newly acquired firearm can be entered into the registry. Each firearm will be registered to the corresponding natural or legal person. The Ministry of the Interior will issue a gun owner’s card to the successful applicant for a firearms possession/license application and once that is available, they can acquire a firearm at a local commercial establishment. It should be noted that as of July 1, 2014, registration of firearms of any kind are not being processed since the weapons are in transit and submitted to the relevant authority to determine the estimated value and to be eliminated, where appropriate. It is estimated that the new law will be in force from 2015 so for now the idea is to transfer weapons of any kind displacement to enabling the relevant authorities to decide regarding the estimated value of the weapon so that it is destroyed.
Possession of Firearms for Defensive Purposes
For self-defense inside the home, citizens are allowed to have only 1 revolver, 1 shotgun or 1 rifle. This proposition can be found in Art. 3 of Law 18.246.
Private security companies, and the members of their staff, are clearly authorized to own an amount of weapons according to the need for the provision of security guards services. The law also establishes specific requirements for those who wish to become licensed to carry firearms. In this case, only citizens or residents are able to demonstrate the need to carry licensed firearms and with that in mind, those interested in carrying revolvers are obliged to present a Medical Certificate with no exception, that states that the applicant is fit for carrying weapons . Additionally, it is worth mentioning that persons that are under 21 years cannot obtain a license to carry, it is necessary to be 21 or older. For the possession of rifles and shotguns licenses, the age requirement is lowered to 18 years old, and although the law does not mention this matter specifically, an interpretation in accordance with the Code of Civil Procedure, any citizen or resident with lesser age can, in principle, own rifles and shotguns. The legal text says that the "license to carry" is considered as such for the purpose of this article as well the "license to possess". The conclusion therefore is that anyone can own weapons regardless of the purpose for which these are needed.
Prosecuting Illegal Use of Firearms
The illegal use, possession and trafficking of firearms constitutes a serious crime in Uruguay. The most severe punishment for those found guilty of using weapons in crimes is a 30-year prison sentence. Yet, as we have seen in practice, criminal judges are less inclined to hand out such stiff sentences. For example, in the case of the journalist who stole a gun from a soldier, to hand the weapons back to the Army in protest of its militarization of the country, the court gave him only 8 years in prison. This does not mean, however, that stealing weapons is not a serious offense. The police have been instructed to arrest potential criminals on the spot and try them under the full weight of the law.
The Uruguayan attorney general has stated that crimes involving illegal possession of firearms are neglected by the courts. He claims that it becomes more attractive for criminals to carry guns in their daily routines, because they are not punished severely enough for gun-related offenses. The attorney general vocally endorsed the idea of harsher penalties for illegal gun use in order to combat the proliferation of weapons in the country.
The Supreme Court of Justice referred to the approval of Law 17970, which is a new law that encompasses when the use of a firearm would mean that the criminal act "was motivated by premeditated malice." In the past, whether or not an armed act was judged as premeditated was left to interpretation.
Influence of Firearm Regulations on Crime and Violence
The effects of Firearms Laws on Public Safety in Uruguay
Uruguay has a relatively low rate of gun violence compared to other countries with high rates of homicide. According to the Center for Disease Control in 2017, 1% of all deaths in Uruguay were due to firearms. As stated by the Transparency International in the report "Homicides and Firearm’s Laws in Latin America and the Caribbean" of November 2017, "Gun homicides are remarkably low in Uruguay. Gun ownership is comparatively restricted, with all concealed carries registered." In effect, it was not until 1992 when the Uruguayan National Firearms and Ammunition Registry was implemented. This registry is available to the public and regulated by the National Police. There is a Licensing Commission that determines if the applications for permits and licenses to carry should be granted or denied and controls the manufacturing, commercialization and distribution of firearms of civilians. It is important to note that these regulations are only for the civilian population and only refer to Class A, B and C firearms (which means handguns, pistols, rifles and shotguns). Military weapons are strictly forbidden to any civilian, even registered collectors. The only exemption are collectors of antique arms, who may own weapons manufactured prior to 1945, even if they are not registered. Besides this, it must be noted that there public authorities stand out, with approximately, over 57,000 firearms in national and local institutions. This number does not include public agents who are licensed to bear arms due to their occupation.
As stated in the same report prepared by Transparency International, "Uruguay has one of the highest registered ownership rates in the continent, with approximately 100 firearms per 100 inhabitants". However, this framework has changed drastically in recent years. As per previous legislation, it has been estimated that there are more than 600,000 weapons held by the civilian population, but now (as far as citizens), there are only 80,000 registration cards under the new system, which presupposes a strict disposition and thus enforcement of the Adrenaline Law.
Under the new legislation, firearms are restricted to university students, journalists or those who live in rural areas and are over 18 years old (if they have the consent of their parents or guardians). Firearms are also permitted to members of non-governmental organizations, but only for the execution of their projects (after an analysis approved by the Ministry of Foreign Relations). Over the past few years, there have been many discussions in the country concerning the convenience of restricting access to firearms as a means to lower the levels of violence in social conflicts. Speaking on this topic, Lic. Jorge Chiesa (Lawyer and former Minister of Interior) stated: "…Education is the most effective means to combat crime, not weapons".Along this same line, Lic. Adríán Pezzarossi (Juris Doctor and former General Director of the Department of Weapons and Explosives of the Military Forces), has also added: "The bearing of arms should be very limited, or should be completely prohibited in certain spaces. Such as homes and others, including the outdoors".
Current Developments and Proposed Reforms in Firearm Law
Since 2018, the government of Uruguay has been assessing several alternatives and reviewing the 2013 law, taking into account discrepancies and inequities in application. In April 2019, the Executive branch submitted a proposal to the Legislative Power, restating the need to reform the law. The opinion of certain political parties is publicly known. In September 2019, the Frente Amplio, party governing in 2013, impugned the proposal and submitted its own draft; its proposal was rejected in the House of Representatives on December 4, 2019.
Uruguay is a country facing serious issues of insecurity, due to the general increase of violence and criminal offenses, often committed with firearms. Uruguayan society is a divided one, from a political point of view. Therefore, such circumstances have sparked long-term heated debates of public policy. On the one hand, the traditional leftist front, led by the Broad Front, argues that gun control is a human right. On the contrary, the right wing of the country, represented by the National Party and the Independent Party, tends to favor advocacy of people’s rights to have arms of their own for self-defense and the right to protect one’s family. The right-wing parties seem to be more aligned with the idea that the broad state power regulation in this regard is unreasonable and unwarranted, as it goes against the individual’s right to self-defense. Furthermore, throughout these years, the background check procedures have become procedurally burdensome, time-consuming, cumbersome and costly.
On March 1, 2020, Lacalle Pou, president elect, will take over the presidency of Uruguay. He is also part of the right-wing party. The party forms the bipartisan coalitions with the Independent Party and the People’s Party who support, among other issues, the improvement of the current law by cutting down many of its provisions, thus eliminating red tape.
The new president elect promised in his campaign that he would limit the exercise of police power only to what is necessary to cover public order and safety. Second, he undertook to concentrate police power in the Ministry of Interior and, third, he pledged the privatization of public security forces. According to him, this will make Uruguayan’s citizens have much more security , being powerful and increasing the number of police and military officers in the front line of the battle against crime. Last but not least, the proposed bill includes the repeal of Law 18831.
Nevertheless, the UPM and the Broad Front have not abandoned the possibility of reformatting the Commission to determine the particularities of future legislation. The opposition intends to maintain gun control at all levels. However, statistical studies show that it is in private homes where most gunmen, armed bandits, come from. Thus, the necessity of giving individuals greater freedom of protection does not seem such a bad idea to make criminals overthink before violating a home and meet a citizen with a gun, such as law-abiding individuals generally hold.
On October 10, 2019, the Frente Amplio (FA) put forward an alternative legal project to regulate private firearm possession, which was incorporated into the agenda of the House of Representatives of the General Assembly of the Republic of Uruguay. This project seeks to amend Law 18.814, effectuate the repeal of Law 18.831 concerning the possession and carrying of firearms, and regulate the registration, supervision, and actions of private guards and private security companies.
It is important to highlight that the regulation of private security companies was already included in the former Law 18.514 of 2009; thus, it is currently in force and includes a registry of private security companies and security agents (guards). It is also worth emphasizing that it was on the basis of this regulation that many of the indisputable elements concerning private security companies and agents were articulated. Considering that this regulation is in force and that the proposal of the Revision and Monitoring Committee of the Law on Private Security does not include modifications of this regulation, dissent could be provided on the fact that there are no reasons given to justify the verification of this element.
However, according to this approach, this regime would not be part of the regime of arms and ammunition, but rather the regime of private guards and private security companies. Hence, this is not a matter of post-facto adjustment, given that both regimes introduced, in their respective legal provisions, parameters and mechanisms that should not be altered by new regulations.
