Moving to UK from Italy, how to bring my Airsoft guns

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Federico

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Hi Guys,

Happy New year, I am Italian and Airsoftplayer since 25 years ( Milsim ).

I will be relocating to work and permanently  live in  UK ( Cambridge area) and I planning to ship all of my equipment and AirsoftGuns

in UK, to be able to play my favorite hobby there.

I am aware about the UK rules about Airsoft and I was wondering If anyone can suggest me the best way to get my stuff in UK without problems.

I will really appreciate your help

Thanks and Regards 

 
its an interesting one, not sure how easy it would be to prove your defence coming into the country afresh.

what will work, although has some practical limitations is if you still have family in italy you could come over sans-kit and get yourself setup with ukara (it'll suck renting but its only a few months) then once you're sorted you can use that to import all your kit over.

of course this only applies to the rif's themselves, things like clothing/gear/accessories are fine so you can bring them over no problem.

 
At what point is something considered a RIF vs parts?

Where do the rules stand on a delivery of upper receivers and a separate delivery of lowers?

Obviously you are at the mercy of customs, who will interpret the rules how they see fit that day.

 
lukeB said:
At what point is something considered a RIF vs parts?

Where do the rules stand on a delivery of upper receivers and a separate delivery of lowers?

Obviously you are at the mercy of customs, who will interpret the rules how they see fit that day.
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y'know i don't think there's much of a definitive answer when it comes to parts, the only thing that does apply there is the clause of "manufacturing an rif" so even if the parts themselves aren't considered an RIF there's an issue in terms of then constructing them into one.

the problem here isn't the defence per say, it's proving it if needs be.

 
- can ship over as parts, reassemble in UK

- can ship to someone local who has ukara (best bet imo)

- obtain ukara first

Good luck

- can ship over as parts, reassemble in UK

- can ship to someone local who has ukara (best bet imo)

- obtain ukara first

Good luck

 
Having known someone in this very situation (only difference is he was moving back home from Canada) can definitely say best way is leave your guns in Italy , get settled in to your new home , join a site get your UKARA sorted THEN bring them all over .?

 
I suspect a lot will depend on how you are actually moving to the UK.  If you are flying, then all the above information is sound, as trying to bring all your kit in on a plane can cause problems.  If you are going to come overland via ferry, or Eurostar, then, depending on how much you are bringing in, it might be easier to bring it with you, together with backup docs to prove to Border Force how long you have played in Italy. Also book a game in the UK near to where you are intending to live before you come to prove you intend to continue playing here.  Just make sure any RIFs are within UK site limits, as if full auto is above 370 fps you may fall foul of the ACPO limit.

 
 Even though he’s a foreign national he still can’t bring rif’s in to the uk with out a UK site membership .

 
What's the script if he books a game close after the moving date? He's importing guns to play at a site with the correct liability insurance. The 3 games in no less than two months is purely ukara not actual law? 

 
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Why should lack of an UKARA number be a problem for bringing in his stuff? They were acquired legally in Italy, and it is not an offence to own rifs in the UK.

You don't need a defence to own rifs. You need a defence only to buy them from British retailers. 

If I stop skirmishing does it mean I no longer have a right to keep my rifs? Of course not.

Are you coming before the end of March Federico? It might make a difference if you are. 

 
Theres a defence required to import then, which is effectively what he's doing, just like ordering from say taiwangun

 
emilianoksa said:
Why should lack of an UKARA number be a problem for bringing in his stuff? They were acquired legally in Italy, and it is not an offence to own rifs in the UK.

You don't need a defence to own rifs. You need a defence only to buy them from British retailers. 

If I stop skirmishing does it mean I no longer have a right to keep my rifs? Of course not.

Are you coming before the end of March Federico? It might make a difference if you are. 
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There’s lots of thing that it’s legal to own with out any kind of permit or registration in other parts of the world that’ll get you hung in the UK , for instance in Honduras you can own a shotgun including pumpaction with a barrel no shorter than 14inches and all you need is a state identity card to buy it ! ?‍♂️

So bit of a silly argument mate , it’s F**k all to do with a UKARA number’s that’s just a registration scheme , he needs a defense to bring them in to the UK (as the hamster said as well) FYI it’s any retailer any WHERE IN THE WORLD not just the UK hence I said join a site first .

 
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Perhaps contact a reputable U.K. retailer and see if you can ship it to them? Then collect on arrival.

 
emilianoksa said:
Why should lack of an UKARA number be a problem for bringing in his stuff? They were acquired legally in Italy, and it is not an offence to own rifs in the UK.

You don't need a defence to own rifs. You need a defence only to buy them from British retailers. 

If I stop skirmishing does it mean I no longer have a right to keep my rifs? Of course not.

Are you coming before the end of March Federico? It might make a difference if you are. 
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Dear,

I am coming at beginning of February. My plan is to leave the equipment and ASG in Italy until I am settled in the new house. Then I will probably need to register as player in a UKARA site and then I will probably be able to ship my Airsoftguns collection. But I was wondering If  is an option to send the guns to someone in UK which already has a UKARA membership. Do you think is possible?

 
Thanks to all for your advice. 

I was also thinking to sell part of my collection here in Italy, to buy something new in UK. 

This is also an option. 

Can I bring with me equipments like Eotech, Scopes, Bipods, PEQ etc? 

How much time it takes to get an UKARA number?

 
Federico said:
Thanks to all for your advice. 

I was also thinking to sell part of my collection here in Italy, to buy something new in UK. 

This is also an option. 

Can I bring with me equipments like Eotech, Scopes, Bipods, PEQ etc? 

How much time it takes to get an UKARA number?
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You can bring everything with you bar the guns , I’d say give your self 3mths from the date you start the registration process and I’m pretty sure you’ll be using your own guns by then ! ?

 
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Leave them at my place, I'll send them over :P

following the thread as me moving to UK may be a possibility in the future :)

 
Note that stripping down to parts and sending them piece by piece could be smuggling

This used to be offered (I don’t know if they still do) by some dodgy Hong Kong sellers

It was one of the things customs would keep

an eye out for

Its not necessary in this case as they are legal to import and are the property of @Federico which he intends to bring in for use in ‘airsoft skirmishing’ which is a valid VCRA defence

Playing the required number of games as a rental and registering under a UKARA site would mean he gets a UKARA number to import with ease.  Contacting customs would enable the question to be asked about an already established player importing their gear

It should not be necessary to be UKARA registered.

This gets asked every now & then, it would be handy if one of the previous question askers could give feedback on what happened next 

 
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