Federico Posted January 15, 2019 Share Posted January 15, 2019 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 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporters Adolf Hamster Posted January 15, 2019 Supporters Share Posted January 15, 2019 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. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lukeB Posted January 15, 2019 Share Posted January 15, 2019 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. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporters Adolf Hamster Posted January 15, 2019 Supporters Share Posted January 15, 2019 7 minutes ago, 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. 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. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeorgePlaysAirsoft Posted January 15, 2019 Share Posted January 15, 2019 - 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 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporters Druid799 Posted January 15, 2019 Supporters Share Posted January 15, 2019 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 .👍 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RR01 Posted January 15, 2019 Share Posted January 15, 2019 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. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporters Druid799 Posted January 15, 2019 Supporters Share Posted January 15, 2019 Even though he’s a foreign national he still can’t bring rif’s in to the uk with out a UK site membership . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vulpiness Posted January 15, 2019 Share Posted January 15, 2019 Register them as airguns if you're moving to scotland? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigStew Posted January 15, 2019 Share Posted January 15, 2019 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? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emilianoksa Posted January 15, 2019 Share Posted January 15, 2019 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. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporters Adolf Hamster Posted January 15, 2019 Supporters Share Posted January 15, 2019 Theres a defence required to import then, which is effectively what he's doing, just like ordering from say taiwangun Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporters Druid799 Posted January 15, 2019 Supporters Share Posted January 15, 2019 34 minutes ago, 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. 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 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wo1f Posted January 15, 2019 Share Posted January 15, 2019 Perhaps contact a reputable U.K. retailer and see if you can ship it to them? Then collect on arrival. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emilianoksa Posted January 15, 2019 Share Posted January 15, 2019 . 1 hour ago, Adolf Hamster said: Theres a defence required to import then, which is effectively what he's doing, just like ordering from say taiwangun Sorry. Forgot about that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Federico Posted January 15, 2019 Author Share Posted January 15, 2019 2 hours ago, 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. 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? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Federico Posted January 15, 2019 Author Share Posted January 15, 2019 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? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporters Druid799 Posted January 15, 2019 Supporters Share Posted January 15, 2019 1 hour ago, 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? 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 ! 👍 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skara Posted January 15, 2019 Share Posted January 15, 2019 Leave them at my place, I'll send them over following the thread as me moving to UK may be a possibility in the future Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tommikka Posted January 15, 2019 Share Posted January 15, 2019 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 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporters Druid799 Posted January 16, 2019 Supporters Share Posted January 16, 2019 As Tommika says people get hung up on the whole UKARA ‘licence’ crap , this gentleman just needs to be able to prove his intentions with them , as I said a good friend went through this process returning to the UK and in the end he found the easiest and smoothest way was to just join a 3rd part insurered site so he had his defense down in black and white . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Federico Posted January 16, 2019 Author Share Posted January 16, 2019 Thanks @Druid799, Can you suggest me a good Airsoft Team close to Cambridge? I am looking for Milsim / Reenacting events as well. I use to play in my region (Sardegna) where we have plenty of space for Milsim as is a big island with few population. You can see the Social media pages of my team here: www.maddogs.it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EvilMonkee Posted January 16, 2019 Share Posted January 16, 2019 No teams as such but quite a few decent sites. Best of which is probably Urban Assault near Peterborough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dusix Posted January 16, 2019 Share Posted January 16, 2019 Hello, You can try to check this http://www.airsoftmap.net/skirmish/ to find nearest game site to you. Best luck in game! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporters Druid799 Posted January 16, 2019 Supporters Share Posted January 16, 2019 2 hours ago, Federico said: Thanks @Druid799, Can you suggest me a good Airsoft Team close to Cambridge? I am looking for Milsim / Reenacting events as well. Afraid we don’t have as big a mil-sim/re-enactment thing going on in the UK as a lot of European countries seem too , don’t get me wrong it does happen over here normally on MoD training sites (couple of well known companies do it) but from my experience it’s predominantly open skirmishes that players attend regularly as we don’t have as much free access countryside (HM land Registry estimates between 75%-85% is privately owned in the uk) as a lot of other countries have to use . As to teams and sites near your new home too be ? sorry bud haven’t a clue about Cambridge area , I live 3hrs drive from there and never been up that way either . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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