Authorization to Transport

An Authorization to Transport is a permit issued by the Canadian Firearms Program allowing holders of Restricted and Prohibited class firearms to transport them in Canada. Such a permit is only issued to holders of a Possession and Acquisition Licence (or a Possession Only Licence) endorsed for Restricted (and possibly also Prohibited) firearms at the discretion of the Chief Firearms Officer (CFO) of the province(s) in which the transport occur. A reason must be given for the purpose of transporting them: e.g., to a licensed Shooting range, to a gunsmith, or to a postal outlet to be shipped.

There are two types of ATTs. Short-term ATTs are valid for a single trip; long-term ATTs are valid for 5 years. Issuance of ATTs is highly variable. In some provinces, ATTs are usually only approved for those individuals who belong to a licenced shooting range, and have completed the Range's proprietary Safety-training and/or probationary period. As such, ATTs are most of the time applied for at the Range's request, not the individual. However nothing stipulates in the Canadian Firearms Act that an individual not belonging to a club can apply for an ATT. In some cases, ATTs are issued to any licensed individual who has one of the listed reasons. In theory, the Chief Firearms Officer should issue an ATT to any licensed individual who provides one of the listed reasons, as long as the CFO is satisfied that the transport "will not endanger the public safety"; but in practice the issuance of ATTs is based more upon the CFO's policy (and that of his or her province).

As with the licensing process, ATT permits can have long waiting periods and are subject to background checks. However, the ATT process generally takes much less time than the licence; ATTs can take anywhere from a few minutes to months, whereas the licence can take several months. In order to transport a Restricted or Prohibited firearm it must be unloaded, it also must have a functional trigger lock, and be kept in a locked case. Ammunition may be carried with the firearm or separately stored, provided it is not loaded in the gun (e.g. - magazines may contain ammo, but may not be loaded in the firearm).

Restricted firearms include, but are not limited to, handguns. All handguns are, at a minimum, Restricted in Canada; many common US handguns are Prohibited as their barrel length is less than 105 mm (4.14 inches).

Any individual wishing to transport Restricted and/or Prohibited firearms must possess their licence, registration certificate(s) for the firearms being transported, and ATT on their person, as it is a paper document. Only one long-term ATT is issued to each individual, covering all their appropriate firearms.