Euronews reported that Poland issued a record 50,700 gun permits in 2025, pushing the total number of registered civilian firearms to 1,037,778, more than 107,000 higher than in 2024. Active permits reached 411,769 by the end of last year, up from 192,819 in 2015.
Collector permits made up the largest share of new decisions in 2025 with 21,071, followed by 17,601 sporting permits and 7,254 permits for personal protection.
The upswing in ownership began in 2022, when 37,402 new permits were issued, compared with 19,939 the year before. Polish shooting ranges reported a sharp rise in visitors in the weeks after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine that February.
Despite the increase, Poland still has about 2.5 firearms per 100 inhabitants, the lowest rate in the European Union according to 2017 Small Arms Survey data, compared with much higher levels in Finland, Austria and Cyprus.
By contrast, the United States has about 120 firearms per 100 inhabitants, with the right to gun ownership enshrined in the Second Amendment to its Constitution. Firearm homicide rates there are substantially higher than EU averages, where regulations are generally more restrictive and vary by country.
(jh)
Source: Euronews