2013-05-29
Section 3. Definition of Terms
(a) Accessories refer to parts of a firearm which may enhance or increase the operational efficiency or accuracy of a firearm but will not constitute any of the major or minor internal__pai:ts thereof such as, but not limited to, laser scope, telescopic sight and sound suppressor or silencer.
(b) Ammunition refers to a complete unfired unit consisting of a bullet, gunpowder, cartridge case and primer or loaded shell for use in any firearm.
(c) Antique firearm refers to any: (1) firearm which was manufactured at least seventy-five (75) years prior to the current date but not including replicas; (2) firearm which is certified by the National Museum of the Philippines to be curio or relic of museum interest; and (3) any other firearm which derives a substantial part of its monetary value from the fact that it is novel, rare, bizarre or because of its association with some historical figure, period or event.
(d) Arms smuggling refers to the import, export, acquisition, sale, delivery, movement or transfer of firearms, their parts and components and ammunition, from or across the territory of one country to that of another country which has not been authorized in accordance with domestic law in either or both country/countries.
(e) Authority to import refers to a document issued by the Chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP) authorizing the importation of firearms, or their parts, ammunition and other components.
(f) Authorized dealer refers to any person, legal entity, corporation, partnership or business entity duly licensed by the Firearms and Explosive Office (FEO) of the PNP to engage in the business of buying and selling ammunition, firearms or parts thereof, at wholesale or retail basis.
(g) Authorized importer refers to any person, legal entity, corporation, partnership or business duly licensed by the FEO of the PNP to engage in the business of importing ammunition and firearms, or parts thereof into the territory of the Republic of the Philippines for purposes of sale or distribution under the provisions of this Act.
(h) Authorized manufacturer refers to.any person, legal entity, corporation, or partnership duly licensed by the FEO of the PNP to engage in the business of manufacturing firearms, and ammunition or parts thereof for purposes of sale or distribution.
(i) Confiscated firearm refers to a firearm that is taken into custody by the PNP, National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), and all other law enforcement agencies by reason of their mandate and must be necessarily reported or turned over to the FEO of the PNP.
(j) Demilitarized firearm refers to a firearm deliberately made incapable of performing its main purpose of firing a projectile.
(k) Duty detail order refers to a document issued by the juridical entity or employer wherein the details of the disposition of firearm is spelled-out, thus indicating the name of the employee, the firearm information, the specific duration and location of posting or assignment and the authorized bonded firearm custodian for the juridical entity to whom such firearm is turned over after the lapse of the order.
(l) Firearm refers to any handheld or portable weapon, whether a small arm or light weapon, that expels or is designed to expel a bullet, shot, slug, missile or any projectile, which is .discharged by means of expansive force of gases from burning gunpowder or other form of combustion or any similar instrument or implement. For purposes of this Act, the barrel, frame or receiver is considered a firearm.
(m) Firearms Information Management System (FIMS) refers to the compilation of all data and information on firearms ownership and disposition for record purposes.
(n) Forfeited firearm refers to a firearm that is subject to forfeiture by reason of court order as accessory penalty or for the disposition by the FEO of the PNP of firearms considered as abandoned, surrendered, confiscated or revoked in compliance with existing rules and regulations.
(o) Gun club refers to an organization duly registered with and accredited in good standing by the FEO of the PNP which is established for the purpose of propagating responsible and safe gun ownership, proper appreciation and use of firearms by its members, for the purpose of sports and shooting competition, self-defense and collection purposes.
(p) Gunsmith refers to any person, legal entity, corporation, partnership or business duly licensed by the FEO of the PNP to engage in the business of repairing firearms and other weapons or constructing or assembling .firearms and weapons from finished or manufactured. parts thereof on a per order basis and not in commercial quantities or of making minor parts for the purpose of repairing or assembling said firearms or weapons.
(q) Imitation firearm refers to a replica of a firearm, or other device that is so substantially similar in coloration and overall appearance to an existing firearm as to lead a reasonable person to believe that such imitation firearm is a real firearm.
(r) Licensed citizen refers to any Filipino who complies with the qualifications set forth in this Act and duly issued with a license to possess or to carry firearms outside of the residence in accordance with this Act.
(s) Licensed juridical entity refers to corporations, organizations, businesses including security agencies and local government units (LGUs) which are licensed to own and possess firearms in accordance with this Act.
(t) Light weapons are: Class-A Light weapons which refer to self-loading pistols, rifles and carbines, submachine guns, assault rifles and light machine guns not exceeding caliber 7.62MM -which have fully automatic mode; and Class-Blight weapons which refer to -weapon designed for use by two (2) or more persons serving as a crew, or rifles and machine guns exceeding caliber 7.62MM such as heavy machine guns, handheld underbarrel and mounted ·grenade launchers, portable anti-aircraft guns, portable anti-tank guns, recoilless rifles, portable launchers of anti-tank missile and rocket systems, portable launchers of anti-aircraft missile systems , and mortars of a caliber of less than lOOMM.
(u) Long certificate of registration refers to licenses issued to government agencies or offices or government-owned or -controlled corporations for firearms to be used by their officials and employees who are qualified to possess firearms as provided in this Act, excluding security guards.
(v) Loose firearm refers to an unregistered firearm, an obliterated or altered firearm, firearm which has been lost or stolen, illegally manufactured firearms, registered firearms in the possession of an individual other than tbe licensee and those with revoked licenses in accordance with the rules and regulations.
(w) Major part or components of a firearm refers to the barrel, slide, frame, receiver, cylinder or the bolt assembly. The term also includes any part 01· kit designed and intended for use in converting a semi-automatic burst to a full automatic firearm.
(x) Minor parts of a firearm refers to the parts of the firearm other than the.major parts which are necessary to effect and comp1ete the action of expelling a projectile by way of combustion , except those classified as accessories.
(y) Permit to carry firearm outside of residence refers to a written authority issued to a licensed citizen by the Chief of the PNP which entitles such person to carry his/her registered or lawfully issued firearm outside of the residence for the duration and purpose specified in the authority.
(z) Permit to transport firearm refers to a written authority issued to a licensed citizen or entity by the Chief of the PNP or by a PNP Regional Director which entitles such person or entity to transport a particular firearm from and to a specific location, within the duration and purpose in the authority.
(aa) Residence refers to the place or places of abode of the licensed citizen as indicated in his/her license.
(bb) Shooting range refers to a facility established for the purpose of firearms training and skills development, firearm testing, as well as for sports and competition shooting either for the exclusive use of its members or open to the general public, duly registered with and accredited in good standing by the FEO of the PNP.
(cc) Short certificate of registration refers to a certificate issued by the FEO of the PNP for a government official or employee who was issued by his/her employer department, agency or government-owned or -controlled corporation a firearm covered by the long certificate of registration.
(dd) Small arms refer to firearms intended to be or primarily designed for individual use or that which is generally considered to mean a weapon intended to be fired from the hand or shoulder, which are not capable of fully automatic bursts of discharge, such as:
(1) Handgun which is a firearm intended to be fired from the hand, which includes:
(i) A pistol which is a hand-operated firearm having a chamber integral with or permanently aligned with the bore which may be self-loading; and
(ii) Revolver which is a hand-operated firearm with a revolving cylinder .containing chambers for individual cartridges.
(2) Rifle which is a shoulder firearm or designed to be fired from the shoulder that can discharge a bullet through a rifled barrel by different actions of loading, which may be classified as lever, bolt, or self-loading; and
(3) Shotgun which is a weapon designed, made and intended to fire a number of ball shots or a single projectile through a smooth bore by the action or energy from burning gunpowder.
(ee) Sports shooting competition refers to a defensive, precision oi- practical sport shooting competition duly authorized by the FEO of the PNP.
(ff) Tampered , obliterated or altered firearm refers to any firearm whose serial number or other identification or ballistics characteristics have been intentionally tampered with, obliterated or altered without authority or in order to conceal its source, identity or ownership.
(gg) Thermal weapon sightrefers to a battery operated, uncooled thermal imaging device which amplifies available thermal signatures so that the viewed scene becomes clear to the operator which is used to locate and engage targets during daylight and from low light to total darkness and operates in adverse conditions such as light rain, light snow, and dry smoke or in conjunction with other optical and red dot sights.
