Police and Security, Vol. 35 No. 3, 2026.
Preliminary communication
https://doi.org/10.59245/ps.35.3.3
Legal Aspects of Collecting Weapons in the Republic of Croatia
Dinko Ljubić
orcid.org/0000-0002-2705-7192
; Police Academy “The First Croatian Police Officer“, Police Directorate, Ministry of the Interior, Zagreb, Republic of Croatia.
Nataša Prišlin
; Directorate for Immigration, Citizenship and Administrative Affairs, Ministry of the Interior, Zagreb, Republic of Croatia.
Damir Juras
orcid.org/0000-0002-2933-5897
; Ministry of the Interior, Department for First Instance Disciplinary Proceedings, Split, Republic of Croatia.
Abstract
Weapons collecting represents one very specific purpose for possessing weapons. Accordingly, such weapons must not be carried or used in any way. Moreover, ammunition must not be acquired and loaded for the said weapon, and it may be transferred solely for the purpose of repair, modification and display at exhibitions or similar manifestations. Consequently, weapons collecting represents a lower degree of danger to public safety compared to other procurement purposes. In the Republic of Croatia, there is a long tradition of acquiring weapons for collecting purposes. The significant legislative change came into effect when the Act on Weapons was abolished. The above-cited act has been replaced by two acts: the Act on the Acquisition and Possession of Weapons by Citizens and the Act on Explosive Substances and the Production and Trade of Weapons. Accordingly, the legislator separates jurisdiction into two categories; therefore, the conditions and standards for natural persons and legal entities are no longer the same. Moreover, compared with the previous legal solution, natural persons may collect not only old weapons but also all other weapons that fall under categories B and C. Furthermore, for legal entities, there is an exceptional possibility that, in addition to old weapons, museums can also collect other weapons that are no longer manufactured and are no longer used by armed forces or police.
Keywords
weapons; firearms; collecting weapons; acquiring weapons; legal weapons
Hrčak ID:
351010
URI
Publication date:
21.9.2026.
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