The legislation which contains a clause to deregulate sound moderators received Royal Assent on 29 April 2026 - another step towards the eventual removal of sound moderators from firearms licences. The receiving of Royal Assent does not mean that sound moderators are now ‘off ticket’, that will come when the relevant clause is “commenced” by the Home Secretary. The next date when commencement of legislation commonly takes place is 1 October 2026. It would not be unreasonable to expect the clause deregulating sound moderators to be attached to this date, but it cannot yet be known for certain.

This deregulation arises from a government tabled amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill that was accepted at Report Stage on 25 February 2026, which deregulates sound moderators (also referred to as ‘silencers’) and flash hiders by removing them from their current status of Section 1 firearms. That followed an amendment tabled by Lord Brady of Altrincham and prepared by the Countryside Alliance which received wide, cross-party support from peers when it was considered at the previous stage of the Bill.

The Countryside Alliance welcomes the receipt of Royal Assent by the Bill, now known as the Crime and Policing Act 2026, having seized the opportunity presented by the Bill to deliver this boon to the shooting community.

Short of full deregulation, this legislation will have the effect of alleviating police firearms licensing departments of a huge and unnecessary administrative burden, whilst allowing legitimate users of sound moderators to buy and sell them without having to proceed through the cumbersome, costly and time consuming variation process – all of this with zero increase in risk to public safety.

The government’s proposed new law will make it an offence to possess a sound moderator for a Section 1 firearm without also possessing either a firearms certificate or shotgun certificate. Possession of a sound moderator designed for other firearms, like shotguns or sub 12 ft lbs air guns, which are excepted from Section 1 of the Firearms Act 1968, without a firearms certificate or shotgun certificate will not be an offence. This level of deregulation is exactly in line with the government’s June 2025 proposals.

Until the clause is commenced, sound moderators remain defined as Section 1 firearms.