Firearms Seizure & Forfeiture Hearings

When Police Take Your Firearms

Police in Ontario seize firearms in a range of situations. It might be a domestic call where no one was hurt, a concerned relative’s report, a mental-health check, a criminal charge, or a traffic stop where a licence could not be produced. Often no one is charged at all. Either way, the owner is left with the same questions: when will I get them back, and what do I have to do?

The answer depends on which power the police used. The Criminal Code has several different seizure provisions, and each has its own timelines, its own hearing and its own test. Getting firearms back, or avoiding a forfeiture order and a prohibition, starts with identifying the right one. Many owners lose property simply because they do not realize a hearing has been scheduled, or that a deadline has passed.

This page explains the main routes. Our firearms practice handles these hearings alongside licence revocations and section 74 references, because a seizure is often only the first step in a wider licensing problem.

How Seizures and Forfeiture Work

Public-Safety Seizures: Section 117.04

Section 117.04 is the preventive seizure power. No offence is required. A justice can issue a warrant if satisfied there are reasonable grounds to believe a person possesses weapons, ammunition or similar items and that it is “not desirable in the interests of the safety” of that person or anyone else for them to have them (s. 117.04(1)). Police can also seize without a warrant where the grounds exist but getting a warrant would not be practicable because of possible danger (s. 117.04(2)). Either way, the officer must report the seizure to a justice immediately (s. 117.04(3)).

One detail catches many people out. If police seize the firearms but cannot seize your licence at the same time, every authorization, licence and registration certificate you hold is revoked as of the seizure (s. 117.04(4)).

The Disposition Hearing: Section 117.05

After a s. 117.04 seizure, police have 30 days from the seizure (or execution of the warrant) to apply to a justice for an order disposing of what was seized (s. 117.05(1)). The justice sets a hearing date and directs notice. If you do not attend, the hearing can go ahead without you (s. 117.05(2)). The justice must hear all relevant evidence, including evidence about the value of the items (s. 117.05(3)).

If the justice finds it is not desirable, in the interests of safety, for you to possess these items, the justice must order them forfeited or “otherwise disposed of.” Where the circumstances warrant, the justice may also prohibit you from possessing weapons, ammunition and related items for up to five years (s. 117.05(4)). Reasons are required if the justice declines to make an order or makes a narrower one (s. 117.05(5)). You can appeal an order to the superior court, and the Attorney General can appeal a refusal (s. 117.05(7)–(8)).

The words “otherwise disposed of” matter. Forfeiture is not the only option open to the justice. In appropriate cases we ask for orders allowing the firearms to be sold or transferred to a licensed person, so the owner keeps their value.

Automatic Return: Section 117.06

Under s. 117.06(1), everything seized under s. 117.04 must be returned if police make no application within the 30 days, or if the justice hears the application and does not make the safety finding. If your licence was revoked by s. 117.04(4), the justice can also order the revocation reversed and the licence restored (s. 117.06(2)). In practice, the police and the CFO do not always act on these provisions without being asked, so follow-up is often needed.

Evidence Seizures: Sections 489.1 and 490

Firearms seized in a criminal investigation under a search warrant, or without a warrant under s. 117.02, are dealt with under sections 490 and 491 (s. 117.02(2)). Under s. 490, the justice orders the property returned unless the Crown or police show it is needed for an investigation or proceeding. Detention without charges is limited to 180 days unless extended (s. 490(2)), and to a cumulative one year unless a judge orders more for a complex investigation (s. 490(3)). The 180-day period was set by a 2026 amendment; before that it was three months. Once detention periods expire, the person from whom the property was seized can apply for its return on three clear days’ notice (s. 490(7)). Earlier applications are possible if hardship is shown (s. 490(8)).

Failure to Produce a Licence: Section 117.03

If an officer seizes a firearm because you could not produce your licence (and registration certificate, for restricted and prohibited firearms), you can reclaim it by producing the documents within 14 days (s. 117.03(2)). After that, the officer must bring it before a provincial court judge, who can declare it forfeited after giving you a chance to show you are lawfully entitled to it (s. 117.03(3)).

Forfeiture on Conviction: Section 491

If a court finds that a weapon was used in an offence, or that a person committed an offence involving firearms, the seized items are forfeited (s. 491(1)). A prohibition order also generally forfeits prohibited items in the person’s possession or already seized (s. 115(1)). Because forfeiture follows the finding of guilt, it has to be addressed at the plea or sentencing stage, not afterwards. See our page on firearms prohibition applications.

Owners Who Are Not the Person of Concern

Firearms seized from a home are often owned by someone else, such as a spouse, parent or roommate with their own PAL. The Code protects lawful owners in several places:

• Section 117 lets a lawful owner apply for the return of items forfeited under a prohibition order (including a s. 117.05 order, through s. 117.05(6)). For a s. 109 or s. 110 order, the owner must also show they had no reasonable grounds to believe the item would be used in the offence.
• Section 491(2) requires return to a lawful owner who was not a party to the offence and had no reasonable grounds to believe the item would be used in one.
• Section 490(10)–(11) allows a person claiming to be the lawful owner to apply at any time, on notice, for return.

Where items cannot be returned, these provisions can instead order payment of the sale proceeds or value. A third-party owner should still expect questions about storage and access. The police may also bring a separate application limiting their access (s. 117.011).

What We Do

• Contest s. 117.05 disposition applications and oppose accompanying prohibition orders
• Pursue return under s. 117.06 when no application is brought in time, and restoration of revoked licences
• Bring s. 490 applications for return of firearms held as evidence, including after charges are withdrawn
• Represent spouses, family members and co-owners seeking return of their own firearms
• Negotiate transfers or sales of firearms to licensed persons instead of forfeiture
• Address forfeiture at plea and sentencing in criminal cases

Our Approach

1. Identify the Power and the Deadline

Our first step is to find out exactly what the police relied on, when the seizure happened, and whether a report to a justice or a s. 117.05 application has been filed. That tells us which deadlines are running and what hearing, if any, is coming.

2. Meet the Safety Question Head-On

At a s. 117.05 hearing, forfeiture and a prohibition are only available if the justice finds that possession is not desirable in the interests of safety. We test the grounds, including what was actually said, what was actually seen and who reported it. We also call evidence of your history, your storage practices and your circumstances since the incident. Medical evidence, character witnesses and a practical storage plan can all make a difference.

3. Sequence It With Any Criminal or Licensing Case

When charges are laid, bail conditions typically prohibit possession under s. 515(4.1), and the firearms stay held until the case ends. When charges are withdrawn or resolved by a peace bond, the firearms are not returned automatically. Under s. 810(3.1), the court must consider whether to add a firearms prohibition to a peace bond, and those terms can decide whether return is possible. We negotiate peace bond wording with this in mind and then move promptly for return. Where the CFO has also revoked, we coordinate with a section 74 reference.

4. Preserve Value

If return is unlikely, a court-approved transfer or sale to a licensed person is almost always better than forfeiture. We raise it early, before the hearing, not after an order is made.

Collateral Consequences

• Loss of property. Forfeited firearms are disposed of as the Attorney General directs, without compensation.
• Prohibition. A s. 117.05 prohibition of up to five years is a court order that makes you ineligible for a licence while it lasts.
• Licence status. A seizure can revoke your licence automatically, and a CFO review often follows.
• Household impact. Other licence holders in the home may face storage conditions or access limits.

Related Resources

• Firearms Licence Applications & Revocations: our overview of firearms licensing in Ontario
• Section 74 Reference Hearings: challenging a CFO refusal or revocation
• Firearms Prohibition Applications: s. 111 applications and prohibition orders
• Peace Bonds in Ontario: how peace bond terms affect firearms

Seizure deadlines are short and hearings can proceed in your absence. To discuss seized firearms, contact Mor Fisher LLP at 705-721-6642 or through our contact page.