If you are waiting on a first certificate, a renewal or a variation in Sussex, the force’s own figures explain the silence. Just 27% of new certificate applications were processed inside the 120-day national guideline in the year to the end of August, and about a quarter of renewals, Sussex Police told its police and crime commissioner in October. The force is recruiting more licensing staff and warns that its workload could double in 2027.
How long is Sussex taking?
Assistant Chief Constable Steve Rayland set out the figures at Katy Bourne’s performance and accountability meeting, Brighton and Hove News reported. In the year to June the force handled 850 new firearm licences and 3,100 renewals. In the first six months of the year just over half of applications met the 120-day guideline, against a force target of 80%; by the end of August the share of new grants decided in time had fallen to 27%. The team is working through older cases while trying to keep new ones inside the guideline.
“Once we have those plans, we are going to assess how we’re able to respond,” Mr Rayland said of the demand analysis now under way. “We know it’s coming. We’re looking at trying to address it and trying to manage the backlog demand.”
Why will 2027 be worse?
Certificates granted during the pandemic, when much of the process ran online and fewer home visits took place, run for five years and are falling due together. Every application now requires a home visit, and Mr Rayland said each case also involves social media checks, visits to children and to everyone at the applicant’s address, and checks for any history of domestic abuse. Sussex has about 16,000 certificate holders, Mrs Bourne said, a high count for a single-county force; Thames Valley Police has about 20,000 across three counties. “That’s where a few forces have come a cropper,” she said of the renewals bulge. “They didn’t understand and were caught short.”
What does it mean before you buy?
A first gun cannot leave the shop until the grant arrives, so a buyer who applies now in a force running at Sussex’s pace should plan a purchase for next summer rather than this season, and should not pay a deposit on a gun that must be collected by a date the force cannot promise. A buyer who needs a variation for a new calibre or an extra slot sits in the same queue as every renewal; ask the shop whether it will hold the rifle, and for how long, before committing. If your certificate falls due in 2027, apply well before it expires: if the renewal is not decided in time, you will be relying on your force’s temporary permit, and a dealer will want to see that permit’s terms before any sale or transfer.
Second-hand buyers face the same gate as new ones, and so do private transfers, which still need the receiving certificate to be valid and have the space. Nothing in the Sussex figures changes what you may own; everything in them changes when.
Is this only a Sussex problem?
No. The pandemic cohort exists in every force, and His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services found in August that firearms licensing across England and Wales was not fit for purpose, recommending a national licensing authority in place of the 43 force units. Until that or any other reform lands, each force’s turnaround is its own, and the same renewal can take a month in one county and most of a year in the next.
What happens next
Sussex Police will set out its response once its demand analysis is complete. Buyers waiting on a grant or a variation should expect the 120 days to be a minimum, and holders renewing in 2027 should treat the date on the certificate as the deadline for a decision, not for the form.
Useful links
Sussex Police – the force recruiting more staff for its licensing team
Brighton and Hove News – the local democracy report from the accountability meeting
ShootingUK – the group’s full account of the Sussex meeting
Frequently asked questions
How long does a certificate application take in Sussex?
The national guideline is 120 days. In the year to the end of August 2026, Sussex Police met it on 27% of new applications and about a quarter of renewals.
Can I buy a gun while my certificate renewal is pending?
Only if the certificate is still valid, or you hold a temporary permit from your force and the dealer is satisfied with its terms. Apply well before the expiry date.
Does a variation take as long as a renewal?
Variations sit in the same licensing queue, so in a backlogged force expect a similar wait before a new calibre or an extra slot is added to your certificate.
Related articles
Buying a gun this season? Check your certificate dates first – the dates to check before a deposit
Waiting on a first certificate? What the new data means before you buy – the national grant figures
Digital certificate checks could change how you buy a gun – the reform the watchdog wants
