Your PAL Isn't Coming Fast: What You Need to Know Before You Start
The Possession and Acquisition Licence (PAL) will take you between six and twelve months to get through the system—sometimes longer. I'm putting that first because it's the detail that catches most people off guard. You can't shortcut it. There's no express line. Once you understand that timeline, everything else makes more sense.
I got my first PAL in 2008. The process has tightened since then, but the bones of it remain the same. You need training, you need a clean application, and you need references who won't sink you halfway through. I've watched guys get approved in seven months and others sit in the queue for eighteen. The difference usually comes down to how well they understood the requirements before they started.
The Training: CFSC and CRFSC Are Non-Negotiable
You can't file a PAL application without proof that you've completed the Canadian Firearms Safety Course (CFSC) or the Canadian Restricted Firearms Safety Course (CRFSC). There's no way around this. These aren't rubber-stamp courses either. You'll spend a full day in class, answer questions on the exam, and handle firearms under supervision.
The CFSC covers non-restricted rifles and shotguns. You'll learn storage laws, safe handling, cleaning, and the actual regulations that govern what you can and can't do with a firearm in Canada. Most instructors are Canadian Firearms Safety Officers certified by provincial authorities. In Ontario, for example, the Ontario Provincial Police oversees the program. You pay between $150 and $300 depending on your province and the specific course provider. The course takes one full day, usually a Saturday.
The CRFSC is what you need if you also want to own restricted firearms—handguns and certain semi-automatic rifles. It covers everything in the CFSC plus restricted-specific material: the Transport and Storage Regulations (TARs), secure storage requirements for restricted firearms, and the additional legal constraints that come with owning a handgun in Canada. This course is longer, often two full days, and costs $250 to $400.
You don't have to take both courses at once. You can get your PAL for non-restricted firearms with just the CFSC, then take the CRFSC later if you decide you want to branch into handguns. That's what I did. I took the CFSC first in spring, got my non-restricted PAL approved by fall, then did the CRFSC the following year and applied for the restricted endorsement.
Find your course through the provincial police or firearms organizations. In most provinces, the RCMP-administered course list is where you'll find certified instructors. Book early. Popular instructors in urban areas can fill up six weeks out.
The Application: What the RCMP Is Actually Looking For
Once you have your course certificate in hand, you apply to the RCMP's Canadian Firearms Program (CFP). You can apply online or by mail. Online is faster. The application itself is straightforward: personal information, your course completion proof, and the names and contact information for two references.
The RCMP will run a background check on you through the Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC) database. They're looking for criminal convictions, outstanding charges, restraining orders, and domestic violence convictions or findings. They also check with provincial registries for any firearms prohibition orders. Any of these will either deny your application or create serious delays.
They'll pull your provincial driver's license record. Traffic violations alone won't kill an application, but a suspended license due to unpaid fines or criminal driving charges will. They want to see someone who follows rules, not just gun-related rules, but laws in general.
The application fee is $60 for five years. A PAL is valid for a five-year period, then you renew. When you're near expiry, the CFP usually sends you a renewal notice about ninety days out.
References: Pick Them Right or They'll Sink You
This is where applicants stumble. You need two references—people who've known you for at least two years and who the RCMP can contact to verify your character. The references don't have to be gun owners, but they do have to be Canadian citizens or permanent residents.
Don't put someone down who might be sketchy about a phone call from the RCMP. I've seen applications delayed months because a reference didn't pick up the phone or gave vague answers. Use people who:
- Live locally. The RCMP will call them. If they're out of province or country, it complicates things.
- Have known you for longer than two years. You can technically list someone at exactly the two-year mark, but longer is better.
- Have a legitimate reason to know you. A employer, colleague you've worked with for years, or a close friend. Not a casual acquaintance.
- Will actually answer their phone. Use their primary number. Test it first if you can.
- Won't lie or exaggerate. The RCMP asks direct questions: Do you know any reason this person shouldn't have a firearm? Has this person ever threatened violence? Keep references honest.
List their full legal names, their relationship to you, phone numbers, and email addresses. Triple-check the phone numbers. A wrong digit adds weeks to processing time.
Processing and What Causes Delays
The RCMP publishes average processing times on its website. As of 2024, they're quoting six to twelve months for standard PAL applications. That's not a guarantee. It's an average.
You'll get delays if:
- Your references don't respond. The CFP will try multiple times over several weeks. If they can't reach someone, they move to a secondary check or request new references.
- Your background check shows something that needs clarification. Old charges, name changes, or criminal records require documentation and explanation.
- Your provincial record has discrepancies. Address mismatches or licensing issues in your province's database can trigger a secondary review.
- You have any mental health or addiction-related incidents on record. The CFP takes these seriously and may request medical documentation or time-based evidence of stability.
- Your application is incomplete. Missing information, illegible forms, or missing course certificates force the CFP to send it back.
How to Actually Get Approved Without Waiting Eighteen Months
Complete your course at least two weeks before you apply. Have all your information ready—full legal name as it appears on your ID, address history for the past five years, and your references' contact information verified and correct. Fill the form out completely and legibly. Online applications are processed faster than paper. Submit everything at once.
Call the CFP's public line if you haven't heard anything after eight months. They'll give you a status check. Track your file number from the moment you apply.
Once you get your approval, the PAL arrives by mail. Frame it, photograph it for your records, and keep it safe. You'll need it to buy firearms and ammunition, and to renew when the time comes.