Pistols may only be shot on a Police approved pistol club range

Except under supervision of a licence holder, owning or using firearms requires a firearms licence from the police. The licence is normally issued, under the conditions that the applicant has secure storage for firearms, attends a safety lecture and passes a written safety test. The police will also interview the applicant and two referees (one must be a close relative and the other not related) to determine whether the applicant is "fit and proper" to have a firearm. The applicant's residence is also visited to check that they have appropriate storage for firearms and ammunition. Having criminal associations or a history of domestic violence almost always leads to a licence being declined.

A standard firearms licence allows the use of "A Category" firearms. To possess firearms of another category a person is required to get an endorsement to their licence. There are different endorsements for different classes of firearm but they all require a higher level of storage security, stricter vetting requirements and the applicant must have a 'special reason' for wanting the endorsement.

Each endorsement type has additional requirements

B Endorsement – Target (Competition) pistols

    Applicant must be a current financial member of a pistol club, a financial member of Pistol New Zealand (or in some cases membership of an approved club) and have attended at least 12 club shoots in the last 6 months before they can apply
    Applicant must be sponsored by their club
    The endorsement holder must attend at least 12 club activities (either at their home club or to another recognised club) in a financial year
    Normally limited to no more than 12 pistols registered to their licence
    Pistols must be of an approved sporting type i.e. barrel length of more than 10 cm (3.9 in)
    Pistols can only be carried to and from the range in a locked container with ammunition in a separate container or to a gunsmith
    Pistols may only be shot on a Police approved pistol club range.

C Endorsement – Restricted Weapons Pistols can also be held on the C endorsement instead of the B. Common special reasons include:

    Collecting (must provide evidence in the form of books, club membership, collection of A type firearms), Museum curator, Family heirlooms and Theatrical.
    C category firearms must be stored in an inoperable condition
    Can never be used with live ammunition, but blanks are allowed for movie making and re-enacting
    Can only be taken to an approved display venue, re-enactment event or to another collector for sale.