Regulation of paintball in Malta

Regulation of paintball in Malta concerns the laws and administrative requirements governing paintball markers, playing facilities and participation in the sport in Malta.

Paintball has been expressly recognised in Maltese arms legislation since the enactment of the Arms Act in 2005. The regulatory treatment of paintball equipment subsequently changed through amendments in 2013 and 2017, affecting marker classification, licensing and the approval of playing locations. [1][2]

Legislative background

Arms Act 2005

Malta's Arms Act, Act XIV of 2005, received presidential assent on 2 August 2005 and came into force on 15 August 2006. [1]

Article 2 of the Act included paintball within its definition of sporting activity and separately defined paintball activity as involving specially designed compressed-air or gas-powered equipment discharging frangible, dye-filled projectiles. [1]

The inclusion of paintball in the legislation established an explicit statutory definition for the activity.

It did not establish when paintball was first played in Malta or when the country's earliest commercial fields opened.

Early marker registration

During the 2000s, paintball equipment was regulated within Malta's wider firearms licensing framework.

A parliamentary answer reported by the Times of Malta on 7 February 2007 identified 20 paintball guns among the weapons newly registered during 2006. [3]

These figures provide documentary evidence of paintball equipment being registered in Malta during the early implementation of the Arms Act.

The figure represents reported equipment registrations during that year, rather than the total number of paintball players, commercial fields or active markers.

Licensing restrictions and reform

Restrictions during the 2000s

By February 2009, concerns had emerged over the administrative requirements affecting paintball participation.

A Times of Malta report published on 8 February 2009 described a licensing process requiring membership of a firearms club, vetting, weapons-handling training and examination by the Weapons Board. [4]

The report quoted the owner of a licensed paintball business in Kalkara, who argued that the requirements placed commercial paintball facilities at a disadvantage.

The Association of Maltese Arms Collectors & Shooters (AMACS) was among the organisations advocating changes to the regulatory framework.

AMACS submitted proposals to the government aimed at distinguishing paintball and airsoft equipment from conventional firearms and reducing the restrictions affecting recreational participation. [4][5]

Reclassification in 2013

On 26 February 2013, Malta published Legal Notices 75 and 76 of 2013, introducing amendments to the Arms Licensing Regulations and the Arms Act schedules. [5][6]

Legal Notice 76/2013 removed the relevant category from Schedule II and introduced a new item in Schedule III expressly identifying airsoft and paintball guns. [6]

The change represented a significant reclassification of the equipment.

In its contemporary explanation of the amendments, AMACS stated that the reform removed the requirement for a transfer licence for paintball and airsoft guns.

The association also stated that equipment could be taken outdoors by owners belonging to an airsoft or paintball club. [5]

These statements describe the association's interpretation of the regulations at the time and should be distinguished from the precise wording of the legislation.

The reclassification did not mean that all legal obligations concerning ownership, registration, transportation or use of paintball equipment disappeared.

Regulatory changes in 2017

Two further amendments published on 30 May 2017 changed the legal treatment of paintball markers.

Removal from Schedule III

Legal Notice 151/2017 amended the schedules of the Arms Act. [7]

Regulation 3 deleted item 5 of Schedule III.

That item had been introduced by Legal Notice 76/2013 and expressly identified airsoft and paintball guns.

The 2017 amendment therefore removed the airsoft and paintball entry from Schedule III.

Although Legal Notice 151/2017 does not itself use the word paintball, its effect can be established by comparing the provision with the original 2013 amendment.

This represented a further change to the equipment classification framework, separate from the 2013 licensing reform.

Approved playing areas

On the same date, Legal Notice 150/2017 amended the Arms Licensing Regulations by introducing regulation 94. [8]

The provision restricted the use of airsoft and paintball markers to designated areas approved by the Weapons Board.

This established an express requirement for approval of playing locations, independently of the changes to the classification of individual markers.

The distinction between equipment classification and approval of playing areas is important to understanding the development of paintball regulation in Malta.

The approved-area provision also appears in the subsequently consolidated Arms Licensing Regulations, S.L. 480.02. [9]

Role of sporting clubs

Historically, shooting sports clubs played an administrative role in Maltese paintball participation.

During the period when paintball markers were subject to firearms licensing requirements, club membership formed part of the process described in contemporary reporting. [4]

The Malta Allied Airgunners Club maintained a dedicated paintball section by February 2010 and provided an organisational structure for local players and competitions. [10]

AMACS and its affiliated clubs were also involved in the regulatory environment surrounding paintball and airsoft, including advocacy for legislative changes.

Following the 2013 amendments, AMACS continued to describe club membership as relevant to the outdoor use of paintball equipment. [5]

The precise historical requirements varied according to the regulations applicable at the time.

Membership arrangements offered by commercial paintball venues should not automatically be confused with membership of clubs recognised for licensing purposes.

Regulation of playing facilities

The requirement for approved playing areas became explicit in regulation 94, introduced in May 2017. [8]

Under the provision, the Weapons Board was designated as the approving authority for locations where paintball and airsoft markers could be used.

Approval under arms legislation is a separate matter from planning permission, land-use arrangements, commercial authorisations and other requirements that may apply to a sporting facility.

The earlier development of paintball venues in Malta had also involved planning considerations.

In May 2003, the Times of Malta reported that the Malta Environment and Planning Authority had approved a proposed paintball site adjoining the Mediterranean Film Studios at Ricasoli. [11]

Such planning records document proposed land use but do not, by themselves, establish when a facility began operating or whether it subsequently received any other necessary authorisations.

Historical significance

The regulation of paintball in Malta developed from a system closely associated with conventional firearms licensing towards a distinct framework for paintball equipment and approved playing areas.

The 2005 Arms Act established an explicit legal definition of paintball activity.

The 2013 amendments reclassified paintball guns and reduced certain licensing restrictions.

The 2017 amendments removed the paintball and airsoft entry from Schedule III while introducing an express requirement for Weapons Board approval of playing areas.

These developments form part of the wider history of recreational and competitive paintball in Malta.

They also provide context for the relationship between paintball operators, shooting sports clubs and later dedicated paintball organisations.

References

Act XIV of 2005, Arms Act. Parliament of Malta, assented to 2 August 2005; consolidated Chapter 480, commencement 15 August 2006.
Government of Malta, Arms Act, Chapter 480. Official legislation portal.
Times of Malta, 1,780 new weapon licences. 7 February 2007.
Times of Malta, Getting a shotgun is easier than playing paintball. 8 February 2009.
Association of Maltese Arms Collectors & Shooters, Changes to the Arms Act. 26 February 2013.
Legal Notice 76 of 2013, Arms Act (Amendment of Schedules) Regulations. Government Gazette of Malta No. 19,037, 26 February 2013.
Legal Notice 151 of 2017, Arms Act (Amendment of Schedules I and III) Regulations. Government Gazette of Malta No. 19,789, 30 May 2017.
Legal Notice 150 of 2017, Arms Licensing (Amendment) Regulations. Government Gazette of Malta No. 19,789, 30 May 2017.
Arms Licensing Regulations, S.L. 480.02. Government of Malta, consolidated legislation, regulation 94.
MAAC Paintball Malta, introductory announcement. 19 February 2010.
Times of Malta, Sliema hotel extension given the green light. 6 May 2003.

External links