Gun laws in the Czech Republic adhere to the European Firearms Directive. Legal accessibility is comparable to those EU and EFTA countries which consider firearms to be primarily tools of individual or collective safety (i.e. Switzerland, Austria, Poland, Baltic states, Finland) and not just sporting instruments (see Gun laws in the European Union).
Right to keep and bear arms is considered to be an attribute of liberty in the country. It is explicitly recognized in the first Article of the Firearms Act. At the constitutional level, the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms protects the "right to defend one's own life or life of another person also with arms under conditions stipulated by law".
Firearms are available to any resident subject to acquiring a firearms license. Firearm licenses may be obtained in a way similar to a driving license; by passing a proficiency exam (in Czech language only), medical examination and having no criminal record. Unlike in most other European countries, Czech firearms legislation also permits citizens to carry concealed weapons for self-defense; 260,027 out of 316,859 gun...