In a groundbreaking judgment of 9 September 2025 (case no. II GSK 491/22), the Polish Supreme Administrative Court dismissed the complaint of a professional soldier who applied for a firearms license for collector purposes — even though his previous conviction had been formally expunged.
The case concerns a professional soldier who submitted an application for a collector’s firearms license. Although he formally met the requirements, and the expungement meant that — under criminal law — he should be treated as a person without a criminal record, the competent authority — the Chief Commander of the Military Police — issued a decision refusing the license. The justification stated that despite the expungement, there were factors weighing against issuing the license: the previous offence, even if formally “erased,” constitutes a risk factor.
The applicant disagreed with this position and turned to the administrative court. He argued that since the conviction had been expunged, there was no basis for further negative consequences — he should be treated as someone who had never been convicted.
The case was first examined by the Provincial Administrative Court in Warsaw. In its judgment of 16 November 2021 (case no. VI SA/Wa 805/21), the court ruled in favor of the applicant and overturned the refusal — holding that the expungement of the conviction has practical consequences, including in the procedure for issuing a firearms license.
However, the Chief Commander of the Military Police filed a cassation appeal, and the case ultimately reached the Supreme Administrative Court. After several years — in the aforementioned 2025 judgment — the highest administrative court overturned the PAC ruling and reinstated the refusal.
A key element of the judgment was the court’s position that although formally the expungement of a conviction means that a person is considered to have no criminal record in the sense of criminal law — this does not exclude the possibility of assessing their past in the administrative proceedings concerning the issuance of a firearms license. The court referred to provisions of administrative procedure (including Article 75 of the Code of Administrative Procedure), which allow — and even require — the consideration of “all circumstances” relevant to assessing whether the applicant poses a danger to themselves, public order, or public safety.
The court emphasized that the institution of expungement protects the individual from negative legal consequences in everyday criminal law — but it does not automatically and permanently “erase” the past in the context of privileges such as firearm possession. It was argued that firearm possession is a privilege, not a right — therefore administrative authorities have broad discretion in assessing whether a person meets the conditions of “public trust.”
This ruling has far-reaching implications. First — individuals who were once convicted and later had their convictions expunged cannot be certain that applying for a firearms license will end positively. Their past — even if formally “erased” — may still be subject to renewed analysis.
Second — authorities reviewing applications have a wide range of criteria beyond those strictly listed in the statute. They may examine the applicant’s entire life history, their attitude toward the law — and decide whether they pose a real threat to order or safety.
Another question remains open — whether provincial police licensing authorities in various regions of Poland will begin revisiting positive decisions for individuals with expunged convictions and initiate proceedings aimed at revoking their permits. Time will tell.
Source: Infor.pl
