UK. 2010 ‘UK Implementing Report for the International Marking and Tracing Instrument.’ National Report of the United Kingdom on its Implementation of the Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects (UNPoA), p. 12. New York, NY: Counter Proliferation Department / Foreign and Commonwealth Office. 1 March

Relevant contents

UK Implementing Report for the International Marking and Tracing Instrument.

Under the provisions of the revised European Weapons Directive, for the purpose of identifying and tracing each assembled firearm Member States shall, at the time of manufacture of each firearm, either:
(a) require unique marking including the name of the manufacturer, the country or place of manufacture, the serial number and the year of manufacture (if not part of the serial number). This is without prejudice to the possible affixation of the trademark. For these purposes, the Member States may choose to apply the provisions of the Convention of 1 July 1969 on Reciprocal Recognition of Proofmarks on Small Arms (CIP); or
(b) maintain any alternative unique user-friendly marking with a number or alphanumeric code, permitting ready identification by all States of the country of manufacture.

The marking must be affixed to an essential component of the firearm, the destruction of which would render the firearm unusable.

Member States must also require the marking of every single elementary package of complete ammunition, providing the name of the manufacturer, the identification batch (lot) number, the calibre and the type of ammunition. For these purposes Member states may choose to apply the provisions of the CIP.

Furthermore, they must ensure, at the time of transfer of a firearm from government stocks to permanent civilian use, the appropriate unique marking permitting identification by States of the transferring country.

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