Short answer: no. As of September 2026 the SKS is a non-restricted rifle in Canada. You can buy one with an ordinary PAL, hunt with it, shoot it at the range and sell it privately. It was not on the May 2020 ban list, the December 2024 list or the March 2025 list. People keep asking is the SKS banned in Canada because it has been talked about more than any other legal rifle, and the talk got louder this summer. Here is where things actually stand.
What the law says today
So, is the SKS banned in Canada today? No. The SKS is classified non-restricted by the RCMP’s Firearms Reference Table, the same class as a bolt-action deer rifle. It is a semi-automatic centrefire rifle with a 20 inch barrel, well over the 470 mm threshold that would make it restricted. The only rule specific to it is the one that applies to every semi-auto centrefire in Canada: the magazine is limited to five rounds. That is why every SKS sold here has its fixed magazine pinned to five, and why detachable mags are sold as 5/30s.
Ottawa has prohibited roughly 2,500 makes and models since May 2020, in three rounds: about 1,500 in May 2020 (the AR-15, Mini-14, M14 and Vz58 among them), 324 more on December 5, 2024, and 179 more on March 7, 2025. The SKS was not on any of those lists. In December 2024 the public safety minister said the government would look at it before the next phase of the buyback. No SKS order followed.
Why the question came back in 2026
On June 22, 2026 a shooting in Montreal’s CĂ´te-des-Neiges district killed a police officer and a civilian, and images circulating afterward suggested the rifle was an SKS. The gun control group PolySeSouvient repeated its call to end SKS sales. Three days later the Prime Minister said the government is “reviewing the firearms classification regime” and will rely on RCMP advice about which firearms should be banned. He did not commit to an SKS ban and gave no timeline.
What has been announced since is a broad review of the classification system, with an expanded advisory group and dedicated consultations with First Nations, Inuit and MĂ©tis communities, because the SKS is a working hunting rifle across the North. Some reports say a decision on the SKS and similar rifles could come this fall. As of mid-September nothing has been decided and nothing has been published.
What happens if it is banned
Nobody knows the details, but the last three rounds set the pattern. A ban comes by Order in Council with no notice. From that day the rifle cannot be sold, transferred, used or imported. Owners get an amnesty period, and a compensation program pays a fixed amount per rifle for handing it in. The current amnesty for the 2020, 2024 and 2025 lists runs until 90 days after the Supreme Court rules on the challenge to the 2020 order, which it agreed to hear in March 2026, with a decision expected in 2027. The amnesty extension notice is on canada.ca.
It is also possible nothing changes. The SKS survived the 2020 list, the 2024 list, the 2025 list and a federal election, and it is probably the most widely owned centrefire semi-auto in the country.
What that means if you want one
Is the SKS banned in Canada for buyers, then? Not today, and it is legal to buy. If a ban ever came, owners would get an amnesty period and compensation, as in every previous round. If you have been planning on an SKS, waiting does not improve any outcome.
The everyday rules are the same as for any non-restricted rifle. Valid PAL to buy, including online. Five rounds maximum. Stored unloaded with a trigger lock or in a locked container, ammo separate or locked up with it. Transported unloaded. Expanding ammo for hunting.
SKS rifles and ammo in stock
The SKS with ATI synthetic stock is $798.88 and is our best-selling rifle by a wide margin, also in OD green and dark earth. The Chinese SKS with folding stock and blade bayonet is $1,278.88, and the Soviet SKS is $1,198.88. Ammo: Norinco 7.62Ă—39 FMJ at $14.50 a box, PMC 123gr at $22.45, and Federal 123gr soft points at $42.00 for hunting. Stripper clips, an original sling and the ProMag 5/30 magazine are all in stock.
More reading: every semi-auto rifle still legal in Canada, our SKS hunting guide, and what an SKS should cost.
Is the SKS banned in Canada? The short answer
- Is the SKS banned in Canada? No. Non-restricted as of September 2026.
- Is a ban being considered? The classification system is under review. No decision, no date.
- What if it happens? Amnesty and compensation, based on every previous round.
- Should you wait? Waiting does not help. Buying now does not hurt.
This is a store’s reading of public announcements as of September 16, 2026, not legal advice. Check the RCMP and Public Safety Canada sites for changes.