Police are reminding gun owners to make sure their licence is up to date, firearms are registered and being stored correctly or face they may face a fine or possibly jail time.

“There’s plenty of lawful reasons for people to own firearms, but that comes with personal responsibilities,” Detective Inspector Scott Parker, the Port police command’s crime manager, said.

“In particular ensuring their firearms licences are current and renewed prior to the expiration date, and that all safe storage requirements are being met.”

The warning comes during the National Firearms Amnesty, running until September 30.

During the amnesty, anyone with any unregistered or unwanted firearms can surrender them to an appropriate drop-off point without penalty.

Detective Inspector Parker said there had been an increase in the number of firearms police have seized due to owners failing to renew their licences on time.

Firearms have also been seized after they were stolen due to poor storage.

He said this increase has been seen across many NSW police commands.

“A law abiding contributor of the community may find themselves liable for prosecution if they don’t comply with licencing and safe storage guidelines,” Detective Inspector Parker said.

“Police understand that in this busy life we all lead, from time-to-time people may overlook licence renewal.

“This is why police are issuing a timely reminder for firearms owners to check the status of their licence.”

Holders of a firearms licence should receive a renewal notification from the Firearms Registry before it expires.

If this does not happen, the registry should be contacted on 1300 362 562.

If a person chooses not to renew their licence, they must dispose of their firearms legally before it expires.

It is against the law to possess a firearm without a licence.

The firearm must be registered, too.

Anyone found with an unregistered firearm can be fined up to $280,000 and be jailed for up to 14 years.

Firearms that are seized or currently in police custody are kept for 28 days then disposed of.

The amnesty is an opportunity to hand in any unregistered or unwanted firearms or firearm-related items such as parts of a firearm, ammunition or other prohibited weapons without penalty.

There is no limit to the number of items you can hand in.

In Australia, it is illegal to possess unregistered firearms which include, but are not limited to:

The 2017 National Firearms Amnesty runs from July 1 to September 30.

Each state and territory has approved amnesty drop-off points.

Drop-off points may include police stations or licensed firearms dealers. Locations may also differ depending on whether you are seeking to sell, register or destroy the articles.

A list of firearm dealers and club participating in the 2017 amnesty is available here.

For information about the National Firearms Amnesty and requirements for a NSW resident to lawfully own a firearm head to the National Firearms Amnesty website here.

Information can also be found on the NSW Police Force’s website here.