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We recently spoke with J.R. Cox, president of Sterling Arms International, a Canadian-based firearms manufacturer. For Canadian firearm owners, sellers, or transporters, Cox’s experience encapsulates the challenges facing the industry today. His story highlights the systemic issues within Canada’s firearms regulations.

The increased scrutiny of legal firearm owners, distributors, and manufacturers began in 2020, following the tragic Nova Scotia mass shooting, where a violent individual killed 22 people over 13 hours.

Notably, the perpetrator used illegally obtained firearms, impersonated an RCMP officer, and drove a vehicle resembling an RCMP cruiser. Despite prior warnings about his criminal behaviour and a suspicious half-million-dollar transaction linked to a purported informant financing portal, the RCMP failed to act. Instead of addressing these failures or cracking down on illegal firearms smuggling, then-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau targeted law-abiding firearm owners.

Canada classifies firearms into three categories: non-restricted, restricted, and prohibited. In 2020, the Liberal government issued an Order in Council prohibiting thousands of firearms, preventing legal owners, dealers, and producers from buying, selling, transporting, or importing them. A two-year grace period was provided to sell these firearms legally, but many now risk a federally enforced buyback, leaving their property to collect dust in safes.

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In 2022, another Order in Council extended similar restrictions to all handguns nationwide. Bill C-21, passed in 2023, further curtailed the rights of legal firearm owners. In December 2024, the Liberals added hundreds more rifles to the prohibited list, followed by additional bans in March 2025.

This month, the RCMP took matters into their own hands, arbitrarily classifying several firearms as prohibited on their Firearms Reference Table, a non-legal document used by law enforcement to guide classifications. Rather than relying on clear criteria for prohibitions, both the Liberal government and the RCMP seem to base decisions on aesthetics or tenuous connections to previously banned firearms. This approach creates a cascading effect, potentially leading to the prohibition of all firearms in Canada.

Among the newly prohibited firearms is the Sterling Arms International R9 rifle, specifically designed to comply with the 2020 restrictions. Since 2020, J.R. Cox has faced mounting challenges, forcing him to close parts of his business due to Canada’s increasingly restrictive firearms environment. To survive, Cox made the difficult decision to relocate his operations to the United States, as the federal government systematically removed his products from Canadian shelves.