For a demanding and responsible reform of the hunting license in France

Petition addressed to the Prime Minister and the Minister for Ecological Transition

Hunting involves the use of firearms in areas often shared with local residents, walkers, cyclists, forestry workers, and other nature users. It therefore requires a level of skill, vigilance, and ability that cannot be considered permanently acquired on the day of the initial examination. Today, the right to hunt assumes passing an exam and then, for each season, validating the licence. There is also a mandatory ten-year training on safety. However, this refresher course does not constitute a new aptitude test and is not sufficient on its own to ensure lasting mastery of essential rules: certain identification of the target, respect for the safety angle, consideration of the environment, and safe handling of the weapon.

Recent facts that require maintaining the demand

Reports from the French Office for Biodiversity show both the progress made and the persistence of a serious risk. For the 2024-2025 season, the OFB recorded 100 accidents resulting in 103 victims (target errors such as confusing a dog for a wild boar are not counted as fatal accidents), including 11 deaths. The 11 fatal accidents occurred during big game hunts; five were self-accidents. Sixteen non-hunters were victims of bodily accidents, three of whom were seriously injured. The failure to respect the 30-degree angle remained the primary cause of accidents during big game hunts, while poor handling or holding of the weapon remained heavily involved. For the 2025-2026 season, the report indicates 92 accidents and four deaths, all among hunters, including three self-accidents. Ten non-hunters were nevertheless injured, four of whom seriously. These figures are lower than twenty years ago, but they remind us that an identification error, a shot at a prohibited angle, or poor handling can still kill or maim. Each recent death is a concrete example of the irreversibility of these mistakes. Sources: OFB report 2024-2025 and OFB report 2025-2026.

We demand a strengthened initial examination

We request that the hunting licence exam places a decisive emphasis on practical situations and safety. Success could be conditioned on achieving at least 85% of the points, with immediate elimination in case of a fault endangering a person: shooting without certain identification, crossing the safety angle, pointing a weapon at others, dangerous movement with a loaded weapon, or poor assessment of the environment. The prior training should include more supervised exercises, particularly on shooting angles, ricochets, distances, signalling a drive, and coexistence with other users of natural spaces.

We demand limited validity, regularly verified aptitude, and a maximum age set at 70 years

The licence should no longer grant a permanent right without re-evaluation. We propose practical and theoretical revalidation every 10 years, in person, covering safety gestures, target identification, and weapon handling. A periodic medical certificate should verify the directly necessary capabilities for safe practice, including vision, hearing, mobility, coordination, and the absence of contraindications incompatible with carrying a weapon. The frequency of this check could be increased when a healthcare professional deems it necessary.

We also request that the law sets 70 years as the maximum age for hunting and for obtaining the annual validation of the hunting licence. From the seventieth birthday, this validation could no longer be issued or renewed. This clear and uniform age limit would aim to enhance accident prevention and protect all users of natural spaces.

Our call

We, the signatories, call on the Government to immediately open a consultation involving the State, the OFB, hunting federations, healthcare professionals, nature user associations, and representatives of local authorities. This consultation should lead to a bill strengthening the initial examination, instituting a truly evaluative periodic revalidation, organising a proportionate medical check, setting 70 years as the maximum age for hunting, and improving the traceability of training, suspensions, and accidents. This is not about stigmatising hunters, but about applying a simple principle to an armed activity: the ability to practice safely must be demonstrated from the outset, regularly verified, and time-limited. We call on the Prime Minister and the Minister for Ecological Transition to make the goal of "zero deaths, zero avoidable injuries" a national priority and invite every citizen committed to the safe sharing of natural spaces to sign this petition.