Argentina - July 2025

On 1 July, President Milei signed decree 445/2025, introducing major changes to law 27.192 and dissolving the National Agency for Controlled Material (ANMaC), an independent body created in 2015 by broad Congressional consensus to prevent gun violence. It will be replaced by an office under the Ministry of Security focused mainly on firearms registration. The decree follows earlier measures that deregulate the gun market, including lifting a ban on civilian access to high-caliber semiautomatic weapons, lowering the legal age for purchase, and loosening the process for obtaining permits. Civil society groups have urged Congress to reject the decree, warning that it shifts policy from violence prevention to mere registry and risks fuelling gun violence. They argue that lifting the ban on semiautomatics and lowering the purchasing age could flood the legal market with weapons and feed organized crime. Critics also denounce the use of presidential decrees to bypass legislation passed by Congress with broad support.

Sources: El Pais, Red Argentina para el Desarme, Chequeado, Pagina 12, Presidencia de la Nacion