Is there a training school open to non-US citizens?

[Nyanko]

Mr Kevin Rohrer

I contacted Gunsite before to ask whether they accept non-US citizens, and the sad things is that they offer courses only to US-citizens.
The school looks pretty cool, so I really wish I could attend their classes.
Thanks for the information anyway!

 

[kraigwy]

Mr kraigwy

Thank you for the information on the CMP
I would like to ask several questions about it.


Quote:
The clinics use M1s, Springfields, Military Sporters, Carbines and Modern Military rifles.

Does the clinic offer a class for handling and shooting handguns, particularly those with relatively smaller calibers, like .22LR and 9mm?
I'm a big fan of military rifles and would like to try them, but I've been mainly practicing with handgun airsofts, so I would like to try handguns to see the results of the practice with my airsofts.

I put on CMP GSM Clinics as well as High Power Rifle and NRA Pistol Clinics.

So yes I can do pistol as well as rifle. These are not sefl defense classes, but DO teach "FIREARM SAFETY" and Marksmanship fundamentals for both rifle and pistol.

To my knowledge, there is no requirement to be a citiizen to attend these clinics as long as your are in the country legally. I will check to make sure if interested.

I am interested, so could you please check?

I did check with the Chief Operations Officer of the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) and they have no rules against NON Cititizen Attending their Clinics. So that isn't a problems, also there is no federal or state (Wyoming) laws preventing me from conducting a clinic for non-citizen tourist. Nor is there any laws preventing you from using my rifles and pistols during this clinic.

The cost of the clinic is $20, (total, to be spit ammong the shooters) plus ammo.

Does this mean that the clinic is basically a group class?
If it is, how many students join the clinic?
Also, is there a private clinic, i.e. clinic where one instructor teaches one student?

My clinics very in size from 1 to 8 people. If I have more then that I like to spit them to keep the numbers down. No rules state that I can't spit the clinics into two or more class to keep the numbers down.

The total CMP fee is $20, that means $20 or one or ten students. Ammo is per use, meaning you only pay for what you use, and it on a "cost" basic. You pay acutal cost (what the CMP Charges for the ammo). I do not sell ammo or guns, nor do I rent guns, though I do have several to choose from for your use.

The reason why I consider the private clinic is, even though I'll probably be able to understand what are taught in the clinic
there may be times when I want to confirm and ask things which are obvious to native speakers of English.

I have no problem with that, I do not and will not move to another topic until all students understand the present topic. So that wont be a problem. You'll learn and understand "A" before we move on to "B".

I know this sounds somewhat stupid, but the safety is a priority, and I'd rather take it slow and make everything clear when I take a class that involves the handling of firearms.

No Sir: it does not sound stupid at all, I whole heartely agree. I set three goals, SAFETY, Making sure each and every student leans and can demistrate the 4 basic rules of firearm safety, Fundamentals: Each and every student learns the Fundamentals of Marksmanship. and FUN: I want each student to enjoy the experience.

My main goal is to further Shooting Sports, to do accomplish that it has to be SAFE, A learning Experiecne, and enjoyable. I want students to want to continue in the game of shooting sports, making it a life time hobby, and to pass that knowledge on to othere.

The future of Shooting Sports is in new shooters.

I would also like to know how long each clinic is.
If it is a single day deal, could you arrange the clinic that stretches a couple to several days

That's up to you. If you can do it in one day, or if you want a few days.

I do not want anyone to leave my class unless they have a complete understanding of the Four Basic Rules fo Firearms Safety, and a Knowledge of Marksmanship Fundamentals.

It it takes a week, then so be it.

Please understand, these clinics will not make you an expert marksman, they will give you the basic knowledge and understanding you need to start toward that goal. Becoming an expert marksmen will require you continue with hard work and practice. The limiting factor is the individual and how far he/she wants to go and if they are willing to put in the time and effort toward that goal.

Before considering the clinics above, I would sugest you PM me and I will provide you with my background (training and experience) so you can determine if I meet your qualifications as an instructor.

 

[motorhead0922]

Nyanko

...I'm not concerned about the location itself because I'm visiting the US for learning gun safety and marksmanship, not for sightseeing this time.

When you enter the US, and go through customs, you will be asked the nature of your visit. Do NOT state that you are here to learn how to use guns. Tell them you ARE a tourist, on your way to Mt. Rushmore, or something of that nature.

 

[Kevin Rohrer]

Thunder Ranch

I contacted Gunsite before to ask whether they accept non-US citizens, and the sad things is that they offer courses only to US-citizens.
The school looks pretty cool, so I really wish I could attend their classes.

Sorry to hear that. Try checking with this place. The owner used to be an instructor at Gunsite and follows the same philosophy, and offers similar courses with similar facilities. They are in Oregon, which is closer to you than Arizona.

http://www.thunderranchinc.com/home/index.html

 

[Nyanko]

Thank you for the advice, sir...

Mr motorhead0922

When you enter the US, and go through customs, you will be asked the nature of your visit. Do NOT state that you are here to learn how to use guns. Tell them you ARE a tourist, on your way to Mt. Rushmore, or something of that nature.

I appreciate your advice.
Also, this and other posts have made me realize that it is leagally difficult for a non-US citizen to go to the US and take some course on firearms.
I understand a Japanese guy suddenly asking the way to get a firearms training makes some people nervous, so I appreciate some people make advice like this.
I welcome any advice or caution because the worst thing for me is to see my enthusiasm cause some huge leagal problem, not to see that there is no way to work it out.
If there is no way to work it out and I have to stay in the airsoft world, I will just do so, though it's tough for me.
That being said, I will do my best to make my plan work, so thanks again!

 

[WW2]

You might consider contacting Front-Sight in Las Vegas NV

Mr Nyanko;

The training you a seeking is available at http://www.frontsight.com/ near Las Vegas Nevada. Please contact them for details regarding your situation.

 

[Mr Dish]

Nyanko-San,

It seems to me that you might simplify your search by contacting the NRA. They would be the best bet for getting the information you need.


National Rifle Association of America
11250 Waples Mill Road
Fairfax, VA 22030

You can contact the NRA via phone at:
NRA Member Programs
1-800-672-3888


Good Luck.

 

[Nyanko]

Thank you for all your help

About a month ago, I posted a question to ask that whether there is a firearms training course available to foreign nationals, in my case, a citizen of Japan.
I am glad that a lot of people kindly answered my questions, even though it must have been fairly rare, and my English is not so awesome.
Thank you for all the answers.

I recently found FrontSight does accept students from other countries.
There might be some other schools that are open to foreign nationals, but as far as I have searched, there are not many of them.

I also found that there are some shooting ranges in Guam which are open to tourists.
Although they are primarily for tourists, at least I wouldn't have to worry about leagal issues, so this might be a best compromise.
Also, some of them seem to have a wide variety of guns.
I am not sure whether they have courses in which I can learn the basic of the shooting, and I am still very much interested in taking courses which are held on US Mainland.

In the meantime, as I continued with my searching, my job started getting busy again, and right now I am not sure when I can take a week-long off next time.
I'm hoping to take some vacation during summer or autumn, but not sure.
So the whole plan has come to kind of a pended state,
but I have gained tons of useful information that I can use in the future, and I still definitely give one a try,
so thanks for all your help and see you again!

Nyanko

 

[dec41971]

You can shoot someone else's gun the range etc, as long as you are legally in the US. I know I have taken foreign friends to the Police Range in VA. Transfer refers to buying. You being a tourist may not buy a gun. You can take classes if you want thats fine, as long as the trainer is ok with it. You may go to any range and rent there as long as the range is willing to rent it to you. If you visit NY or DC, NY is tough. There are ranges in NJ, but most are hard to get to unless you have a friend with car to drive you around. If you visit DC however, there are plenty of places in VA and most will be familiar with the tourist\foreign issue, since a lot of foreign nationals live and work in the area.

 

[Skans]

You can shoot someone else's gun the range etc, as long as you are legally in the US. I know I have taken foreign friends to the Police Range in VA.

I know I wouldn't have any problem letting someone from Japan shoot my guns at a range with supervision. My experience is that people from Japan tend to be very respectful and follow directions - two traits that make it easy to teach someone how to properly use a firearm. Personally, I'd love to see tourists from other countries come here to indulge themselves in learning to shoot various firearms. Drop the kids off at Disney World and off to the shooting range!

 

[thump_rrr]

I'm a Canadian who was also looking at taking a course in the USA.
Searching on a Canadian website brought up the actual problem.

The US Government, particularly the US Department of State views training of non US citizens as an export.
This is under ITAR regulations so the person training the foreign national can face the same penalties for training as for providing you with the actual arms.

What you will need to do is to fill out form DSP-83 and attatch to that an export permit provided by the Japanese senior firearms export control officer in your Department of Foreign Affairs For International Trade.

The cost is $250 for the application and it is non refundable if you are declined.
I don't know how your minister will react when you request such an export permit since I'm sure that you'll be one of very few people who have made such a request.
Don't be surprised if your version of the secret service starts to have a closer look at you and possibly your political affiliations.

 

[Hook686]

So all foreign students going to college in the US have to apply under ITAR and fill out form DSP-83 in order to go to college ? Perhaps getting firearm education might be a better approach.

 

[TexasJustice7]

Hooks686: So all foreign students going to college in the US have to apply under ITAR and fill out form DSP-83 in order to go to college ? Perhaps getting firearm education might be a better approach.

I wonder if this is true for Texas, since Texas offers in state tuition rates for non-citisens. Maybe he could check to see if the universities in Texas offer any courses in firearms training, or get them to mail him a booklet of the courses offered.

 

[Hook686]

hmmmm perhaps you have an idea there. However I was thinking more like one could get a sound education on the use and safety of firearms from kraigwy. You might check Texas out and report back

 

[dev_null]

Texas offers in state tuition rates for non-citisens

You still have to establish residency by living here a year, or else get a waiver (usually reserved for students who are employed by the university, e.g., TA's).

 

[Bubba in c.a.]

post 911

aren`t we all feeling safer now that Swiss army knives are confiscated by the ZILLIONS at airports and friendly law obiding people from friendly countries can`t get training?

I have heard of the ITAR stuff on other sites. If nothing else, it will confuse gun-school owners. If I ever want to get my non-resident wife trained in firearms, I`ll do it myself or go to some third country and do it!

 

[hsingyu]

You can join the army if you want to learn how to use a gun, that is what I used to do, you can also ask someone that has been in the military or police to train you, but you need to have a good social network. You can also go to the philippines or Cambodia where civilians can enroll in combat courses.

 

[hsingyu]

Going to US is costly and non-efficient, Cambodia is where you want to be if you are from Asia. Money can buy anything.