Norinco Type 97A
The Chinese-export bullpup. PLA Type 95 / 97 lineage in a civilian-spec variant. The OIC named it alongside the rest of Norinco's catalogue.
Is the Norinco Type 97A banned in Canada? Yes. The Norinco Type 97A is prohibited in Canada. It was named across SOR/2024-248 (December 2024) and SOR/2020-96 (May 2020). If you owned one before the deadline, confirm whether it appears on the federal Assault-Style Firearms Compensation Program list. The current amnesty for prohibited firearms expires 90 days after the latest Supreme Court appeal termination under SOR/2026-114.
Classification: Prohibited · OIC/SOR: SOR/2024-248 + SOR/2020-96 · Ban-Risk: Already Gone · Compensation: Confirm federal list · Amnesty: SCC appeals + 90 days
Verdict
The Norinco Type 97A is the civilian export variant of the People's Liberation Army's Type 95 / Type 97 bullpup service rifle. Manufactured by Poly Technologies / Norinco for the international civilian and designated-marksman markets, the Type 97A reached Canadian retailers through the early 2010s and developed a niche collector and sport-shooting following — buyers attracted by the bullpup form factor, the lower price point relative to Western flagship bullpups (Tavor, Hellion, RDB), and the PLA lineage as collector interest in its own right. SOR/2024-248 named the Type 97A family on December 5, 2024 alongside the rest of the Norinco rifle catalogue still on the Canadian market — the Type 313, the Type NQU03, the EMEI-branded T97NSR variants. The Norinco brand was already heavily affected by SOR/2020-96 (the Type 81 family went in that wave); the December 2024 expansion took most of what remained.
Tracking a rifle on this list?
The Ban-Risk Index updates as classifications and the federal compensation list change. Get those changes, and the SCC + 90-day amnesty deadline reminders, in The Dispatch.
Lineage
Parents: PLA Type 95 / Type 97 (Chinese military bullpup, never civilian-legal outside export markets)
Siblings: Norinco Type 81 (prohibited SOR/2020-96), Norinco Type 91 (prohibited SOR/2020-96), EMEI T97NSR/A (prohibited SOR/2024-248)
Derived: Type 97A sub-variants for export markets
Primary sources for this entry
- Canada Gazette — SOR/2024-248 — Canada Gazette. accessed 2024-12-06
- QBZ-97 — Wikipedia (parent platform reference) — Other. accessed 2026-05-27
Safety note: the Ban-Risk Index is editorial estimation, not legal advice or a substitute for current official guidance. The classification field reflects current RCMP FRT status as of the last-scored date. For any transfer, surrender, deactivation, or transport question, consult primary RCMP / Public Safety Canada sources and, where appropriate, a Canadian firearms lawyer.
