UK Airgun Law summary. You should contact your local Police office for more details.

United Kingdom Airgun Law. (Date of this article January 2008, contact home office for definitive version)

Normal airguns do not currently require a licence unless they are over the UK legal limit of 12ft.lbs muzzle energy for rifles and 6 ft.lbs muzzle energy for pistols. Providing you are within the age requirements for ownership listed below almost anybody can own one. There may be local restrictions, e.g. rifled barrels are not allowed in Northern Ireland. Also those using 'self contained air cartridges' such as Brococks have been banned (see below).

Where you can discharge an air weapon is complex, but in a nutshell, it must be on private land or in a privately owned building with the permission of the owner, and for your own protection ot should be written permission. You must not cause fear or annoyance to neighbours or passers-by, and the pellet must not go beyond the boundaries of the property. That means shooting air guns in your own back garden is legal, but extreme precautions must be taken to contain the pellet and avoid annoyance or fear to neighbours. Shooting a pest species in a tree or on your roof will land you in trouble with the law for all the above reasons.
Carrying or discharging an air weapon in the street, or in local woods without the owner's permission, could result in up to 5 years imprisonment. You simply CANNOT take an air weapon to the local woods and do a spot of shooting practice unless you have written permission of the owner, and preferably insurance.
Unless you have a large secluded garden,we would recommend regular use of shooting clubs, shooting grounds, and indoor home practice, such as in a garage.

Changes to the Law 2007

the following was provided by the NSRA as an insert in The Rifleman Magazine Jan 2008.

Current Firearms Legislation relating to Airguns

Following the enactment of the Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006, listed below are the current regulations relating to the purchase, ownership, sale and possession of airguns and ammunition.

Persons under the age of 14:
1) No person under the age of 14 may purchase, hire or be given an airgun or ammunition.
2) A person under the age of 14 must at all times when shooting be supervised by a person over the age of 21.

Persons over the age of 14 but under 18:
1) No person under the age of 18 may purchase, hire or be given an airgun or ammunition.
2) A person in this age group may shoot unsupervised on private land with the permission of the landowner but must be supervised by somebody over the age of 21 if in a public place.
It should be noted that this means that a person aged seventeen and a half who may have a driving licence cannot take an air rifle from home to his club to shoot unless the gun is possessed by somebody over the age of eighteen or the seventeen and a half-year old is supervised by a person over the age of twenty-one.

Persons over the age of 18:
A person over the age of eighteen can buy an airgun and pellets and use them unsupervised.

General Restrictions:
1) It is an offence to have an airgun in a public place "without good reason", the proof being the responsibility of the possessor.
2) It is an offence to discharge a firearm within fifty feet of the centre of a highway.
3) When shooting over private land it is an offence for the pellet to go beyond the boundary of the premises on which the gun is being used unless there is permission from the adjoining landowner.
4) Persons who by way of trade deal in airguns, pressure bearing parts or component parts must be a Registered Firearms Dealer and any transaction must be face-to-face. Ammunition for airguns may continue to be sold by post.

Exceptions:
1) It is not an offence for a person to have with him an airgun or ammunition whilst being a member of a Home Office Approved Club in connection with target practice.
2) Air rifles with a muzzle energy in excess of 12 foot pounds (which require licensing) are not subject to the general restrictions listed above.
3) An "airgun" with the kinetic energy of less than one joule is considered a toy and is therefore not covered by the above restrictions but may be considered a realistic imitation firearm (if it looks like a gun). The sale of realistic imitation firearms is now banned with one or two minor exceptions, mainly for historical re-enactment, museums and television/film/theatrical performances or as a recognized member of an airsoft site affiliated to the Association of British AirSoft.

Air Cartridge weapons (rifles and pistols)

Owners of airguns that use self contained air cartridges (Brocock / Uberti / Saxby and Palmer / Crown) had to apply for a FireArms Certificate before 30 April 2004. Failure to do so could result in a mandatory five-year prison sentence under the Criminal Justice Act 2003.

Any owner of Air Cartridge weapons who doesn't want to apply for an FAC can hand their weapons in at any police station for destruction (there will be no compensation).

New Laws About Air Rifles January 2011

Laws in Scotland
As of 1st Jan 2017. You now need a licence to own an Air Gun in Scotland.

If you wish to take an Air Rifle into Scotland you need to apply for a temporary Licence.