Airsoft Restrictions Law, Rules, and Speed Limits

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Countries where Airsoft is legal
Austria
Belgium
Canada (Not legal to import or sell in certain provinces, not legal for minors to own or buy in Ontario)
Croatia
Czech Republic
Estonia
Finland
France (2 J maximum.)
Germany (under special circumstances, J limit, Semi-auto only)
Hong Kong
Italy
Japan (maximum velocity .98J with .25g BBs.)
Korea
Latvia
Lithuania
New Zealand (Any form of fully-automatic weapon is banned.)
Norway
Poland
Russia
Slovak Republic
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Taiwan
UK (All Airsoft full auto weapons maximum legal limit of 1 J, semi and bolt action exempt)
USA
No legal limit on pellet velocity. Generally limits vary from 350 to 400 ft/s (107 to 122 m/s) urban and from 450 to 500 ft/s (137 to 152 m/s) in woodland.
Not legal in New York City Metro (5 Boroughs), portions of Michigan, San Francisco, and Washington DC.
Must comply with two criteria: muzzle permanently colored in blaze orange and all non-licensed trademarks removed for copyright reasons on the Airsoft guns (this law recently expired on the federal level; however certain states still have and enforce it).
others
Import restrictions
All Airsoft guns shipped to the USA must remove copyrighted words when they go through customs.
Barrel markings
Due to extreme similarity between these replicas and real firearms, combined with lobbying efforts from U.S. BB gun manufacturers, some U.S. states and local regulations may prohibit the ownership or use of Airsoft guns. Federal importation laws require all Airsoft gun barrels to be painted with a minimum 6mm wide blaze orange stripe, as must all "toy guns". This measure is intended to avoid confusion with actual firearms.
Importation to USA
Many Asian manufacturers of Airsoft guns disregard US and international trademark and intellectual property laws when creating their replicas. This is usually manifested as illegally-reproduced trademarks on guns and gun accessories. Some companies have worked hard to work out licensing deals with Western gun makers, but it does not seem to be a high priority, especially in the reclusive Japanese market. Notable instances to this include Japanese manufacturer Western Arms' licensing deal with the Beretta company of Italy and Hong Kong company Classic Army's deal with Armalite to use their trademarks on CA AEGs.
US customs routinely checks for illegal trademarks and even certain patented features, so many Airsoft guns imported into the states have trademarks covered by plastic putty or destroyed outright by vulcanization in addition to the application of the blaze orange marking. Many distributors have begun to specifically market "clean" Airsoft guns in the US, completely without troublesome trademarks or certain features which have caused legal controversy, such as the "safe action" trigger design employed by Glock in their line of pistols and copied on many gas gun models.
Airsoft is a military simulation sport somewhat similar in nature to paintball, in which players participate in mock combat with military-style mock weapons and tactics. Unlike paintball, which uses paint-balls as projectiles, Airsoft guns usually use 6 mm spherical pellets typically made of solid plastic. What must be remembered about Airsoft is that the lack of any appreciate able mass makes it a far more safe sport over paintball. While we may shoot at fairly extreme speeds, the lack of mass allows for little likelihood for impact injury as long as the eyes and/or face are protected.
The sport is extremely popular in eastern Asia, in Japan, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, where real arms are difficult or impossible to obtain because of local laws. For this reason the vast majority of Airsoft guns, accessories, and aftermarket upgrade parts are made in Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Korea. Airsoft has been since made illegal in most parts of Mainland China (the Hong Kong SAR being apparently excepted). There is currently a growing interest in the West again, especially in the United States, Great Britain, Germany, Spain, Italy, and Denmark, bolstered by an active and expanding Internet scene.
Safety
Storage and transportation
Basic rules for storing and transporting Airsoft guns:
Unload the Airsoft gun by removing the magazine and firing to a safe location until empty;
Place the red cap on the barrel end;
Render the gun inoperable by removing and storing the battery away from the gun;
Place the gun inside a gun case (or container) that fully encloses it. It's not a good idea to use as a gun case the original card case that is shipped with Airsoft guns;
Make sure that the gun case is locked, tied or zipped in a way that will not open during transportation or while stored;
Always lock all your Airsoft gear in a safe place.
This rules are just a basic set and does not refer to any country specific law, make sure to check in your area.
Pellet velocity limits
All participants use ONLY Airsoft guns in their games. These guns must conform to the pellet velocity limit that your group or country has decided on. Some countries have legal limits on the power/pellet velocity of Airsoft guns so make sure to check in your area.
Groups/events statistics:
All velocity limits values are measured using 0.2 g BB.
Airsoft group/event
indoor full-auto
outdoor full-auto
sniper semi-auto
sniper single-action
bio BB (y/n)
Action Games League - Philippines
350
480
Airsoft Arizona
300
400
500
500
Yes(1)
Airsoft Hawaii
300
400
400
450
Yes(1)
Airsoft Iowa
400
400
500
500
Airsoft Kentucky
300
400
500
550
Airsoft Ohio
350
400
500
Airsoft Pacific League
300
400
550
OC16 - TST Florida
400
475
550
Airsoft Austin
350
350
420
Alpha-omega-Airsoft
328
328
377
377
Angry Ferrets
300
420
470
470
Arkansas Airsoft
300
300
300
300
Boinas Negras Airsoft Club Op. Fuga incontr.
328
328
350
British Columbia Airsoft Club
300
400
450
550
Centurions Airsoft Club of Northern California
320
400
400
400
Yes
Chicago Airsoft Association
328
400
450
550
Cimmerians
350
400
400
400
Yes
Combat South
350
350
500
500
Dead Land Airsoft
400
400
450
450
Distant Thunder Airsoft Event
328
328
328
328
Dragon Valley Airsoft
350
350
350
350
Yes
AEG Airsoft Operations
400
400
450
450
Edmonton Airsoft Regiment
300
400
450
First Alabama Tactical Airsoft League
250
250
300
300
Florida Airsoft
350
400
500
Forth Airsoft
350
350
350
Georgia Airsoft
350
400
500
500
Ground Control Airsoft
328
328
380
Group W RCT S.E. Wisconsin Airsoft
400
400
550
550
Hostile Operations Team - Operation Cayman
350
350
500
Houston Airsoft
300
400
550
550
Joint Operations Calgary
310
430
480
480
Las Vegas Airsoft
350
400
550
550
Manatee County Elite Airsoft Squad
350
400
500
Metro East Airsoft
400
400
500
500
Mike Force Airsoft
447
447
447
447
Minnesota Airsoft Association
325
400
450
450
Modesto Airsoft (Combat Enterprises)
320
400
400
400
North Eastern Airsoft Group
350
400
550
550
Op-for Airsoft Club
300
400
450
450
Puget Sound Airsoft Command
400
400
400
400
QC Swat
300
480
500
500
Roughneck Airsoft Infantry Detachment
400
400
500
500
Sac Airsoft (Yuba city CQB field)
350
350
550
Sacramento Airsoft (FAQ-skirmish rules)
450
450
450
450
Section 8
400
400
Sequoia Airsoft
400
400
400
400
Yes
SG1combat
330
330
Slim Production Studio (op. Red skies)
400
400
450
450
Smoke Airsoft Group
350
350
450
450
Southern California Airsoft League
350
420
600
T.A.C.4 Airsoft
400
400
500
500
Tactical Operations - Calgary Airsoft
300
420
470
470
Team Omega Zone Philippines
280
350
500
550
Team Reindeer
400
400
400
400
Team Black Jack
400
400
550
550
Thunder Airsoft Event
400
400
400
400
Tomahawk Airsoft
350
350
500
500
Triangle Airsoft NC
400
400
500
500
Yes
Virginia Airsoft Force
300*
420
500
500
Virginia Rangers
420
420
Western Canada Airsoft Network
300
420
470
470
Wraith Warriors Airsoft Team
350
400
500
median (ft/s)
350
400
470
470
median (m/s)
107
122
143
143
Groups with equal indoor and outdoor limits
52.3%
Groups with equal limits for auto & single action sniper rifles
63.1%
Total Airsoft groups/events: 65
(1)Under special situations bio bb's are not or cannot be used.

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