In this section
Trading Standards
For more information on the work of Trading Standards services and the possible consequences of not abiding by the law, please see 'Trading Standards: powers, enforcement and penalties'.
In this update
The legal definition of a ninja sword changed on 16 July 2026.
Last reviewed / updated: July 2026
Key legislation
- Restriction of Offensive Weapons Act 1959
- Poisons Act 1972
- Criminal Justice Act 1988
- Criminal Justice Act 1988 (Offensive Weapons) Order 1988
- Knives Act 1997
- Control of Poisons and Explosives Precursors Regulations 2015
- Offensive Weapons Act 2019
- Control of Poisons and Explosives Precursors Regulations 2023
- Criminal Justice Act 1988 (Offensive Weapons) (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2026
Sources and attribution statement
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. and the EU Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.
https://www.gov.uk/
https://www.hse.gov.uk/
https://echa.europa.eu
https://commission.europa.eu/index_en
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hazardous-sites-and-substances
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/supplying-explosives-precursors
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-on-licensed-transactions-for-explosives-precursors
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-on-labelling-requirements-for-regulated-explosives-precursors
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-on-licensed-transactions-for-internet-retailers-of-explosives-precursors
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/advice-to-the-public-on-the-control-of-explosives-precursors-regulations-2014
https://report-suspicious-chemical-activity.dsa.homeoffice.gov.uk/login
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/refusing-a-sale
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/due-diligence-checks
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/knives-and-offensive-weapons-information
https://www.gov.uk/buying-carrying-knives
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-offensive-weapons-act-2019/statutory-guidance-offensive-weapons-act-2019-accessible-version
https://www.protectuk.Police.uk/advice-and-guidance/awareness/poisons-act-1972-selling-chemicals-responsibly
< Part 2. Knives, bladed articles and bladed products
Please note
This information is intended for guidance; only the courts can give an authoritative interpretation of the law.
The guide's 'Key legislation' links go to the legislation.gov.uk website. The site usually updates the legislation to include any amendments made to it. However, this is not always the case. Information on all changes made to legislation can be found by following the above links and clicking on the 'More Resources' tab.