State and territory leaders have agreed to slap the seven-shot Adler shotgun with a tough category D classification, the most restricted category, paving the way for imports to resume.
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In a decision that will anger the pro-gun lobby and the Nationals, the higher-capacity Adler will essentially be limited to professional shooters with an occupational need for the gun.
The impasse - which saw the federal government ban imports of the gun until a classification could be agreed - ended after NSW joined the other states in backing a category D rating.
As part of a strengthened National Firearms Agreement, all lever action shotguns with capacity up to five rounds will be moved from category A to category B.
Lesley Podesta, chief executive of the anti-gun Alannah & Madeline Foundation, welcomed the outcome. "Our population overwhelmingly supports strong gun laws," she said.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said a national amnesty would commence in mid-2017 but there would be no buyback, which Ms Podesta said was "disappointing".
She warned against a grandfather clause for existing owners that would allow them to legally possess a category B or D weapon without the appropriate licence. "We need to know the detail," she said.
It is understood that in the absence of a buyback, it will be up to individual states and territories to determine how to implement the changes, including any grandfathering arrangements.
The import ban will not be lifted until the states have changed their regulations.
Nationals MPs, including deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce, had been publicly lobbying for the looser category B classification for the seven-shot Adler, and were upset with the decision.
Victorian senator Bridget McKenzie, who last month crossed the floor to oppose the Adler ban, accused premiers of making a "political decision based on fear" instead of tackling illegal gun violence.
"These premiers have been derelict in their ability to deal with that issue," she told Fairfax Media. "The great risk is that law-abiding firearm owners will feel they haven't been consulted. They'll feel policymakers and lawmakers are making decisions in areas they don't fully understand."
Nationals MP Damian Drum said the decision was "drastic overkill" and there was no material difference between a seven-shot gun and its five-shot cousin.
"Is anybody really going to suggest that you're going to do less damage with a five-shot than a seven-shot?" he asked. "I think there's a little bit of ridiculousness in that."
Libertarian NSW senator David Leyonhjelm said the decision had put 800,000 firearms owners in the "deplorables basket", and would incite a rush to minor parties, as occurred at the recent Orange byelection in NSW.
In October, Senator Leyonhjelm sparked a furore between Mr Turnbull and ex-PM Tony Abbott when he claimed the government had squibbed an Abbott-era deal to lift the Adler import ban in exchange for Senator Leyonhjelm's support on another matter.
Mr Abbott vehemently denied entering such an arrangement but Mr Turnbull publicly said he believed his predecessor had been fully aware of the deal.
