became available in Canada in 2008, were classified as "non-restricted" by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), and sold to the general public. In January 2009, a shipment of Type 97 firearms was approved by the RCMP for retail sale, but was later confiscated and seized by Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officers. Around the same time, a second shipment of Type 97A restricted firearms was also stopped by the CBSA. On March 22, 2010, about 35 civilian owners of Type 97A carbines originally imported by Lever Arms of BC (the only version ever available for sale) were sent notice by the RCMP indicating that the status of their firearm had been changed to "12.2 prohibited (fully automatic)", and owners without such a firearm license had 30 days to turn in their Type 97A firearms to either individuals or businesses that had such a license, or to police for destruction. Canadian Type-97 owners initiated a reference hearing, to establish legality of re-classification of the Type-97 semi-automatic weapon to "prohibited" status. In early 2012 the challenge was lost, and the judge ruled that Type-97 firearms are,indeed, prohibited firearms. While the exact details of the modification are kept secret, RCMP firearm technicians, allegedly, demonstrated to an expert on the defense side, that the Type-97 firearm can be readily and easily converted to fully automatic mode of operation in short time and with commonly available tools. As a result, Type-97 firearms were confiscated from the owners, and are no longer legal for civilian ownership in Canada (even for people with the so-called "12.2 fully automatic" firearm license). On April 28, 2013, Norinco's new EMEI T97NSR was classified as a "non-restricted" firearm by the RCMP with FRT Number 142760, and became legal for dealers to import for those with non-restricted possession and acquisition licenses. It is legal in Canada for hunting, varmint control, target practice and competitive shooting. It went into retail stores on September 17, 2013, and costs about $1,000 CAD. NQZ03A Export variant, chambered in 5.56 NATO. NQZ03B Shortened variant, chambered in 5.56 NATO. Flat-top Enhanced variants with a Picatinny rail replacing the top carrying handle (so called "flat-top") have been built in both Canada and China. Two export variants, dubbed the "EM3516" and "T97NSR-A", have been unveiled. Foreign variants EMER-K1 MA-1 Mk III The MA-1 Mk III series is based on the QBZ-97s that were exported to Myanmar in 2009. The