What is the obligation of a firearms officer to contact the applicant before making a decision on a licence application?

Up until the provincial court reference, the firearms officer has no obligation to share the evidence gathered by them with the applicant, accept evidence from the applicant, or give the applicant a hearing. If the licence is refused, the firearms officer provides written reasons for refusal to the applicant which explain the nature of the information they relied on to reach the decision. As explained in Henderson v. Canada (Attorney General), 2011 ONCA 696 at para. 33: The application to the Registrar is simply a form containing basic information about the firearm. The Registrar is not required to hold a hearing, nor offer the applicant any other way to provide information or make submissions, before deciding to issue the registration certificate or refuse the application. If the application is refused, the Registrar is required to provide the applicant with both the decision and reasons that include the nature of the information relied on. The applicant can then refer the matter to the provincial court.