People who have to leave rural properties for extended periods of time are being warned they could face prosecution for not taking reasonable precautions to secure guns.

It comes as police in the Walgett area investigate the theft of guns from a property at Burren Junction, that could have been stolen any time between late 2012 and when the owner returned last week.

The seven stolen firearms included Remington, Winchester, Erma, Eddystone and Swedish Mauser rifles and two single barrel shotguns.

Inspector David Ralph from the Castlereagh Command says it could be very difficult to catch those responsible because the owner hadn't checked on the guns for more than year.

"Some of those properties as you know are worked all the time, farmed every day and others are hobby farms and some people to make a crust I suppose walk off the land and come back after a time and that's what appears to have happened on this occasion ."

Compliance Co-ordinator with the New South Wales Firearms Registry, Wayne Jackson, says absentee landholders who have gun safes on their properties are becoming increasingly common.

Senior Constable Jackson says sometimes people leave their properties for weeks at a time to work in mining or other fields.

He says it does pose difficulties in investigating gun thefts.

"Those difficulties can be met by communication between landholders and police to conduct investigations to get out there to conduct appropriate appointments," he said.

"The investigations will continue with or without the presence of the victim who has lost their firearms."

He says gun owners could face penalties including up to two years' in jail for not taking enough care.

"It comes back to the reasonable precautions. If it's a situation where firearms are left unattended it may be deemed by the investigating police those reasonable precautions haven't been met," he said.

Senior Constable Jackson says people who are going to be absent for long periods could make arrangements to have firearms stored at another location or with a registered dealer.