Ottawa is facing a multimillion-dollar bill to find work for border guards who can't -- or won't -- carry guns, newly released documents show.

Last year, the Conservative government acceded to long-standing demands from the guards' union and others, and set aside $175 million over two years to begin equipping border guards with pistols, eventually choosing the 9mm Beretta PX4 Storm as the standard sidearm.

There are also fears the so-called arming initiative will exacerbate the agency's already high annual attrition rate of 12 per cent. The government is currently hiring 400 additional officers, but they're only intended to double-up with existing officers who now work alone.