General Information: A
general hunting, fishing or archery license is not required
for minors under 16 years
of age. Minors are, however, required to purchase the following
special licenses: Broodstock Salmon, Special Archery Deer, Turkey
Permit, Bear License and Unit M special Deer tag. Non-resident
minors under the age of 16 are also required to purchase a muzzleloader
license. Minors are not required to pay a Wildlife Habitat Fee
or file a Harvest Information
Survey (H.I.P). Click for more info about youth hunting.
Fishing Licenses:
Allow the taking of all species in the freshwaters of the state,
EXCEPT Atlantic salmon brood stock. Temporary 1, 3 and 7-Day Fishing
Licenses are available to non-residents, dates for use intended
will be requested at the time of purchase and the dates must be
consecutive. One-day licenses are also available for N.H. residents.
Atlantic
Salmon Brood Stock Fishery: The N.H. Fish and Game Department,
in cooperation with the US Fish and Wildlife Service, maintains
an Atlantic salmon brood stock fishery in the Merrimack and lower
Pemigewasset rivers. In addition to possessing a current NH fishing
license, anglers must purchase an Atlantic Salmon Permit, which
is available on the multiform license application at all authorized
license agents and online. The cost of this permit is $11 for adults
age 16 and older. Children under age 16 are not required to hold
a fishing license or a salmon permit, but must abide by all the
rules and regulations. Stamp and possession tags are no longer required
for salmon anglers.
Over Age 68 Permanent
Licenses - N.H. Residents Only: Over
Age 68 Permanent License are issued free to residents of New Hampshire
who are 68 years of age or older. This permanent license is not
available online, but can be obtained at traditional license agents
throughout the state. Over-age-68 permanent license applicants
must
be a New Hampshire resident for at least 2 years before application
and present a valid New Hampshire drivers license or state-issued
non-drivers photo identification card. The following permanent
license
types are available for over-age-68 applicants: Combination Hunting & Fishing,
Fishing only, Muzzleloader, Archery, Clam and Oyster. To qualify
for the hunting or archery licenses, one of the following
must be presented: a previously held hunting license or hunter
education card; a previously held archery license or bow education
card, issued
from any U.S. state or Canadian province. Since the issued license
is permanent, over-age-68 license holders must create their own
deer tags or they may use the generic tag in the back of the orange
hunting digest. Any other license types not listed above would
have
to be purchased annually. The Over-Age-68 Permanent License is
not valid if the license holder moves out of state.
Clam and Oyster License: Available to
N.H. residents only. Season is restricted. See Saltwater
Fishing Digest for more information. Clam license is required
for ages 6 and above. Oyster licenses are required for all ages.
Saltwater Fishing: A license is NOT REQUIRED
for fishing in saltwater unless taking any species of trout, salmon,
smelt or shad in any state waters or while fishing through the ice
in Great Bay or its tributaries.
Wildlife
Habitat Fee:All
persons wishing to take wildlife in New Hampshire must pay this
fee each year. The $2.50 Fee must be paid ONCE annually
by those purchasing a Combination Hunting & Fishing License,
Hunting License, Archery License, Small Game License or 3-Day Small
Game
License. EXCEPTIONS: Minors, Permanent License Holders, and Lifetime
License Holders.
Hunting: This license entitles a person
to take wildlife (including small game) during the open season;
a deer tag is issued with this license.
Combination Hunting and Fishing License: Includes
the privileges in Hunting and Fishing (above).
Small
Game Hunting: Available to non-residents to hunt small
game only; if you purchase a non-resident hunting or non-resident
combination
hunting and fishing license, small game is included This license
is for those who do not wish to hunt large game, no deer tags are
issued. Small game is defined as: snowshoe hare, cottontail rabbits,
gray squirrel, pheasant, quail, ruffed grouse, chuckar, European
partridge & migratory birds. Migratory game birds require a HIP survey permit. Waterfowl
require HIP permit, state and federal waterfowl stamps. An additional
license is required for pheasant hunting. There is a 3-day small
game license available; dates and time for use will be requested
at the time of purchase. The dates must be consecutive.
Archery: This license allows a person
to hunt deer during the archery season, and wildlife during the
open season, using a bow as your weapon. An archery deer tag is
issued with this license. You may not purchase a Special Archery
Deer permit without an Archery license.
Special Deer Archery: This permit allows
a person to take a second deer during the archery season. This
permit must be purchased at the same time the archery license is
purchased. It may not be purchased later. A second archery deer
tag is issued with this license.
Pheasant:This license allows a person to hunt pheasant during the pheasant
season. A hunting, combination hunting & fishing license, small
game, or archery license is also required.
Bear:
This license allows a person to hunt bear during the bear season
and can only be purchased in conjunction with a current hunting, archery
or combination license. A separate bear
tag will be issued.
Wild
Turkey:This permit allows a person to hunt turkey during
the open seasons; please note that a current NH Hunting, Archery or
Combination license is also required.
There is a spring and fall season for Turkey with separate weapon
requirements (see the N.H. Hunting Digest for details.) Click
here to go to the main hunting page, where you'll find links to download the current Hunting Digest. Two tags are issued
with this permit for the spring and fall seasons.
Muzzleloader: This license allows a person
to hunt deer during the special muzzleloader deer season and can
only be purchased if a hunting or combination license is also being
or has previously been purchased. No deer tag is issued with this
license.
Migratory Waterfowl License: This license must be purchased by anyone wishing to hunt migratory waterfowl (ducks and geese) and is only valid in conjunction with a current NH hunting, combination license or small game license; a Federal Waterfowl Stamp (available at the Post Office) and Harvest Information Survey permit number.
Wildlife Legacy Donation:
This is a program to benefit fisheries and/or wildlife management
efforts in the state, such as Fish and Game's landowner relations program, which works to preserve access to private lands for hunters and anglers. Contributions may be used to purchase
equipment like as fish transport tanks used for stocking
trout and salmon, or a brush hog and tractor for creating and maintaining
early successional habitat for a variety of game and nongame species.
This option replaced the former "Super Sport" donation.
Nongame Donation Contributions:
This program allows you to donate money to the Fish and Game Department
for use on priority fish and wildlife management conservation programs.
Harvest Summaries:
Summaries of the most recently completed hunting season statistics
for Deer, Bear, Moose, Turkey and Furbearers is available from the
annual Wildlife Harvest Summary, and for small game from the Small
Game Summary Report. Click here
to go to the main hunting page, where you'll find links to these
and other hunting-related publications.
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Adobe Acrobat Reader software on your computer. To download the latest
version of Acrobat Reader, click
here to go to the Adobe web site.
Click
here for current license prices