How to Get a Hunting License

Hunter education, the apprentice license, licenses for turkey, pheasant and waterfowl, and how to buy a New Hampshire hunting license.

Checked against its sources October 25, 2026.

On this page

Cite this page

This guide is written by Granite Record from the official pages it links to. Where a citation allows only one source, cite the official page for the part you rely on. The date below is the day the page was read.

MLA: “How to Get a Hunting License.” Granite Record, https://graniterecord.org/guides/hunting-license. Accessed 2 Nov. 2026.
APA: Granite Record. (n.d.). How to Get a Hunting License. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://graniterecord.org/guides/hunting-license
Chicago: Granite Record. “How to Get a Hunting License.” Accessed November 2, 2026. https://graniterecord.org/guides/hunting-license.
BibTeX: @misc{guides-hunting-license, title = {How to Get a Hunting License}, howpublished = {Granite Record}, url = {https://graniterecord.org/guides/hunting-license}, note = {Accessed 2 Nov. 2026} }

At a Glance

To buy a hunting license you need a hunter education certificate, or proof that you have held a hunting license before. A first-time hunter takes the course first, or buys an apprentice license once and hunts beside a licensed adult. Turkey, pheasant and waterfowl each need a license on top of it, and most licenses end on December 31.

Have you held a hunting license before?
- YesShow that license to buy a new one.
- NoTake hunter education, or buy an apprentice license once.
Then buy any extra license your hunt needs: archery, turkey, pheasant or waterfowl.

Step by Step

Take hunter education, or show a past license
No hunting license is sold without one of these:
- a certificate from a hunter education course in New Hampshire;
- proof you completed an equivalent course in another state, province or country;
- proof you have held a hunting license before, here or elsewhere.
To hunt with a bow you need the same for bow hunter education: an archery license and a hunting license do not stand in for each other. Fish and Game’s page lists the courses and how to sign up.
Hunter education
The law: RSA 214:23-a
Or start with an apprentice license
If you have not taken the course, you may buy an apprentice hunting license, once in your lifetime. You may hunt with it only beside a licensed hunter who is 18 or older, who answers for what you do.
The law: RSA 214:6-a
Hunters under 16
A hunter under 16 may hunt only with a properly licensed person 18 or older, and needs no general hunting license while hunting with that person. A young hunter must still buy some special licenses: for turkey, bear, a special archery deer, or the Unit M and Unit L deer permits; and a nonresident under 16 a muzzleloader license.
The law: RSA 207:2-a, RSA 214:2
Choose your licenses
Start with a resident or nonresident hunting license, or a combined hunting and fishing license. You are a resident for a license if you hold a New Hampshire driver’s license or non-driver photo ID and claim residence in no other state for any purpose.
Add what your hunt needs:
- an archery license to hunt with a bow;
- a turkey license or permit to hunt wild turkey;
- a pheasant license to hunt pheasant;
- a bear license to hunt bear;
- a muzzleloader license for the muzzleloader deer season;
- for ducks and geese, a state waterfowl license and the federal Duck Stamp. A Duck Stamp is sold at most post offices, and you sign it for it to be valid;
- for any migratory bird, such as ducks, geese, woodcock, snipe or coot, a free HIP permit number if you are 16 or older.
Fish and Game sets the fees; its license page lists them.
License fees and requirements The HIP permit Buy a Duck Stamp
The law: RSA 207:1, RSA 214:9, RSA 208:5, RSA 214:1-b, RSA 214:1-c, RSA 214:1-d, RSA 214:7-a, RSA 214:13
Buy it, print it and sign it
If you have bought a hunting license from New Hampshire before, you can buy online. A first-time buyer cannot: go to a license agent with your hunter education certificate or your past license.
A hunting license must be printed and signed to be valid. Carry it while you hunt. It ends on December 31, and Fish and Game cannot refund it.
Buy a license online
The law: RSA 214:8, RSA 214:1, RSA 214:36
In the field
A deer you take must be registered; you can do it online, as you can a turkey.
Register a deer or turkey
The law: RSA 207:38-b, RSA 208:15-g

Common Questions

How old must I be for hunter education, and is the course online?

You must be at least 12 to get the certificate, and the online course ends with an in-person field day.

What can I not do with an apprentice license?

It is not valid for moose, and it does not count as a past license when you buy your next one.

Are there discounted licenses?

Residents 68 or older can buy discounted senior licenses, and a resident veteran, discharged other than dishonorably, who is totally and permanently disabled from a service-connected disability gets a permanent license, with a one-time $10 administrative fee.

Do I have to wear hunter orange?

The law recommends that anyone hunting with a firearm or a bow, except for waterfowl, wear a hat, vest or other clothing in hunter orange that can be seen from all sides.