Guide to Hunting Lotteries
Licenses for the following species are allocated by lottery:
Note: Licenses left over after a lottery has been run may be purchased on a first-come, first-served basis.
Quick Links
Lottery Process
Stages
Requirements Before Applying
Hunter Education Requirements
If you were born after 1961, to hunt in North Dakota you must have a:
Residency Requirements
Moose, elk, pronghorn, spring turkey, and the first fall turkey lottery are all open only to North Dakota residents.
Strategy Unit Selection
Unit Selection
1) Review the appropriate license availability page for the number of licenses available in each unit.
2) Review last year’s lottery success statistics to assess the difficulty of getting your first choice in a particular unit.
Bonus Points
First lotteries for deer gun, muzzleloader deer, pronghorn, swan, and wild turkey are “weighted” lotteries. You accrue bonus points each time you apply are not drawn for your first choice. These points give you a better chance of getting drawn the next year.
More information on bonus points can be found here.
Process Applying
When to Apply: Approximate dates for lotteries can be found here.
How to Apply: You can apply for lotteries online. For help using the online licensing and lottery system please see our TUTORIALS here.
Application Fees and License Prices: North Dakota Resident | Nonresident
Deadlines: Applications must be in by midnight on the day of the deadline. Deadlines can be found on the species hunting pages.
Communication Lottery Results
Lotteries are run and results available anywhere from about 2 weeks to a month after the application deadline depending on the lottery.
After a lottery has been run, applicants will be notified that results are available. This will be done via:
- Email (if the applicant provided an email when applying)
- GovDelivery – text and/or email service that you can sign up for here
- Department website
The Hunt Hunting Information
Where to Hunt
The Department has several resources for finding a place to hunt:
- Where to Hunt webpage
- Map Index
- ArcGIS Explorer Mobile App (works with your smartphone's GPS)
- Geospatial PDF Viewer Avenza Mobile App (for areas with spotty or no cellular coverage)
Tagging: You must tag a harvested animal immediately. Tag it BEFORE you take photos with it. Instructions for properly affixing tags are printed on the back of each tag. (How to Tag a Deer - video)
Regulations: can be found here.