Nebraska Hunting 2026

Nebraska applications may be submitted online by 11:59 p.m. on the deadline day of June 12. Over-the-counter first-come, first-served permits are available beginning on July 22. Draw results will be available on or before June 19.

What's New for 2026

• Antelope permit quotas are being reduced for residents. The non-resident quota for archery antelope remains the same.
• Mule Deer Conservation Areas (MDCA) will no longer be referred to as such. All units will just have a unit name.
• All unit-specific draw permits will now have a season choice format, allowing holders to hunt during the archery, firearm, and muzzleloader seasons.
• There has been a reduction of 1,500 buck permits for the November firearms season.
• There has been a reduction of 2,175 antlerless-only permits.
• The statewide archery and muzzleloader permit was changed from being one any-deer to one any-deer except antlerless mule deer on public lands.
• A reduction of 1,000 non-resident either-sex and buck-only permits takes the total quota from 10,000 down to 9,000 permits.

Nebraska Hunting Draw Details

Nebraska runs a pure preference point system. First and second choices are considered on an application before moving on to the next applicant during the draw. All points are lost once a permit is awarded during the draw. Permits not paid for and claimed by the successful applicant may be offered to the next applicant in the draw order. Any undrawn permits may carry over to the open purchase periods.

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Nebraska Hunting Fees

To apply for deer or antelope permits in the draw, non-residents must pay the non-refundable application fee. If successful in the draw, a habitat stamp and associated permit fee must be paid to claim the permit. Applicants who do not claim their permit will forfeit their preference points, and the permit will be offered to an alternate. Permits must be claimed by July 7, or they will be forfeited.

Nebraska Hunter Requirements

Hunter education is required in Nebraska for all hunters ages twelve through twenty-nine who hunt any game species with a firearm. They must carry proof of successful completion of the course while hunting. Bowhunter education is required in Nebraska for all hunters ages twelve through twenty-nine who hunt big game with a bow or crossbow, and they must carry proof of completion of the course while hunting. Habitat stamps are required for all non-resident hunters, regardless of age. Resident youth and senior permit holders are not required to purchase a stamp.

Hunter orange is required for all rifle and muzzleloader hunters. The hunter must display 400 square inches of hunter orange material on their head, chest, and back. Archery hunters must also comply while archery hunting during a firearms season.

Nebraska Hunting Age Restrictions

The minimum age to hunt is ten years old for a deer permit and twelve years old for an antelope permit. Hunters who are fifteen years old or younger must be accompanied by a licensed hunter who is nineteen years or older. Youth may apply for a deer permit at age nine as long as they turn ten by the start of the season. Youth aged sixteen may hunt with a youth deer permit as long as they are fifteen years old when they apply and are still fifteen years old on September 1.

Nebraska Hunting Point Structure

Nebraska uses a pure preference point system for all of the draw permits offered to non-residents. All of the available permits will be drawn by those with the most points, starting with the highest-level applicant who applied and moving toward the lowest level until all permits have been awarded. Points are never purged.

Nebraska Hunting Draw Odds

The draw odds listed in this section are based on the preference point draw at a specific point level. Those applicants with more points than listed in the draw odds column would have had 100% success in the 2025 draw.

Party Applications

Party (or buddy) applications are allowed, though the maximum group size is six. Residents and non-residents cannot apply together. The application is assigned a preference point number equivalent to the lowest number of points possessed by any member in the group. Nebraska will not over-allocate permits.

Nebraska Hunting Youth Information

Resident and non-resident youth hunters ages ten through fifteen are eligible for the youth whitetail deer permit and restricted deer permit. Both permits allow hunters to hunt statewide, but the non-resident restricted youth permits are not valid in the Frenchman, Pine Ridge, or Platte units. Youth can hunt the archery, muzzleloader, and rifle seasons in accordance with a unit’s season dates. There is also an extended antlerless firearms season for youth taking place in January. Youth permits are excluded from the 9,000 non-resident either-sex and buck-only permits. All resident and non-resident youth deer permits are only $8.50. Youth archery antelope permits also cost $8.50 and allow hunters to hunt statewide during the archery antelope season dates.

Nebraska Hunting Weapon Restrictions

During archery season, no extra authorization is required to use crossbows with a 125-pound minimum draw weight. All broadheads must have a blade of at least 7/16-inch radius, measuring from the shaft of the arrow.

For muzzleloader hunts, all muzzleloading rifles are legal for deer and antelope, provided they are at least .44 caliber. Magnifying and variable power scopes are legal.

Refunds/Returns/Transfers

Permits may not be transferred or exchanged, and they are non-refundable.

Harvest Reporting

Harvest reporting is mandatory in Nebraska and can be done at a check-in location or via Telecheck. Seal numbers will be provided and must be kept while transporting the carcass. Hunters must record the seal number on their permit. All deer and antelope must be checked before the carcass leaves the state. For more information about checking your animals, see the 2026 Nebraska Big Game Guide.

Access

Nebraska offers a Public Access Atlas list and an interactive map on their website. These tools can be viewed on Nebraska’s website at http://outdoornebraska.gov/wheretohunt/. There are more than 1.2 million acres available for hunting, including state land, federal land, conservation partner lands, and private properties enrolled in the Open Fields and Waters (OFW) program. OFW-enrolled private land is open to walk-in hunting. There are over 900 landowners participating in the program, and more than 435,000 acres are currently enrolled. Some wildlife refuges, state parks, and wildlife management areas have their own special access permits that are required to hunt. See the 2026 Big Game Guide for more information.