The 2026 Iowa non-resident deer permit application information can be downloaded at www.iowadnr.gov/Hunting/Nonresident-Hunting. Applications may be submitted from May 2 through June 7, 2026.
Applications for general deer and antlerless-only combination licenses will be accepted beginning at 6 a.m. CDT May 2 through June 7. If applications have been sold in excess of the license quota or bow quota for any zone, a drawing will be held to determine which applicants receive licenses. Hunters will be emailed regarding their draw status prior to the excess sale. Draw status will not be provided over the phone. Licenses will be mailed to successful applicants in August. Refunds of license fees will be credited back to the applicant’s card.
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If any license quota for general deer and antlerless-only combination licenses has not been filled, the excess licenses will be sold first-come, first-served online beginning at 6 a.m. CDT on July 25. Licenses will be sold until ten days before the start of the season to which the tag applies or until the quota has been filled. To check the availability of excess or antlerless licenses, go to www.gooutdoorsiowa.com.
Hunters may apply for general deer and antlerless-only combination licenses as individuals or as a group. Groups can contain up to fifteen individuals, and one member must be identified as the group leader. The group leader must apply first and state they are the group leader. Members of a group must apply separately, but each member must submit the group number that was given to the group leader when applying. If there is a drawing, all members of a group will be assigned the preference point(s) of the member with the fewest points. All members of a group will be accepted or rejected together in the drawing.
When applying, there will be one choice. You may select one season and one zone, or you may apply for a preference point only. General deer and antlerless-only combination licenses will be issued randomly for each zone. The season is designated by the applicant. There is a total quota set for each zone. Bow hunters will be issued 35% of the quota. When that percentage is reached, licenses will continue to be issued for firearm seasons until the total zone quota is met. For example, Zone 5 has a 1,600-license quota for 2026. Of those, 560 licenses are allowed to go to bow hunters, meaning 1,040 licenses will go to firearm hunters. If the 35% bow quota is not met, more licenses can be issued for firearm seasons. There are no waiting periods for successful deer applicants in Iowa.
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Hunter education is required for those born after January 1, 1972. Deer hunting during a firearm season requires one of the following blaze orange items to be worn: vest, jacket, coat, sweatshirt, sweater, shirt, or coveralls. A hat alone is not sufficient. No person shall use a blind during a firearm season unless it exhibits solid blaze orange markings with at least 144 square inches visible in all directions. Hunters using a blind must still wear at least one blaze orange item from the list above. The head and antlers (if any) must remain attached to the carcass until it is processed for consumption.
Application fees may be charged to either MasterCard or Visa. ATM cards are not accepted. You must go through the Iowa DNR’s web-based license sales system at gooutdoorsiowa.com and follow the prompts. Non-refundable license writing fees, administrative fees, and application fees will be added to all applications. A combination habitat fee and non-resident hunting license ($144) is required to apply for deer. A general deer and antlerless-only combination license is $498 (plus fees) and will come out to $606.02. If you are applying for a preference point, you will be charged $60.50 plus fees, for a total of $64.58. The antlerless-only portion of your general deer application is mandatory. The $498 can be broken down into charges for the general deer tag ($348.50) and antlerless-only tag ($149.50). If you are not drawn, $596.04 will be refunded, and you will gain a point.
There is no minimum age requirement to hunt in Iowa. A licensed adult hunter must accompany each youth hunter under the age of sixteen.
Hunters who choose not to apply for a general deer and antlerless-only combination license in 2026 may purchase one preference point that will improve their chances of getting a license in a future year. Preference points may only be purchased from May 2 through June 7. Preference points are $60.50 (not including application fees) and will be available online only. Hunters unsuccessful in the general deer and antlerless-only combination license drawing will be given one preference point and assessed a mandatory, non-refundable $60.50 preference point fee. Preference points will not accrue in a year in which you fail to apply or purchase a preference point, but you will retain any preference points you have already.
Your points will never be purged if you fail to apply. Once you receive a general deer and antlerless-only combination license, your preference point(s) will be eliminated. (You will not lose preference points if you are drawn for an antlerless-only license.) Preference points will not apply to antlerless-only licenses. In the drawing, general deer and antlerless-only combination licenses will be awarded to the pool of applicants with the most preference points first, then they will continue to be awarded to applicants from pools with successively fewer preference points until quotas are filled or all applicants have received licenses.
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The draw odds are listed as the minimum number of preference points a resident needed to draw a tag in 2025.
There are no special seasons for non-resident youth hunters in Iowa. Residents under the age of sixteen who hunt with direct supervision from a properly licensed parent or other adult do not need to pay the habitat fee or nonresident hunting license.
Longbows, recurve bows, and compound bows shooting broadhead arrows are permitted. No explosive or chemical devices may be attached to the arrow or broadhead. There is no minimum draw weight for bows or minimum diameter for broadheads. Arrows must be at least 18 inches long.
Crossbows are not legal in most instances, though a physically handicapped person may obtain a permit from the Iowa DNR to use a crossbow, and residents sixty-five and older may obtain an antlerless-only statewide crossbow deer license. Applications are available at https://www.iowadnr.gov/things-do/hunting/trapping/hunting-licenses-fees/hunting-applications and the Iowa DNR central office or any of the district offices; alternatively, you can call the Iowa DNR at 515-725-8200. Hunters may not carry a handgun while hunting deer. Shotguns or a valid permit to carry. Hunters may use 10, 12, 16, and 20-gauge shotguns, though they are only permitted to shoot single slugs.
Muzzleloading rifles, muzzleloading muskets, muzzleloading pistols, and muzzleloading revolvers must be between .440 and .775 inches and may only fire a single projectile at a time. Muzzleloaders equipped with electronic ignition are not allowed. Inline and disk-type muzzleloaders are allowed. Riflescopes may also be used.
Any pistol or revolver with a barrel length of at least 4 inches; firing straight-wall or other centerfire ammunition that propels an expanding bullet with a maximum diameter no less than 0.350 inches and no larger than 0.500 inches; and with a published or calculated muzzle energy of 500 foot pounds or higher is legal for hunting deer during the pistol or revolver seasons. A person who is twenty years of age or younger shall not hunt deer with a pistol or revolver unless that person has the consent of a parent, guardian, or spouse who is at least twenty-one years of age and is under the direct supervision of a responsible person with a valid hunting license who is at least twenty-one years of age. The supervisor shall be responsible for the conveyance of the pistol or revolver while the pistol or revolver is not actively being used for hunting.
Rifles firing straight-wall or other centerfire ammunition propelling an expanding bullet with a maximum diameter of no less than 0.350 inches and no larger than 0.500 inches and a published or calculated muzzle energy of 500 foot pounds or higher are legal for hunting deer during the youth and disabled hunting season, the first gun season, and the second gun season.
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Draw deer tags are non-refundable and non-exchangeable. If unsuccessful, refunds of license fees will be credited back to the applicant’s credit or debit card. Refund checks will no longer be issued. License agent writing fees, administrative fees, internet application fees and the mandatory $60.50 preference point fee
Hunters who harvest a deer must report the harvest to the Iowa DNR by midnight on the day after it is tagged, before taking it to a locker or taxidermist, before processing it for consumption, or before transporting it out of state—whichever occurs first. Hunters are required to report the length of the main beam of each antler; a seven-inch ruler is printed on the back of every deer tag to use for measuring. The hunter whose name is on the transportation tag is responsible for making the report. If no animal is harvested, no report is necessary. There are several options for reporting your harvest, including 1) using the GoOutdoorsIowa app, 2) texting your registration number to 1-800-771-4692 and following the prompts, 3) heading online to www.iowadnr.gov (available twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week), 4) calling the toll-free phone number printed on your harvest report tag (available twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week), or 5) visiting a license vendor during regular business hours.
The Harvest Reporting System will issue a confirmation number to the hunter, whose name must be written on the Harvest Report Tag and attached to the leg of the animal. Failure to do so may result in a citation.
The Iowa Public Hunting Atlas is an interactive map that provides a lot of information that is helpful when planning your hunt. This tool makes it easier for hunters to locate areas that are open to public hunting. You can find it at https://www.iowadnr.gov/agsrcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.
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