The 2026 Kansas non-resident deer and antelope permit application information will be available soon. You can go online and download information at www.ksoutdoors.gov/. Hunting or call 620-672-5911. For Kansas, we mainly cover deer but briefly touch on antelope. The application period for deer in 2026 is April through 24.
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Non-residents may apply online at www.ksoutdoors.gov. Non-resident antlered permits can only be applied for with an online application. The application includes a $27.50 non-refundable application fee for non-residents. Unsuccessful applicants will earn a preference point for the following year’s draw. The application deadline for non-resident deer permits is April 24, 2026. Preference points remain on file for five years from the last date a point was issued or purchased. If an applicant fails to file at least one application or purchase one point within five consecutive years, all earned preference points will be reset to zero.
A non-resident must apply for the Mule Deer Stamp during the April application period. A non-resident who successfully draws an archery or muzzleloader whitetail deer permit in units 1, 2, 17, or 18 and has also applied for the Mule Deer Stamp will be entered into a draw for one of a limited number of Mule Deer Stamps. If drawn, the applicant’s whitetail deer archery or muzzleloader permit converts to an either-sex species, either-species archery or muzzleloader permit. Preference points do not count toward the Mule Deer Stamp draw.
Up to five applicants may apply as a group. Group applicants go into the draw with the lowest number of points of any individual in the group. The group leader will be given a group option number. All members of the group will need to select the group option when applying and add the group option number.
All your application choices will be considered before the next applicant is considered. Applicants are able to apply for one adjacent unit on each hunt choice. There is no waiting period in Kansas. Applicants wanting to draw the Mule Deer Stamp must apply for it during the April application period. We have also included a table listing simple odds for each unit based on how many first-choice applicants applied and drew a permit with 0 points. Across all units, applicants had a chance to draw with 0 points.
When applying for a whitetail tag, non-residents will be required to purchase a hunting license for a nonrefundable fee of $127.50 or, for hunters fifteen and younger, a youth hunting license for a nonrefundable fee of $42.50. All tag fees will be collected after the draw for successful applicants. Applicants are only required to pay $27.50 when applying for a preference point only. All fees listed will have an internet convenience fee added at the time of applying online for a permit or preference point.
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| Adult Hunting License | $127.50 |
| Junior Hunting License (15 and Younger) | $42.50 |
| Adult Whitetail Deer Permit | $477.50 |
| Youth Whitetail Deer Permit (15 and Younger) | $117.50 |
| Archery Antelope Permit | $302.50 |
| Youth Archery Antelope Permit (15 and Younger) | $102.50 |
| Mule Deer Stamp (Optional, Must Be Drawn) | $150.00 |
| Preference Point Only (Whitetail Deer) | $27.50 |
Anyone born on or after July 1, 1957, must have completed an approved hunter education course. Anyone under twenty-seven years old must carry their hunter education certificate while hunting. Legal shooting hours begin one-half hour before sunrise and end one-half hour after sunset.
All deer hunters and persons assisting them must wear blaze orange during an open firearm or muzzleloader season. If an archery hunt overlaps with a muzzleloader or firearms season, the archery hunter must wear orange. Hunters are required to wear an outer coat or other garment upon the head, as well as an additional 200 square inches of blaze orange. Of this, 100 square inches must be visible from the front, and 100 square inches must be visible from the back on the upper half of the body. Camouflage orange providing the required blaze orange is legal.
There is no minimum age to hunt in Kansas, but youth must be between and under to qualify for youth hunting seasons.
Kansas is a true preference point state. Hunters with the most points will be awarded the permits. Preference points are only awarded for whitetail deer. There is no point system for mule deer. Points will be purged if an application is not submitted for five consecutive years.
The odds printed in this section are based on first-choice applicants with zero points and the number of tags remaining in the draw at zero points. Every applicant with 1 or more points was successful in the draw.
Reduced-price youth permits are valid for the seasons specified on the permit. In addition, they are valid during the September youth and disability season. During the youth season, hunters seventeen and younger may hunt under adult supervision. However, hunters who are sixteen and older are not eligible for youth-priced permits.
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Firearm permit holders may hunt with any legal equipment during the firearm season. Muzzleloader permit holders may only hunt with muzzleloader or archery equipment during the muzzleloader and firearm seasons. Archery permit holders may only use archery equipment during the archery season, even during days that overlap the muzzleloader or regular firearm seasons.
Legal firearms include centerfire rifles and handguns that are not fully automatic—using only hard-cast solid, soft point, hollow point, tumble-on-impact, or other expanding bullets—as well as any gauge shotgun using only slugs.
Legal muzzleloaders include rifles, pistols, or muskets that can only be loaded with less than two pellets of 40 grains in diameter or larger using hard-cast solid lead, conical lead, saboted, or tumble-on-impact bullets.
Legal archery equipment includes longbows, recurve bows, compound bows, and crossbows. No bow, crossbow, or arrow may have any electronic device attached that controls the flight of the arrow. Devices that may be attached to a bow or arrow include lighted pin, dot, or holographic sights; illuminated nocks; rangefinders; film or video cameras; radio-frequency location devices; and draw-lock devices. Arrows used for hunting big game must be equipped with broadhead points that, when fully expanded, cannot pass through a ring 3/4 inch in diameter. Nonbroadhead arrows may be in a hunter’s possession while hunting, but they may not be used to take big game. Devices capable of dispensing chemicals are not permitted.
Lures, decoys, and non-electric calls may be used while hunting big game. Hunters may use blinds and stands. Rangefinding devices and optical scopes or sights that project no visible light toward the target and do not electronically amplify visible or infrared light may be used. Horses and mules shall not be used for herding or driving big game. Firearm report-suppression devices may be used in hunter’s permits. Handguns may be a hunter’s possession during all big game seasons. However, only handguns specified as legal equipment for firearm or muzzleloader seasons may be used for big game hunting. Ethical hunters select equipment that is most effective for their capabilities, the game they hunt, and the style of hunting they prefer. Hunters should consider muzzle velocity, kinetic energy, bullet type, recoil, and accuracy when selecting equipment that is adequate for the game hunted.
Non-Resident Hunt-On-Land Deer Permit
The cost of this permit is $87.50 and it is available to nonresident individuals who qualify as Kansas landowners under K.S.A 32-937 (see https://ksrevisor.gov/statutes/chapters/ch32/032_009_0037.html for additional information on the statute). The permit is valid for any whitetail or mule deer during muzzleloader-only, archery, and firearm seasons, but only on land owned or operated by the non-resident landowner. Equipment legal for the season being hunted must still be used. This permit is available at vendor locations or online from August 5 through December 31.
This permit is available for a fee of $42.50 to individuals who qualify as lineal ascendants, descendants, or siblings of resident landowners or all tenants and spouses of a qualifying landowner. The permit is valid for any whitetail or mule deer during muzzleloader-only, archery, and firearm seasons, but only on land owned or operated by the landowner or tenant. Equipment legal for the season being hunted must still be used. Lineal relatives include direct ascendants or descendants, such as a grandfather, mother, son, or granddaughter. Cousins, uncles, and nieces are examples of non-lineal family members. Hunters wishing to purchase this permit will also need to purchase an annual hunting license. This permit is available at vendor locations or online from August 5 through December 31.
Non-Resident Whitetail Antlerless Only (WAO Deer Permit)
Available for a fee of $52.50, this permit can be purchased only after a non-resident first holds a deer permit that allows for the taking of an antlered deer—unless it is purchased after December 31. There are some extended antlerless whitetail only hunts running in January that can be legally hunted with only the purchase of this permit. This permit allows for the harvest of any whitetail deer without a visible antler protruding from the skull, is available for purchase at vendor locations or online from August 5 through December 31. Hunters may purchase up to two WAO permits. Your first permit is valid in all units, permits two through five are valid in certain units, and permits six through ten are valid in even fewer units. Consult regulations for further details.
K.S.A 32-937 Simplified
A non-resident landowner is any nonresident who owns 80 acres or more of Kansas farm or ranch land. To qualify as a non-resident landowner, a person must own farm or ranch land in simple ownership with their name on the deed. Property held in a trust, LLC, partnership, or other legal entity is owned by that legal entity. Permits on properties owned by a legal entity are available only to tenants who either farm at least 80 acres or manage an 80-acre or larger farm that produces an agricultural commodity such as crops or cattle. Serving as a board member, trustee, non-managing partner, or other such position does not qualify a person for a Kansas landowner deer permit. For details, call 620-672-5911 and ask for Law Enforcement.
All hunting license and application fees are nonrefundable. Kansas does not issue refunds for big game permits except for the following reasons: death prior to the season, medical emergency or illness of permittee or an immediate family member preventing the permittee from participating in the hunt, permit was issued in error by the department, or armed forces deployment.
There is no mandatory harvest reporting in Kansas. However, you may be randomly selected to complete a mandatory online harvest survey. If hunters select the E-tagging option, they must go to the GoOutdoorsKS mobile app and follow E-tagging instructions upon harvest.
Go to https://ksoutdoors.gov/Hunting/Where-to-Hunt-in-Kansas-Public-Lands to find different hunting atlases for walk-in areas and deer management unit zones. OnX Hunt mapping has all current WIHA areas mapped out and is a great resource for pinpointing exact locations and studying topography.
The Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks (KDWP) publishes a booklet of walk-in areas. The booklet is updated every year with the current areas and program and will be available in August or September. You can find the complete online map for all WIHA hunting lands in Kansas at https://ksoutdoors.gov/KDWP-Info/Locations/Hunting-Fishing-Atlas/Hunting-Atlas.
The Special Hunts Program allows deer applicants access to parts of apply for additional access to parcels of land that are otherwise closed to hunting. One special hunt permit provides access to only one special deer license. The application period for these hunts opens at the beginning of July and closes at the end of July.
Special hunts are conducted on lands not normally open to unrestricted hunting, including state parks, wildlife areas, private land, and refuges. These hunts limit the number of access permits issued to ensure a quality experience, alleviate safety concerns, or to achieve specific management goals, such as herd reduction. Successful applicants will be notified mid-August.
Some of these hunts are restricted to residents, youth, or those with disabilities while others are open to all. There is no preference point system for this drawing. All appropriate licenses, stamps, tags and permits are required to apply, and applicants can only apply for special hunt permits that are within the management unit specified on their license. In the 2024/2025 season, there were 211 special hunt permits offered. If successful in drawing a special permit, this permit provides the hunter access to that special property. The hunter may still hunt the entire unit in which their license is good for. Hunting regulations still apply, and additional restrictions may apply for each special hunt area.
Blinds and stands may be used on KDWP lands, subject to posted requirements and under the following conditions: (1) stands may not be placed more than fourteen days prior to the season and shall be removed within fourteen days of the close of the season; (2) ladders, screw-in metal steps, and steps attached by ropes, cables, or chains may be used to access stands and must be removed with the stand; (3) natural blinds may be used and shall be constructed of natural herbaceous materials or woody debris present on site; (4) any person may use these stands if not occupied; (5) only two portable blinds or stands are allowed per hunter in any given KDWP-owned or managed area; (6) portable blinds and stands must be marked with the owner’s name and address or KDWP number; (7) portable blinds may not be left unattended overnight; and (8) any stand not conforming to the requirements may be removed or destroyed by KDWP staff.
Trail cameras and baiting are prohibited on public lands as well as Walk-In Hunting Access (WIHA) and iWIHA Limited Access (iWIHA) areas. In the most recent commission meeting, they discussed plans to revoke trail camera ban and create regulations around the use of trail cameras. They are still gathering public comment and drawing up new regulations. At the time of print, nothing has been passed. Prior to the start of season, consult the hunting regulations or contact KDWP to find out updated information on trail camera use on public land.
Kansas Hunters Feeding the Hungry (KSHF) invites you to donate any legally harvested deer or elk to their participating processors. There is no cost to donate your deer or elk as long as the KSHF organization has sufficient funding to cover the processing expense. Donated game must be field dressed and legally tagged. You may also donate a portion of the meat you are having processed for yourself to a participating processor. Game given to another person must be accompanied by the donor’s written name, address, permit or transaction number, signature, and the date of donation.
Kansas offers some of the best whitetail hunting opportunities of all the midwestern states. Private lands that are well managed for big buck-to-doe ratios are likely to remain some of the best hunting areas for Kansas. While tags for whitetail are accessible, they have become more competitive and tougher to draw over the years. The eastern side of the state bordering Missouri is home to the highest population of whitetail deer in the state. There are a few public access areas to hunt, but hunters who secure spots with outfitters will be more successful and have a significantly higher chance of harvesting a mature buck.
In addition to great whitetail hunting, Kansas gives hunters an opportunity to apply for the Mule Deer Stamp and pursue mule deer. The draw odds for the Mule Deer Stamp are low, but successful applicants have a unique chance to hunt quality mule deer in the state. The highest populations of mule deer are found along the western side of the state, particularly along the Colorado border. This year, they will offer a total of 79 Mule Deer Stamps to non-resident—21 fewer stamps than last year. This reduction is due to poor habitat conditions. In recent years, bad drought has hurt the grasslands that serve as fawning habitat. The state estimates a population density of one to two mule deer per square mile. However, some well managed properties will have a larger population present. Mature bucks typically range from 160 to 170”, though the occasional 200” buck is harvested.
Kansas has a very unique tag system that allows successful applicants in one zone to hunt an adjacent zone with their permit. This is designed to help increase opportunities for hunters. However, with very limited public land, state wildlife areas, and WIHA program areas, some hunts can still be extremely challenging if hunters do not have private access.
Kansas’s WIHA program is one of the most successful access programs in the country, a fact reflected by other states that have adopted or are mirroring the program, and it should be celebrated by all. Since its inception in 1995, the WIHA program has opened up over a million acres for hunting.
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The Kansas non-resident deer application deadline is April 26, 2026.
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