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JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – The Missouri Conservation Commission gave final approval to a regulation change from the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) at its Oct. 23 open meeting in Cape Girardeau that would require nonresident deer hunters to purchase a Nonresident Public Land Deer Hunting Permit for $165 to be able to pursue, take, possess, and transport deer on public land in Missouri such as conservation areas and other state and federal public lands. This permit will be required in addition to regular nonresident deer hunting permits. The change will become effective for the 2027 deer season.
Additionally, this permit will be required for nonresidents hunting small game with a nonresident archery permit on public land.
The Commission gave initial approval to the change at its May open meeting. MDC then welcomed public comments during July and August.
More than 90 percent of land in Missouri is privately owned. This permit will not be required to hunt private land.
MDC research shows that nonresident participation in Missouri’s deer season has increased considerably in recent years and an increasing number of resident hunters have expressed concern about how it is impacting their hunts, particularly on public land.
“MDC strives to provide quality hunting opportunities for resident hunters and recognizes the important contributions resident hunters and landowners make to sustaining a healthy deer herd in Missouri,” said MDC Cervid Program Supervisor Jason Isabelle. “We’re thankful for the input from our resident hunters on this issue and certainly appreciate their concerns.”
Isabelle noted that the regulation change is designed to address those concerns and help alleviate the increasing nonresident deer hunting pressure in the state.
According to MDC data, there were approximately 20,000 nonresident deer hunters who hunted in Missouri 20 years ago. That number was about four percent of the state’s nearly 475,000 total deer hunters. By 2025, that number had more than doubled to about 42,000 nonresident deer hunters in Missouri, accounting for about nine percent of the state’s total deer hunters.
Learn more about deer hunting in Missouri online at mdc.mo.gov/hunting-trapping/species/deer.
