With the start of a new hunting season fast approaching, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) is reminding hunters and anglers that current year Texas hunting and fishing licenses (except the Year-from-Purchase All-Water Package) will expire at the end of August. New licenses for the 2020-21 season go on sale Aug. 15.
Annually, Texans purchase more than 2.4 million hunting and fishing licenses and directly fund a multitude of conservation efforts and recreational opportunities, helping make Texas one of the best places in the country to hunt and fish. Projects funded in part by license sales include fish stocking, wildlife management, habitat restoration, public hunting leases, river fishing access and Texas Game Wardens, just to name a few.
Outdoorsmen and women can purchase a variety of licenses online through the TPWD website, by phone or in person at more than 1,700 retailers across the state. Anyone planning to buy their license from a TPWD Law Enforcement office or Austin Headquarters are reminded to make an advance appointment. Walk-ins are not currently accepted.
Anyone wishing to buy a license can use the new expedited checkout process, which speeds up re-purchasing the same license bought in recent years. Customers can also access their licenses in several ways: (1) an electronic photo of one’s license, (2) an emailed receipt from the license purchase; (3) one’s account in the online license sales system; (4) via License Lookup in the Outdoor Annual app or in the My Texas Hunt Harvest app. Hunters and anglers must still have a physical license for any activities requiring tags and stamps.
In the latest change driven by the current public health situation, the Outdoor Annual is all-digital for the upcoming season. Hunting and fishing regulations for the 2020-21 season can be found on the Outdoor Annual mobile app or through the online version of the Outdoor Annual. Once downloaded, the app works without internet connectivity allowing hunters and anglers to view regulations in even the most remote locations. Other features include license lookup, location-based functionality such as “Hunting Seasons and Regulations by Location,” “Where to Fish,” and more. The Outdoor Annual website offers the option to download and print all or select pages of the Outdoor Annual.
The My Texas Hunt Harvest app, which can be accessed through the Outdoor Annual app, enables electronic submission of mandatory harvest reports, including alligator gar harvest reporting. The app also allows hunters to complete their on-site registration for many TPWD public hunting lands. Hunters can hunt on more than one million acres of public land with the purchase of an Annual Public Hunting Permit.
While buying a license, anyone can also choose to enter a number of exciting drawings. Big Time Texas Hunts offers premium packages to hunt bighorn sheep, mule and white-tailed deer, pronghorn, waterfowl, upland game birds, exotics and more. New this year is a chance to win a hunting and fishing trip on one of Texas’ newest Wildlife Management Areas (WMA). The Powderhorn Cast and Blast offers one winner and a guest the opportunity to hunt for white-tailed deer, exotics and waterfowl on the 17,000+ acre Powderhorn WMA along with a guided fishing trip on Matagorda Bay.
Resident hunters and anglers can purchase an entry in the Lifetime License Drawing. Three lucky winners will each win a Lifetime Super Combo License and never need to buy another Texas hunting or fishing license again. Entries are $5 each and can be purchased online, by phone or at any license retailer. The first entry deadline is Sept. 30.
When making their purchase, license buyers can add a donation of $1, $5, $10 or $20 to help support the Hunters for the Hungry program or the Fund for Veterans Assistance. Donations to the Hunters for the Hungry program provide hunters with a way to donate legally harvested deer to participating processors. The processed meat goes to local food banks to feed Texas families in need. Donations to the Fund for Veterans Assistance program provide grants to veteran service organizations and nonprofit charitable institutions, assisting veterans and their families at the community level throughout Texas.
To get more information on Texas hunting and fishing throughout the year, sign up for free email updates at www.tpwd.texas.gov/email or by texting TPWD HUNT or TPWD FISH and your email address to 468-311 (ex. TPWD HUNT myemail@emailaddress.com ).
For frequently asked questions about Texas hunting and fishing licenses, visit the TPWD website.
