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Pennsylvania Hunter Safety Education Requirements

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FAQ - Pennsylvania Hunters Safety Course and Pennsylvania Hunting License

Is the Beasafehunter hunter course approved by the state of Pennsylvania?

No. We are not approved yet.

Is there a minimum age to take this online education course?

It depends on the State in which you want to take the course. 

Is my Hunter Education Certificate good in other states?

Every U.S. state that demands a Hunter Education Certificate will accept Hunter Education Certificates from other states that conform to IHEA requirements as well.

You should follow your safety course in the State where you are resident.

Does the Hunter Education Card expire?

No. It is good for life.

Who is required to take the Hunter Education course in Pennsylvania?

To purchase a hunting license you must complete an approved Hunter Education course, if you have not held a hunting license in this Commonwealth or another state or nation.

What types of Pennsylvania Hunting Licenses are available?

Resident Adult Hunting License ($20.97): Issued to bona fide residents of Pennsylvania ages 17 through 64. This license includes one antlered deer tag, one fall turkey tag, one spring turkey tag and small game hunting privileges for one license year.

Resident Junior Hunting License ($6.97): Issued to bona fide residents of Pennsylvania ages 12 through 16. Eleven-year-olds may apply for a junior license if they reach age 12 by June 30 of the current license year and have successfully completed the required Hunter-Trapper Education Course. The actual hunting privileges granted to the junior license holder may not be exercised until he or she reaches age 12. In addition to the junior applicant's signature, a parent or guardian must sign the license to validate it and the information provided before the junior license holder goes afield. No archery, muzzleloader or furtaker add-on privileges are available for this license. If a junior wants any of these privileges, he or she must purchase a Junior Resident Combination License. Combination licenses include archery, muzzleloader, and furtaker privileges in addition to one spring turkey, one fall turkey, and one antlered deer tag.  This license also includes small game hunting privileges

Resident Junior Combination License ($9.97): Issued to bona fide residents of Pennsylvania ages 12 through 16. Eleven-year-olds may apply for a junior combination license if they reach age 12 by June 30 of the current license year and have successfully completed the required Hunter-Trapper Education Course. The actual privileges granted to the junior combination license holder may not be exercised until he or she reaches age 12. In addition to the junior applicant's signature, a parent or guardian must sign the license to validate it and the information provided before the junior license holder goes afield. Combination licenses do not include bear, migratory game bird, special spring gobbler or antlerless deer license privileges. This license includes one antlered deer tag, one fall turkey tag, one spring turkey tag and small game hunting and furtaker privileges for one license year. Archery and muzzleloader privileges are also included with this combination license.

Resident Senior Hunting License ($13.97): Issued to bona fide residents of Pennsylvania ages 65 and older. Sixty-four-year-olds may apply for a senior license if they reach age 65 by June 30 of the current license year. This license is valid for only the license year of issuance. This license includes one antlered deer tag, one fall turkey tag, one spring turkey tag and small game hunting privileges for one license year.

Resident Senior Lifetime Hunting License ($51.97): Issued to bona fide residents of Pennsylvania ages 65 and older. Sixty-four-year-olds may apply for a senior lifetime hunting license if they reach age 65 by June 30 of the current license year. Lifetime license holders apply for free renewal hunting licenses each year to receive valid harvest tags for that particular license year. This license includes one antlered deer tag, one fall turkey tag, one spring turkey tag and small game hunting privileges for one license year.

Resident Senior Lifetime Combination License ($101.97): Issued to bona fide residents of Pennsylvania ages 65 and older. Sixty-four-year-olds may apply for a senior lifetime combination license if they reach age 65 by June 30 of the current license year. Combination licenses do not include bear, migratory game bird, special spring gobbler or antlerless deer license privileges. Combination licenses include archery, muzzleloader, and furtaker privileges in addition to one spring turkey, one fall turkey, and one antlered deer tag.  This license also includes small game hunting privileges. Lifetime license holders apply for free renewal combination licenses each year to receive valid harvest tags for that particular license year.

Resident Senior Lifetime Combination Upgrade License ($51.97): Issued to current senior lifetime hunting or furtaker license holders who desire to upgrade their license privileges to the combination category (which includes archery, muzzleloader, and furtaker privileges in addition to one spring turkey, one fall turkey, and one antlered deer tag. This license also includes small game hunting privileges.

Resident Senior Lifetime Hunting Renewal License (No Charge): Issued to Resident Senior Lifetime Hunting license holders to renew a lifetime license for the current year. Lifetime license holders renewing for the first time through HuntFishPA must provide their Social Security Number (SSN) (one time only) and their valid PA Driver's License or some other form of positive ID showing their current address. ID cards are no longer issued or required since HuntFishPA accesses the resident senior lifetime license database to verify privileges that the hunter has on file. If a license holder moves out-of-state, he or she is not eligible to renew their senior lifetime license. Senior lifetime license holders are entitled to only one free license per year. If their renewal license is lost, they must be issued a replacement. This license includes one antlered deer tag, one fall turkey tag, one spring turkey tag and small game hunting privileges for each year this license is renewed. All hunters who purchased the Resident Senior Lifetime License prior to May 13, 2017, are eligible to hunt pheasant without holding the Adult Pheasant Permit.

Resident Senior Lifetime Combination Renewal License (No Charge): Issued to Resident Senior Lifetime Combination license holders to renew a lifetime license for the current year. Lifetime license holders renewing for the first time through HuntFishPA must provide their SSN (one time only) and their valid PA Driver's License or some other form of positive ID showing their current address. ID cards are no longer issued or required since HuntFishPA accesses the resident senior lifetime license database to verify privileges that the hunter has on file. If a license holder moves out-of-state, he or she is not eligible to renew their senior lifetime license. Senior lifetime license holders are entitled to only one free license per year. If their renewal license is lost, they must be issued a replacement. This license includes one antlered deer tag, one fall turkey tag, one spring turkey tag and small game hunting and furtaker privileges for each year this license is renewed. Archery and muzzleloader privileges are also included with this combination license. All hunters who puchased the Resident Senior Lifetime License prior to May 13, 2017, are eligible to hunt pheasant without holding the Adult Pheasant Permit.

Resident Military Hunting License ($2.97): To qualify, applicants must meet all of the following requirements and provide the appropriate documentation. This license includes one antlered deer tag, one fall turkey tag, one spring turkey tag and small game hunting privileges for one license year.

• Be a resident of Pennsylvania, and provide proof that it is their home of record
• Be currently serving on active and full-time duty in the U.S. Armed Forces or the U.S. Coast Guard, and provide documentation of their military status
• Be currently assigned to a facility outside of Pennsylvania, and provide official orders showing that they are stationed outside of this Commonwealth
• Be on temporary leave in Pennsylvania, and provide leave papers

Resident National Guard Hunting License ($2.97) and Resident Reserves Hunting License ($2.97): To qualify, applicants must meet all of the following requirements and provide the appropriate documentation. Be a qualified resident who, within the previous 24 months, has been deployed overseas as a member of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard or Air National Guard on active Federal service, or a reserve component of the armed forces for a period of 60 consecutive days or more, or was released early from such service because of injury or disease incurred in the line of duty. Only one Pennsylvania National Guard or Reserves hunting license may be issued for each qualifying deployment of a person applying for this license. This license includes one antlered deer tag, one fall turkey tag, one spring turkey tag and small game hunting privileges for one license year. All applicants must provide documentation of:

• Pennsylvania being their home of record
• Documentation of military status or discharge papers, if applicable
• Individual or unit orders showing the return date from overseas.

Resident Disabled Veteran (DV) Lifetime Hunting Renewal License (No Charge): Issued to Resident DV Lifetime Hunting license holders to renew a DV lifetime hunting license for the current year. DV lifetime hunting license holders renewing for the first time through HuntFishPA must provide their SSN (one time only) and their valid PA Driver's License or some other form of positive ID showing their current address. ID cards are no longer issued or required since HuntFishPA accesses the resident DV lifetime license database to verify privileges that the individual has on file. This license includes one antlered deer tag, one fall turkey tag, one spring turkey tag and small game hunting privileges for one license year.

Resident Landowner Hunting License ($4.97): Issued to qualified resident owners or possessors of land, comprising 80 or more contiguous acres, which are enrolled in a Pennsylvania Game Commission cooperative public access program. Land must be open to public hunting and trapping the entire license year. Applicants must provide their Game Commission cooperative public access program agreement number (referred to as "subscription number" in HuntFishPA). This number is required as part of the application process to verify the applicant qualifies for this reduced-fee license type. If the applicant does not have his or her agreement number, the applicant must contact the Game Commission regional office for their county. This license includes one antlered deer tag, one fall turkey tag, one spring turkey tag and small game hunting privileges for one license year.

Resident Hunting Heritage License ($2.97):  Issued to bona fide residents of Pennsylvania age 17 and older.  To quality, applicant must be an active Hunting-Trapping Education instructor in the state of Pennsylvania.  Instructors will need a validation code issued from PGC to purchase this reduced-fee license type.  If the instructor does not have their validation code, the instructor must contact the Game Commission Headquarters, Bureau of Information & Education for their code.  This license includes one antlered deer tag, one fall turkey tag, one spring turkey tag and small game privileges for one license year.

Nonresident Adult Hunting License ($101.97): Issued to nonresidents of Pennsylvania (from any state or nation) who are age 17 and older. This license includes one antlered deer tag, one fall turkey tag, one spring turkey tag and small game hunting privileges for one license year.

Nonresident Junior Hunting License ($41.97): Issued to nonresidents of Pennsylvania (from any state or nation) who are ages 12 through 16. Eleven-year-olds may apply for a junior license if they reach age 12 by June 30 of the current license year and have successfully completed the required Hunter-Trapper Education Course. The actual hunting privileges granted to the junior license holder may not be exercised until he or she reaches age 12. In addition to the junior applicant's signature, a parent or guardian must sign the license to validate it and the information provided before the junior license holder goes afield. No archery, muzzleloader or furtaker add-on privileges are available for this license. If a junior wants any of these privileges, they must purchase a Junior Nonresident Combination License. This license includes one antlered deer tag, one fall turkey tag, one spring turkey tag and small game hunting privileges for one license year.

Nonresident Junior Combination License ($51.97): Issued to nonresidents of Pennsylvania (from any state or nation) who are ages 12 through 16. Eleven-year-olds may apply for a junior license if they reach age 12 by June 30 of the current license year and have successfully completed the required Hunter-Trapper Education Course. The actual privileges granted to the junior combination license holder may not be exercised until he or she reaches age 12. In addition to the junior applicant's signature, his or her parent or guardian must sign the license to validate it and the information provided before the junior license holder goes afield. Combination licenses do not include bear, migratory game bird, special spring gobbler or antlerless deer license privileges. This license includes one antlered deer tag, one fall turkey tag, one spring turkey tag and small game hunting and furtaker privileges for one license year. Archery and muzzleloader privileges are also included with this combination license.

Nonresident 7-Day Small Game License ($31.97): Issued to nonresidents of Pennsylvania (from any state or nation) who are age 12 and older. For applicants under 17, the applicant's parent or guardian must co-sign the license to validate it and the information provided before the license holder goes afield. This license is not valid for big game including turkey. Nonresidents may purchase this license to lawfully hunt waterfowl in Pennsylvania, as long as they also possess a PA Nonresident Migratory Game Bird License and a Federal Duck Stamp. This license does not include bear, deer, elk, or turkey hunting. 

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