Deer Lottery

Connecticut Hunting

A lottery is conducted to award a limited number of permits for deer hunting on certain state lands and controlled hunt areas. To hunt these areas you must apply for a deer lottery permit.

State Land and Controlled Hunt Lottery

Season Dates

• Nov. 17 – Nov. 26 Lottery “A” Season
• Nov. 17 – Dec. 7 Lottery Regular Season

Bag Limits 1 Either Sex on State Land Areas; variable on Controlled Hunt Areas

Hunting Hours ½ hour before sunrise to sunset.

License & Permits Firearms hunting license and a state land lottery permit or a controlled hunt area lottery permit. Only one of these permit types may be bought each year. Lottery permits for state land and controlled hunt areas may be applied for starting January 2. Persons rejected for a Lottery Permit may obtain a State Land No-Lottery Permit. However, you may buy only one type of State Land Shotgun Deer Permit. So, if you are selected for the Deer Lottery, you cannot purchase a State Land No-Lottery Permit.

Legal Firearms 12, 16, or 20 gauge breech loading shotgun loaded with single soft alloy projectile ammunition. Rifled or smoothbore barrels allowed. Shotgun must not be capable of holding more than 3 shells. Muzzleloading rifle or shotgun, .45 caliber minimum. Single projectile loaded from muzzle end. Telescopic sights and shotgun converters are permitted.

Special Conditions

• Tagging and Reporting: See Tagging & Reporting for information on tagging and reporting.
• Junior Deer Hunter Training Days: Saturday, November 6 through Saturday, November 13, 2021 (excluding Sunday). See Mentor a Junior Hunter for details.

Archery-Only Controlled Hunt Lottery

Archery-only lottery distributes a limited number of permits, providing access to controlled hunt areas and allowing landowners to develop hunt programs that may consist of hunters attending a mandatory pre-hunt meeting and/or passing a background check. The archery-only lottery will not affect the hunter’s ability to receive a firearms lottery permit nor will it impact the ability to bow hunt other state lands. In the future, when multiple archery-only lottery areas are available, like the firearms lottery, bowhunters will only be allowed to receive one archery-only area permit.

Follow existing deer lottery application instructions for the archery-only controlled hunt lottery. The archery-only lottery will run through January 30 and no permits will be available to youth hunters 12 to 17 years old.

Season Dates

• Sept. 15 – Dec. 31

Bag Limits 2 Either Sex and 2 Antlerless; hunters will use the Archery Deer Permit tags.

Hunting Hours ½ hour before sunrise to sunset.

License & Permits Archery Deer/Small Game License. Only one of this permit type may be received each year. Lottery permits for archery-only controlled hunt areas may be applied for starting on January 2, at 9:00 a.m. Persons rejected in the archery-only lottery may hunt any state or controlled hunt area that is open to bowhunting. The archery-only controlled hunt lottery is completely separate from the firearms deer lottery.

Legal Bows See Hunting Laws & Regulations for a description of legal bows and arrows for deer hunting. Mechanical string release devices are permitted.

Deer Lottery Application Instructions

Starting January 2, at 9:00 a.m., lottery permit applications can be submitted online at www.ct.gov/deep/SportsmenLicensing.

ADULT licensed firearms hunters over the age of 17 can apply individually or as a group. The maximum number of hunters in a group is four. You may only apply as a group one time. Applicants may apply for up to six areas.

Upon submission of your application, you will know instantly whether you are successful. If successful, the permit for the area and season will automatically be added to your “shopping cart.” If you apply as a group, the associated permit will also be added to each group member’s “shopping cart.” The permit may be purchased at the time of selection or at a later date. Each group member is responsible for purchasing their own permit. All permits must be purchased by January 30. If a permit is not purchased by that date, it will be forfeited.

YOUTH licensed firearms hunters (12 through 17 years old) can only apply individually. All youths will apply by means of a separate lottery program called Youth Lottery Permits. Applicants can apply and receive their area of choice, unless quotas are filled. Youth permits are purchased at the end of the transaction. We recommend that the adult hunter participate in the lottery first before purchasing the Youth Lottery Permit. This will ensure that the youth and adult receive a permit for the same area. All sales are final and DEEP is unable to switch hunting areas or refund fees.

Reminder: Select lottery permits not purchased by January 30 will be made available on a first-come, first-serve basis starting March 15, at 9:00 a.m. Unsold lottery permits can be purchased online or at select DEEP offices up until sold out or the season ends. All unsold lottery permits must be purchased at the end of the transaction. Additional information about the deer lottery may be found at https://portal.ct.gov/DEEPHunting. Questions can be directed to michael.gregonis@ct.gov.