Deer Management Permits

DMP Availability and Probability of Selection

View a table of DMP Targets and Chances of Selection for Residents and Non-Residents (PDF).

DEC strives to manage deer populations at levels that are in balance with available habitat and in alignment with public desires by adjusting harvest of antlerless deer by hunters. Antlerless deer are primarily female and the component of the deer population that drives population growth. Each year, DEC adjusts the number of antlerless deer tags that are available to hunters in each WMU through allocations of DMPs. Hunters possessing a DMP may take one additional antlerless deer in the WMU that the DMP was issued for.

DMPs may:

• Only be used for antlerless deer (have no antlers or antlers less than 3" long).
• Only be used in the WMU for which they are issued.
• Be used during any deer hunting season.
• Be used by youth bowhunters during the special archery seasons and the regular season; and
• Be transferred between hunters (See Additional Opportunities for Acquiring DMPs for instructions).

For more information on how DEC allocates DMPs in each WMU, please refer to Appendix 5 of DEC’s Management Plan for White-Tailed Deer in New York State. 

Applying for DMPs

The DMP application window opens in August each year. Applications for WMUs with limited DMPs must be submitted by October 1 annually. Applications for WMUs with unlimited/bonus DMPs can be submitted any time throughout the hunting season. Chances of selection remain the same throughout the entire application period.

Here’s what you need to know before applying:

• All licensed big game hunters, aged 12 or older can apply for DMPs.
• You can apply for DMPs for most, but not all, WMUs. Be sure to check the availability of DMPs in the WMU you intend to hunt in before applying (see the table of DMP Targets and Chances of Selection for Residents and Non-residents (PDF) for details).
• You can apply for up to four DMPs, two in WMUs with limited DMPs and two in WMUs with unlimited/bonus DMPs (see below for details). Applications can be for the same WMU (depending on availability) or different WMUs. 
• There is a $10 non-refundable application fee for all applicants, except for holders of Lifetime Sportsman licenses purchased prior to 9/30/2009, and youth hunters (age 15 or younger).
• The number of DMPs available in a WMU is based on the antlerless deer harvest necessary to meet deer population objectives, the number of expected DMP applicants, and the likelihood that those applicants will be selected based on the order of selection below. 

Order of Selection:

• Landowners and disabled veterans (see below for details)
• NYS residents and non-residents with 3 or more preference points (see below for details).
• Residents with 2 preference points.
• Residents with 1 preference point.
• Residents with 0 preference points.
• Non-residents with 2 preference points.
• Non-residents with 1 preference point.

Preference points 

• Preference points increase your chances of selection for a DMP in WMUs with limited DMPs, but do not guarantee DMP selection. Preference points are not used or received when applying for DMPs in WMUs with unlimited/bonus DMPs (see below for details).
• Preference points are only won and lost on first selection of a DMP in a WMU with limited DMPs.
• If you receive a DMP in your first choice WMU with limited DMPs, all available preference points will be used.
• If you do not receive a DMP in your first choice WMU with limited DMPs, you will receive a preference point for the following year.
• Any preference points contained in your file are automatically applied to your first choice WMU with limited DMPs, even if preference points are not required for that WMU. If you do not receive your first choice, the points are applied to your second choice, but will remain in your file for the following year, regardless of your second-choice selection results.
• Qualifying landowners and disabled veterans (see below for details) will receive their first choice DMP in all open WMUs.
• Preference points are not WMU specific. If you earned a preference point by being denied a DMP in a WMU with limited DMPs, you can use that preference point in a subsequent year when applying for a DMP in a different WMU with limited DMPs.

Disabled veterans who are residents of New York and who have a service-connected disability rated at 40% or greater will receive first preference on DMP selection in WMUs with limited DMPs. Annually, you must bring a letter from the Veteran's Administration, dated in the current year, with your case number and your disability percentage. If you are claiming permanent disabled status, the letter must clearly state that the service-related disability is 'permanent'.

Landowners who own 50 or more contiguous acres of land within a WMU will receive second preference on DMP selection in WMUs with limited DMPs. Annually, you must bring your tax map identification number and SWIS code (found on your tax bill) with you when you apply. Be sure to tell the license issuing agent PRIOR to applying that you are a landowner. Lessees do not qualify as landowners. A spouse of a landowner may receive landowner preference, but both spouses may not apply as a landowner for the same parcel of land. For corporate landowners, only one person may be designated by the corporation as the landowner each year no matter how many 50-acre parcels are owned. The corporation must submit an original letter or certified copy of a resolution, dated in the current year, designating the individual and must include the tax map ID and SWIS code information.

Additional Opportunities to Acquire DMPs

Transferring DMPs

Big game hunters can have DMPs (including bonus DMPs) transferred to them from other hunters, but DMPs can only be transferred using paper tags. Hunters who receive a transferred DMP must be in physical possession of the paper tag when taking antlerless deer with the transferred DMP. Each DMP has a section to sign and indicate consent to allow the DMP to be transferred. The hunter who wishes to receive and use the DMP must write the DMP number, in indelible ink or pencil, on the license privilege panel immediately below the line where it states "DMP #'s received from other hunters” or on the back of their license page.

After transfer, the DMP may be legally possessed and used by the receiving hunter. Possession of someone else's DMP would otherwise be illegal. If the DMP is not filled it may be transferred back to the original owner. Only the hunter who has possession of the transferred DMP afield may take an antlerless deer with it. If an antlerless deer is harvested using a transferred DMP, the document number from the transferred DMP should be reported along with the date of birth of the hunter who harvested the deer. 

Hunters who submit a harvest report for an antlerless deer using a transferred DMP will receive the Bonus DMP (in WMUs with unlimited DMPs) and/or a second Antlered Deer Tag generated under DEC’s Earn-A-2nd-Buck system. These additional tags will be automatically added to the hunter’s DEC Automated Licensing System (DECALS) account and emailed to them if there is a valid email associated with their account. E-tag users will see the tags in the HuntFishNY mobile app under “License & Tags/Report Harvest”. Paper tag users will be able to print the tags from their email receipt or from their online DECALS profile, or can obtain their tags at a DEC office (appointment required).

Remember: Only DMP carcass tags can be transferred from one hunter to another. Hunting licenses or other carcass tags are not transferrable.

Example of DMP transfer process:

Step 1. Hunter Art Fern wants to transfer his DMP to hunter Pete Moss. Art Fern signs the bottom of the paper DMP tag to allow transfer.

Step 2. Art Fern gives the DMP to Pete Moss.

Step 3. Pete Moss records the Tag# from the DMP being transferred to him from Art Fern on the license privilege panel or on the back of his hunting license page.

Step 4a. Pete Moss does not use the transferred DMP and can transfer it back to Art Fern or to another hunter following these same steps.

Step4b. Pete Moss is successful and harvests an antlerless deer using the transferred DMP. Pete Moss reports the harvest using his own date of birth and the document number for the transferred DMP.

Leftover DMPs

If there are DMPs remaining for WMUs with limited DMPs after the initial application period ends on October 1, leftover DMPs may be available to hunters beginning on or around November 1 each year. Leftover DMPs will be available for all WMUs that have unlimited/bonus DMPs. Leftover DMPs can only be obtained at a license issuing agent location. Hunters may receive up to two additional leftover DMPs.

Leftover DMPs are issued on a first-come/first-serve basis. When leftover DMPs become available, they will remain available for at least one day until close of business that day. If all of the leftover DMPs have been issued by the end of the business day, they will not be available the next day.

Hunters who are exempt from paying a DMP application fee or who have previously applied for DMPs that license year will not be charged any additional fees for leftover DMPs. Otherwise, there is a non-refundable $10 application fee for leftover DMPs. Preference points are not used or received when obtaining leftover DMPs.

Unlimited/Bonus DMPs

In some WMUs, the number of DMPs necessary to curb deer population growth exceeds hunter demand for the tags, negating the need for a DMP quota or lottery. Currently, WMUs 1C, 3M, 3P, 3R, 3S, 4J, 6P, 7F, 7H, 7J, 7R, 8A, 8C, 8F, 8G, 8H, 8J, 8N, 8R, 8S, 9A, 9F, and 9G have unlimited/bonus DMPs. All hunters who apply for DMPs in these WMUs will receive them. DMPs that are used to harvest antlerless deer in these WMUs will be replaced with a bonus DMP upon harvest report, allowing hunters to continue harvesting antlerless deer. Used and reported bonus DMPs will also be replaced with additional bonus DMPs. There is no fee to obtain bonus DMPs. Each year, DEC will adjust which WMUs have unlimited/bonus DMPs based on deer population management needs.

Bonus DMPs will be automatically added to the hunter’s DEC Automated Licensing System (DECALS) account and emailed to them if there is a valid email associated with their account. E-tag users will see the bonus DMP in the HuntFishNY mobile app under “License & Tags/Report Harvest”. Paper tag users will be able to print the tag from their email receipt or from their online DECALS profile, or can obtain their bonus DMP at a regional DEC office (appointment required). You can schedule an appointment by calling the Regional Wildlife Office for the appropriate DEC Region below. Paper tag users must have the bonus DMP in their possession before hunting for and harvesting another antlerless deer. 

Region 1: 1-631-444-0310

Region 3: 1-845-256-3098

Region 4: 1-518-357-2355

Region 6: 1-315-866-6330

Region 7: 1-607-218-3853

Region 8: 1-585-226-5380

Region 9: 1-716-851-7010

DMP Information Hotline

For more information regarding DMPs, call our DMP Information Hotline at 1-866-472-4332.