Ontario · licensing

How to Get a Hunting Licence in Ontario

By Hunters Guide. Checked against Government of Ontario sources on September 18, 2026.

To hunt in Ontario you need four things: an Outdoors Card, hunter accreditation on file with the province, a hunting licence for the game you want, and a tag where the species requires one. Hunting with a gun adds a fifth, and that one is federal.

That fifth item causes more confusion than anything else in Ontario, so let's settle it first.

Does the Ontario Hunter Education Course let you hunt with a firearm?

The Ontario Hunter Education Course qualifies you to hunt with a bow, and hunting with a gun in Ontario requires the federal Canadian Firearms Safety Course on top of it. Two accreditations, two levels of government, two separate pieces of paper.

Ontario states it directly in the hunting regulations summary:"Successful completion of the course, and purchase of applicable licences allows hunters to hunt with a bow in Ontario." The sentence immediately after it adds that "To hunt with a gun, successful completion of the Canadian Firearms Safety Course (CFSC) is required."

The mix-up is understandable, because most people sit both on the same weekend. The ministry notes that "The Ontario Hunter Education Course and the CFSC are often delivered together in-person." One classroom, one instructor, two credentials. Taking them together does not fuse them into one document.

The firearms half runs through the RCMP, not through Ontario. The province accepts a valid possession and acquisition licence, a minor's licence, or proof of completing the course as your federal firearms accreditation, and you carry that documentation in the field. Our guide togetting a PAL in Canada covers that application end to end.

What do you need before you can hunt in Ontario?

An Ontario hunting licence sits on top of four requirements that the province treats as a checklist rather than a menu.

1. Pass the Ontario Hunter Education Course, including the exam.
2. Take the CFSC too, if you plan to hunt with a gun.
3. File your hunter accreditation in person at a participating ServiceOntario location that offers hunting licence services.
4. Buy an Outdoors Card. It is $8.57 plus HST and covers three calendar years.
5. Buy your licence and any tags for the species you want.

Steps three and four are the ones people reverse. Your accreditation has to be on file before you can buy hunting products, and the card has to exist before licences attach to anything. That first visit cannot be done online or by phone, though Ontario says online submission arrives in early 2027.

What is an Outdoors Card and how do you get one?

An Outdoors Card is the identification card that every Ontario hunter and angler carries. The province describes it as"a plastic, wallet-sized identification card issued by the ministry that allows you to hunt or fish."

It is valid for three calendar years, and the renewal window opens on the first Tuesday of December. Buy or renew one online through the Fish and Wildlife Licensing Service, by phone, at a licence issuer, or at ServiceOntario. Expect to give your name, date of birth, address, and, oddly enough, your height and eye colour.

The card arrives by mail and can take up to 20 days, but you do not have to wait for it. The licence summary you get at purchase works as temporary proof, on paper or on your phone. Buy a one-year or three-year small game licence at the same time and it gets printed on the back of the card.

What is on the Ontario Hunter Education Course?

The Ontario Hunter Education Course is the province's mandatory hunter training, offered either in person with a certified instructor or online as self-directed learning, and it finishes with an exam you have to pass. Same credential either way.

Six areas make up the syllabus: hunting safety and equipment, regulations and laws, hunter responsibilities, wildlife management, hunting techniques, and wildlife identification. Wildlife identification is the one that quietly catches people out. Our Ontario hunter education practice exam is written to those same six areas.

Here is something Ontario does not tell you: the pass mark. The ministry says you must pass the exam and stops there. No percentage appears on its hunter education pages or in the hunting regulations summary, so ask your instructor what the mark is on the day. Course fees are the same story, set by whoever teaches rather than published by the ministry.

What does an Ontario hunting licence cost in 2026?

An Ontario hunting licence is priced per species rather than as one flat annual fee, so what you pay depends on what you are chasing. These are 2026 resident fees, and 13% HST applies on top.

Moose is the exception. The licence is $35.29, but tags are priced separately by animal type: $30.00 for a calf, $150.00 for a cow or calf, $200.00 for a bull. Moose and elk draw applications are $15.00 each. Deer draw applications are free.

A first season on small game therefore runs $31.33 plus HST in government fees, before your course and, for a gun, the PAL.

How do tags and game seals work in Ontario?

A tag is a component of a hunting licence that authorizes you to hunt the species named on it, subject to the conditions printed on the tag. Moose, deer, elk, black bear, wild turkey, and wolf or coyote in certain Wildlife Management Units all require one.

If you hunted in Ontario years ago, forget what you remember. The province confirms that"Yellow sticky stock game seals are no longer used." Tags are now printed, at home or at a licence issuer, right after purchase or once draw results land.

The handling rules are strict and they are on you. Notch the tag with the date, month, and time immediately after the kill, at the site, before you move the animal. Keep it intact and legible, which means a plastic holder or a resealable bag. Carry it at all times. You only have to attach it to the animal if you are not accompanying it.

Mandatory hunter reporting catches people after the season. It applies to anyone issued a tag for deer, elk, black bear, wild turkey, or wolf and coyote, and to anyone issued a moose licence. You file it even if you came home empty.

How long does it take to get set up in Ontario?

Getting hunt-ready in Ontario means waiting on other people's calendars rather than on government processing. Budget a few weeks.

The course is the long pole. Instructor availability tightens badly from late summer onward, and the ministry's own advice is to get training and accreditation well before the season. The ServiceOntario visit takes an afternoon, and buying the card and licence takes minutes.

If you also need the federal side, start it first. A PAL application is measured in months, not weeks.

Frequently asked questions

Do you need a PAL to hunt in Ontario?

Not for bow hunting. For hunting with a gun, Ontario requires completion of the Canadian Firearms Safety Course plus a valid possession and acquisition licence, a minor's licence, or proof of completing the course. The Ontario Hunter Education Course does not cover that.

How old do you have to be to hunt in Ontario?

Ontario residents must be at least 16 years old, or 15 with written parental consent. Residents aged 12 to 14 can hunt through the Hunter Apprenticeship Safety Program under a licensed mentor. Anyone under 16 needs parental consent for an Outdoors Card.

What is the pass mark for the Ontario hunter education exam?

Ontario does not publish one. The ministry says only that you must pass the exam, and no percentage appears in its hunter education pages or in the hunting regulations summary. Figures quoted elsewhere come from course providers, so confirm the mark with your instructor.

How much does it cost to start hunting in Ontario?

About $31.33 plus HST in government fees for a small game setup, which is $8.57 for the Outdoors Card and $22.76 for a one-year small game licence. Course fees are set by instructors rather than by the ministry.

Can you use hunter education from another province in Ontario?

Often yes. Someone who has moved to Ontario does not need to take the course if they have lived in the province for at least six months and hold hunter education or Ontario-recognized credentials from their home jurisdiction. Bring the documentation to ServiceOntario.