Anyone who wants to hunt antlered deer in Nova Scotia. There is a different licence and different regulations covering the Hunting Licence (Deer General), and antlerless deer (does and young fawns).

Note: You have to be 18 years of age or older. [However, persons 16 or 17 can get a licence through a parent or guardian]. If under 18 the person must be accompanied, while hunting, by someone 18 years or older who is certified under Hunter Education, Safety and Training regulations to hunt with the applicable weapon.

Authorized Vendors (on behalf of the) N.S. Department of Natural Resources

Authorized Vendors

OR

Any of the Local or Area Offices of the N.S. Department of Natural Resources.

OR

Service Delivery Division
Business Registration Unit
Service Nova Scotia

Toll Free:1-800-670-4357
Local Tel: 902-424-5200
Fax: 902-424-0602

Office Location:
Maritime Centre
9th Floor, Reception Area
1505 Barrington Street
Halifax, NS B3J 3K5

Mailing Address:
P.O. Box 1529
Halifax, NS B3J 2Y4

Note:  The Maritime Centre is located at the intersection of Barrington Street and Spring Garden Road (the Aliant Building at the foot of Spring Garden).

OR

Consult the Nova Scotia Hunting and Furharvesting Summary of Regulations (which is available both in printed form and on the Department of Natural Resources website.)

You have to have a valid Wildlife Resources Card and be certified for the weapon with which you will be hunting. [If you are a non-resident, you have to have whatever is the equivalent in your own province or state.]
No application form is needed. A licence can be purchased from any of the offices listed above, as well as from authorized vendors.

You have to provide proof of age and residency to the person issuing the licence.
You have to be 18 years of age or older. [However, persons 16 or 17 can get a licence through a parent or guardian and must be accompanied, while hunting, by a parent or a guardian, who has the proper certifications and licences to hunt.

You have to have a Base Licence for hunting.
If you have all those requirements, then you can buy a Deer Hunting Stamp (Archery and Muzzleloader). You stick that hunting stamp on the inside of the back cover of your Base Licence, and that turns it into a Deer Hunting Licence (Archery and Muzzleloader). Base Licence + Deer Hunting Stamp (Archery and Muzzleloader) = Deer Hunting Licence (Archery and Muzzleloader)

None

Resident: $27.87 plus HST
Non-Resident: $137.09 plus HST
Seniors (65 years of age, and older): No Charge

This is a seasonal licence, which is valid until the end of the current deer season. Once it expires, it cannot be reused.

1. See Meat Permit (Wildlife) for the rules to follow if you want to store (freeze, etc.) the meat.
   
   
2. If you are carrying a gun in any wildlife habitat in Nova Scotia, you may also be asked to produce one of the following:
   
   1. valid Firearms Acquisition Certificate ; or
   2. Canadian Firearm Possession & Acquisition Licence ; or
   3. Canadian Minor's (Firearm) Possession Only Licence (If you are under 18).
      

1. You always have to obey local (municipal) regulations regarding the discharge of firearms within town limits.
   
   
2. If you are a non-resident hunter, you can only hunt for deer if you are accompanied by a licensed guide, or by a resident* of Nova Scotia who is over 19 and who has received a Special Permit to Guide (Temporary).
   * "resident", at any time, means a person permanently or ordinarily resident in the Province for the two months immediately preceding that time, and includes
   
   1. an officer of the diplomatic or consular service of a foreign country stationed within the Province,
      
   2. a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police or the Canadian Armed Forces stationed or born in the Province,
      
   3. a person born in the Province and the owner of real property in the Province;
      
      
3. When you are issued a Deer Hunting Licence, you are also issued one tag. Once you have used this tag, your licence becomes invalid.
   
   
4. When you kill a deer, you must attach that tag to the deer, and then you must take the deer to a Deer Registration Station, so that the proper Deer Registration Form can be filled out or you can register the deer using the online Deer Registration Form. If the deer is registered online, the confirmation number must be written on the Base Licence and Deer Tag. You can find a list of Deer Registration Stations in the Nova Scotia Hunting and Furharvesting Summary of Regulations.
   
   
5. Hunting is not allowed in Nova Scotia on Sundays.
   
   
6. For more information on Hunting Regulations, download the Nova Scotia Hunting and Furharvesting Summary of Regulations.

Wildlife Act, Revised Statutes of Nova Scotia, 1989, Chapter 504.