Wyoming draw application deadlines and fees
Wyoming's 2026 nonresident elk application (initial drawing) opened January 2, 2026 and closed February 2, 2026; results came out May 21, 2026, according to Wyoming Game and Fish Department. The lowest adult elk license price we list for a nonresident is $692.00 (Elk license (with fishing privilege), nonresident regular), charged at application.
WGFD has not yet posted 2027 application dates. Its rules (Chapter 44) open the big game application period in January each year, with nonresident elk closing at the end of January and deer, antelope and resident elk at the end of May; moose closes at the end of April. WGFD moves a closing date to the next business day when it falls on a weekend, which is why 2026 closed on February 2 and June 1. From January 1, 2027 the nonresident antelope, deer and elk preference point fee goes up to $75 each.
When do Wyoming applications open and close?
| What | Opens | Closes | Results | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonresident elk application (initial drawing) | January 2, 2026 | February 2, 2026 | May 21, 2026 | Application Dates & Deadlines |
| Moose application, residents and nonresidents (initial drawing) | January 2, 2026 | April 30, 2026 | May 21, 2026 | Application Dates & Deadlines |
| Deer and antelope application, residents and nonresidents, and resident elk (initial drawing) | January 2, 2026 | June 1, 2026 | June 18, 2026 | Application Dates & Deadlines |
| Preference point only application (no license) | July 1, 2026 | November 2, 2026 | Application Dates & Deadlines |
What does it cost to apply in Wyoming?
| Fee | Amount | When it is charged |
|---|---|---|
| Application fee, nonresident | $15.00 | at application |
| Application fee, resident | $5.00 | at application |
| Elk license (with fishing privilege), nonresident regular | $692.00 | at application |
| Elk license (with fishing privilege), nonresident special | $1,950.00 | at application |
| Cow/calf elk license, nonresident | $288.00 | at application |
| Elk license, resident | $57.00 | at application |
| Cow/calf elk license, resident | $43.00 | at application |
| Deer license, nonresident regular | $374.00 | at application |
| Deer license, nonresident special | $1,200.00 | at application |
| Doe/fawn deer license, nonresident | $34.00 | at application |
| Deer license, resident | $42.00 | at application |
| Doe/fawn deer license, resident | $22.00 | at application |
| Antelope license, nonresident regular | $326.00 | at application |
| Antelope license, nonresident special | $1,200.00 | at application |
| Doe/fawn antelope license, nonresident | $34.00 | at application |
| Antelope license, resident | $37.00 | at application |
| Doe/fawn antelope license, resident | $22.00 | at application |
| Moose license, nonresident | $2,752.00 | at application |
| Moose license, resident | $152.00 | at application |
| Preference point, nonresident antelope (through 2026) | $31.00 | per point |
| Preference point, nonresident deer (through 2026) | $41.00 | per point |
| Preference point, nonresident elk (through 2026) | $52.00 | per point |
| Preference point, nonresident antelope, deer or elk (from January 1, 2027) | $75.00 | per point |
| Preference point, nonresident moose | $150.00 | per point |
| Preference point, resident moose | $7.00 | per point |
| Preference point, nonresident youth antelope, deer or elk | $10.00 | per point |
| Conservation stamp (needed before hunting, not to apply) | $21.50 | if drawn |
Amounts are WGFD's License Fee List as posted on 2026-10-17 (the page prints no year). WGFD's fee list says that when applying for a license through the drawing, the application fee must also be sent; license fees are paid with the application, and Chapter 44 has a nonresident who elects a preference point keep the point fee, plus the application fee, out of the license fee sent if unsuccessful. The 2026 regulation brochure says WGFD charges a 2.5% processing fee on anything applied for or bought with a debit or credit card. Youth, landowner and pioneer prices are on the fee list and left out here.
Fees from License Fee List, Chapter 44, Regulation for Issuance of Licenses, Permits, Stamps, Tags, Preference Points and Competitive Raffle Chances (CH 44 July 2026).
How do points work in Wyoming?
WGFD gives a preference point drawing advantage for nonresident antelope, deer and elk and for resident and nonresident moose; Chapter 44 allocates not less than 75% of nonresident special and regular licenses to a preference point drawing and up to 25% to a random drawing, applicants with the most points are selected first, and residents draw antelope, deer and elk by random drawing with no points.
- Who has points. Preference points give a drawing advantage for nonresident antelope, deer and elk licenses and for full price moose licenses (residents and nonresidents). Residents draw antelope, deer and elk by random drawing with no points.
- How the nonresident licenses are split. After landowner licenses, nonresident antelope, deer and elk licenses go 40% to the special (higher fee) drawing and 60% to the regular drawing. Within each, not less than 75% go to a preference point drawing and up to 25% to a random drawing. Applicants who miss in the preference point drawing go on to the random drawing for the remaining licenses, with no advantage for points.
- How the preference point drawing works. Applicants are grouped by their points for that species. The highest point group draws first, then the next, until the quota is filled; where a group is larger than the licenses left, a random drawing picks among them. Points count only for the first choice. Party applications with different points are averaged to four decimal places.
- How to get a point without a license. Apply for a preference point only during the preference point application period (July 1 to November 2 in 2026). A nonresident who applies for a license can also elect to buy a point if unsuccessful; an unsuccessful resident moose applicant gets a moose point.
- When points are lost. Drawing your first choice in the initial drawing for nonresident antelope, deer or elk, or drawing a full price moose license, deletes your points for that species. Not getting a point for two calendar years in a row loses all points for that species. One point per species per calendar year.
What did the 2026 draw look like?
From Wyoming Game and Fish Department's 2026 draw reports, first choice only.
Elk: 263 hunts
- Nonresident regular license, preference point drawing: 22,070 first-choice applications, 3,708 drew
- Nonresident special (higher fee) license, preference point drawing: 6,161 first-choice applications, 2,041 drew
- Nonresident random drawing (regular licenses; for types 6, 7 and 8 the reduced price cow/calf or doe/fawn drawing; for moose the nonresident random drawing): 26,239 first-choice applications, draws not printed
- Nonresident special (higher fee) license, random drawing: 4,120 first-choice applications, draws not printed
- Resident random drawing (antelope, deer and elk; residents have no points for these species): 61,200 first-choice applications, draws not printed
- Hunts where at least half of first-choice applicants with no points drew: nonresidents 29.
Deer: 165 hunts
- Nonresident regular license, preference point drawing: 19,219 first-choice applications, 6,898 drew
- Nonresident special (higher fee) license, preference point drawing: 3,582 first-choice applications, 1,559 drew
- Nonresident random drawing (regular licenses; for types 6, 7 and 8 the reduced price cow/calf or doe/fawn drawing; for moose the nonresident random drawing): 14,801 first-choice applications, draws not printed
- Nonresident special (higher fee) license, random drawing: 2,023 first-choice applications, draws not printed
- Resident random drawing (antelope, deer and elk; residents have no points for these species): 31,371 first-choice applications, draws not printed
- Hunts where at least half of first-choice applicants with no points drew: nonresidents 32.
Pronghorn: 204 hunts
- Nonresident regular license, preference point drawing: 23,194 first-choice applications, 3,952 drew
- Nonresident special (higher fee) license, preference point drawing: 4,689 first-choice applications, 1,736 drew
- Nonresident random drawing (regular licenses; for types 6, 7 and 8 the reduced price cow/calf or doe/fawn drawing; for moose the nonresident random drawing): 30,063 first-choice applications, draws not printed
- Nonresident special (higher fee) license, random drawing: 2,953 first-choice applications, draws not printed
- Resident random drawing (antelope, deer and elk; residents have no points for these species): 51,028 first-choice applications, draws not printed
- Hunts where at least half of first-choice applicants with no points drew: nonresidents 2.
Moose: 36 hunts
- Nonresident regular license, preference point drawing: 1,709 first-choice applications, 31 drew
- Nonresident random drawing (regular licenses; for types 6, 7 and 8 the reduced price cow/calf or doe/fawn drawing; for moose the nonresident random drawing): 1,678 first-choice applications, draws not printed
- Resident moose, preference point drawing: 11,754 first-choice applications, 261 drew
- Resident moose, random drawing: 11,492 first-choice applications, draws not printed
- Hunts where at least half of first-choice applicants with no points drew: residents 0, nonresidents 0.
See where your points can draw in Wyoming
Worth knowing
- WGFD's Application Dates & Deadlines page prints month and day with no year. These are the 2026 dates: the 2026 draw reports are dated inside these windows (for example the nonresident elk reports on 5/19/2026, before the May 21 results), and the page's Super Tag note refers to the raffle opening February 17, 2026.
- WGFD does not print a closing time of day on the dates page.
- Chapter 44 sets the share of limited quota licenses offered to residents in the initial drawing: 80% for antelope and deer, 90% for moose; for elk, 16% of full price limited quota licenses (and 16% of cow/calf licenses) go to nonresidents.
Sources
- Application Dates & Deadlines, Wyoming Game and Fish Department, read October 17, 2026.
- License Fee List, Wyoming Game and Fish Department, read October 17, 2026.
- Chapter 44, Regulation for Issuance of Licenses, Permits, Stamps, Tags, Preference Points and Competitive Raffle Chances (CH 44 July 2026), Wyoming Game and Fish Commission, read October 17, 2026.
- 2026 Regulation brochure for antelope, deer and elk, Wyoming Game and Fish Department, read October 17, 2026.
- Wyoming Game and Fish Department, 2026 draw reports: 2026 DemandReport Antelope NR Random, 2026 DemandReport Antelope NR Special Random, 2026 DemandReport Antelope Resident, 2026 DemandReport Antelope NR PP, 2026 DemandReport Antelope NR Special PP, 2026 DemandReport Antelope DoeFawn NR, 2026 DemandReport Antelope DoeFawn Resident, 2026 DemandReport Deer NR Random, 2026 DemandReport Deer NR Special Random, 2026 DemandReport Deer Resident, 2026 DemandReport Deer NR PP, 2026 DemandReport Deer NR Special PP, 2026 DemandReport Deer DoeFawn NR, 2026 DemandReport Deer DoeFawn Resident, 2026 DrawingOdds Elk Random NR, 2026 DrawingOdds Elk Random NR Special, 2026 DemandReport Elk Resident, 2026 DrawingOdds Elk PP NR, 2026 DrawingOdds Elk PP NR Special, 2026 DrawingOdds Elk CC NR, 2026 DemandReport Elk CC Resident, 2026 DrawingOdds Moose Random NR, 2026 DrawingOdds Moose Random R, 2026 DrawingOdds Moose PP NR, 2026 DrawingOdds Moose PP R.
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