Do you want a permit to hunt without antlers? First get your hunting permit.

Changes to Maine’s deer licensing system require hunters to have a big game license in hand to enter the lottery for an antlerless hunting license. The online system managed by the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife can now verify the status of hunting licenses. Gabe Souza/Personnel file photo

AUGUSTA — With just days left for hunters to register for Maine’s 2024 antlerless deer hunting license lottery, a tweak to the way the state’s system works may surprise some.

Hunters must already have a valid big game hunting license. State officials can now check this license online.

“We’ve had a few calls about this, but overall it’s been smooth sailing,” said Mark Latti, spokesman for the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. “No changes to the laws or the application process, but we’re just verifying that people have a permit.”

The deadline for hunters to apply for a permit to hunt antlerless deer is Thursday, August 1 at 11:59 p.m.

In previous years, the IF&W online system could not immediately verify whether a hunter who registered for the lottery had a valid big game permit. This meant that hunters could use their permit number from the previous season to register for the lottery.

Now, however, the online system can instantly verify whether someone has a valid big game hunting license when they apply for a permit to hunt antlerless deer.

That means hunters can’t hold off on getting their current permit in a few months this year. They must have their 2024 big game permit in hand when they enter the all-deer lottery.

The lottery, part of IF&W’s management initiatives to reduce deer populations in more urban areas of the state, is a random computer drawing. It is based on the state’s geographic wildlife management districts, with applicants most likely to be successful in southern and central Maine.

Last year, the state issued about 108,000 permits to hunters to shoot antlerless females or males. The permit system dates back to 1985, Latti said, and two years ago the state revamped the system and went to “a true antlerless permit system.”

There is no fee to apply for the antlerless deer permit lottery. Results will be announced on Thursday, August 15. If a hunter receives a permit, he/she must pay a $12 permit fee and a $2 agency fee to claim the permit by Thursday, September 12. Beginning Tuesday, September 17, additional antlerless deer permits not issued through the lottery will be available for purchase on the IF&W website on a first-come, first-served basis.

According to state officials, the proceeds from antlerless deer hunting permits are used to purchase and manage deer wintering areas, primarily in northern Maine. These areas provide important habitat for white-tailed deer that live at the northern end of their range.