Minnesota DNR Unveils Major 2026 Hunting Regulation Overhaul

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources released its 2026 hunting and trapping regulations, marking the most extensive changes in recent years. Licenses become available on August 1, and hunters are urged to review the new rules before the season.

Key updates include a four‑year rotational surveillance plan for chronic wasting disease (CWD), requiring mandatory testing of harvested deer in a designated quadrant during the firearms opening weekend each year. The plan will start in southwest Minnesota this fall and rotate through the state through 2029.

The longstanding statewide shotgun zone for deer hunting has been eliminated; counties may now adopt their own shotgun‑only ordinances, with 13 already doing so. Waterfowl regulations have been merged into the main hunting booklet, and a modernized electronic licensing system will replace the previous process.