Disabled Veterans Programs
Contact information
For questions, please contact our Licenses Office at:
Email licenses@idfg.idaho.gov or call (208) 334-2592
Resident and Nonresident Disabled American Veterans - Reduced Fees
Resident Disabled Veterans - Reduced Fees
Resident disabled American veterans (DAV) may be eligible for DAV reduced fees for licenses and tags. The resident DAV license, $5, allows the disabled veteran to purchase reduced fee DAV tags for deer $10.75, elk $16.50, bear $6.75, or turkey $10.75. Permits for archery or muzzleloader are $3.75 each. See below for what documentation is required for eligibility.
Nonresident Disabled Veterans - Reduced Fees
Nonresident disabled American veterans (DAV) may be eligible for reduced fees for licenses and tags. The nonresident DAV hunting with 3-day fishing license, $31.75, allows the nonresident disabled veteran to purchase reduced fee nonresident DAV tags for deer $23.75, elk $39.75, bear $23.75, or turkey $19.75. Permits for archery or muzzleloader are $5.75 each. See below for what documentation is required for eligibility.
Nonresident DAV priced tags are limited to 500 deer tags, and 300 elk tags. DAV deer tags are valid statewide, and DAV elk tags are only valid in the selected zone. Once those 800 tags have been sold, DAV license holders can purchase available general nonresident tags at the nonresident fee.
Required Documentation for DAV Reduced Fees
To receive DAV reduced fees, veterans must provide a copy of their official VA Disability Percentage Rating letter, and the letter must verify a service-connected disability rating of 40% or greater.
The letter is also called a "Benefits Summary Percentage Letter," and typically is one page. The letter may bear any date prior to license application.
Documentation for the resident DAV license will be required only for the initial application and will not be required for subsequent applications. Please do not provide the multi-page medical determination report your physician sends to the VA Case Manager for adjustments.
- How to get your VA Disability Percentage Rating letter: You may get a copy of your letter by calling: (800) 827-1000 or your local VA office, or by online access at: www.ebenefits.va.gov using your premium account login (all recently separated personnel are required to have a premium account; if you don’t have an account, you will need to set one up to access your letter).
What to do with your letter: Letters can be submitted via email to our Licenses office at Licenses@idfg.idaho.gov
Letters can also be brought to any regional office or mailed to:
Idaho Dept. of Fish and Game - Licensing Section
P.O. Box 25
Boise, ID 83707- Deadline for submitting documentation for the 2026 Nonresident Draw: DAV eligibility paperwork must be received by 12/12/25 at 2pm to guaranteed it can be processed before the close of the application period. Any paperwork received after 12/12/25 at 2pm is not guaranteed to be completed before the close of the application period.
Disabled Veterans Special Big Game Tag Program
The Disabled Veteran Special Big Game Tag Program provides special big game tags to eligible resident or nonresident disabled Veterans. Applicants must be sponsored by a qualifying nonprofit organization as defined in Section 36-408(7), Idaho Code. A qualified organization is a 501(c)(3), 501(c)(4), or 501(c)(19) nonprofit, or government agency, with a mission to afford opportunities, experiences, and assistance to disabled Veterans. Sponsorship is not limited to Idaho-based organizations, and there is no limit on how many applicants an organization may sponsor each year.
The Idaho Department of Fish and Game makes 5 tags available each year, valid for any open general hunt, or any Controlled Hunt with 10 or more tags. Any Controlled Hunt area with fewer than 10 Controlled Hunt tags is ineligible. Eligible species include deer, elk, pronghorn, black bear, or mountain lion. If multiple applications submitted under Sections 900 and 901, IDAPA 13.01.04, select the same controlled hunt in a given year, the Director retains discretion to require selection of an alternate controlled hunt to maintain hunt quality.
The application period is January 2 through January 31 of the calendar year of the hunt. Applications received outside of this designated time frame cannot be accepted. Each year, the Idaho Division of Veterans Services screens all submissions and provides a list of screened applicants to the Idaho Department of Fish and Game in priority order of issuance. The top two candidates sponsored by the Idaho Division of Veterans Services will receive a tag and the Idaho Department of Fish and Game will issue the three remaining tags to candidates sponsored by other qualified organizations.
The Disabled Veterans Special Big Game Tag Program Application must be used to apply. Completed applications may be submitted by mail or email to the address below:
Mail to: Attn: Executive Assistant
Idaho Department of Fish and Game
|P.O. Box 25, Boise, ID 83707
Email: SpecialBigGameTag@idfg.idaho.gov
All personal information submitted will be kept confidential and used only by the selection committee.
A committee consisting of a representative from the Idaho Veterans Affairs Commission, Veteran service organization representatives, personnel from the Idaho Division of Veterans Services, and the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, will make the final selections.