Balloted hunting in NSW

Balloted hunts: 1 March - 3 May each year

Some NSW State forests are more popular with R-Licensed hunters than others. Bookings in these popular forests can be hard to secure, especially during the peak hunting period of March and April each year.

To ensure hunter access and participation is managed sustainably, DPIRD Hunting administers balloted hunting in some of these forests. The ballots provide a fair and equitable opportunity for all R-Licensed hunters to hunt on public land during the most popular time of year.

Eligible R-Licence holders are able enter the public land hunting ballots for:

• Maragle South State Forest
• Mannus State Forest (Seymours section)
• Mannus State Forest (bows only section)

Normal online bookings for these forests are not available during March or April. Only ballot winners are issued written permission to hunt these months, through the ballot program. Normal bookings are available until the ballot start date and after the end date.

Ballot winners

Check the below links to see if you've won a hunt in 2026. The results include the primary ballot winners and an alternate list.

Maragle South State Forest individual ballot results and certificate of validity

Maragle South State Forest youth ballot results and certificate of validity

Mannus State Forest (Seymours section) individual ballot results and certificate of validity

Mannus State Forest (Seymours section) youth ballot results and certificate of validity

Mannus State Forest (bows only section) individual ballot results and certificate of validity

Mannus State Forest (bows only section) youth ballot results and certificate of validity

The department used Easypromos to conduct a random ballot of Hunt NSW registration numbers to determine the winners list and an alternative list.

Written permissions available through the ballot

*Note: The number of permissions available is subject to the available hunting area at the time of balloted hunting and may change.

Eligibility

Only individuals who hold a current NSW Restricted Game Hunting Licence (including minor R-Licence holders) are eligible to register for balloted hunts.

You can register as either an individual or as part of a youth hunt, for all 3 ballots.

Note, the process for registering has changed. You must have access to the Hunt NSW web portal or app with your new username. If you haven't accessed Hunt NSW yet and need your username, please submit a request for access form.

A small number of licence holders who completed R-Licence training before 2021 may not be eligible for the ballots. This is because they didn’t complete the additional training before the deadline. The system will still allow these licence holders to register, however they will be removed from the ballot. These licence holders are required to complete the updated version of the R-Licence Accreditation Course.

About balloted hunts

• Each permission is for 4 days.
• Several ballot periods are reserved for youth hunts and permissions to hunt in that period will be issued to eligible minors and their eligible supervising hunter. If youth ballot winners are unable to attend, permissions to hunt may be transferred to hunters who have registered as individuals.

Youth hunts

Three periods are reserved for youth hunts in each of the ballots.

• Period 4: 13 March - 16 March
• Period 10: 6 April - 9 April
• Period 11: 10 April - 13 April

Minor licence holders must hunt under the close personal supervision of a licensed person who is at least 18 years old.

Only R-Licence holders over 12 years and under 18 years (a minor) and their supervising adult hunter (over 18 years) are eligible for the youth ballots.

Both the adult and minor hunter must have the correct R-Licence categories for the type of hunting they wish to do.

Please note, the process to register has changed. The adult hunter completes the ballot entry and provides the minor hunter's licence number. Read the full instructions below.

2026 balloted hunt periods

How to register

1. Log in to Hunt NSW, through a browser or the app, with your username and password
2. Open the 'Public land hunting' menu
3. Select 'Enter a ballot'.

Then follow the remaining steps for an individual or youth ballot registration.

Individual ballot

• Select the ballot name you'd like to enter
• Add your preferred ballot periods (you may enter up to 2)
• Select 'Register for ballot'.

You'll receive an email confirming your registration.

To enter another ballot, open the entry form again and select a different ballot name.

Youth ballot

Note - only the adult hunter is required to register. You must have the minor's R-Licence number to register for a youth ballot.

You must enter the minor's full Hunt NSW licence number, which starts with the prefix 'GHL'.

• Select the ballot you'd like to enter
• Add your preferred ballot periods (you may enter up to 2)
• Select 'Yes' to the youth ballot question
• Enter the minor hunter's licence number
• Select 'Register for ballot'.

You'll receive an email confirming your registration.

To enter another ballot, open the entry form again and select a different ballot name.

Terms & conditions

• By entering a ballot, licence holders agree to the department applying for and issuing written permission to hunt on their behalf.
• Licence holders must comply with the written permission conditions, all standard rules and regulations, the specific forest conditions that appear on their written permission, and the rules governing this ballot.
• Hunters will receive official notification via email if successfully drawn in the ballots.
• DPIRD Hunting staff are ineligible for the ballots.

More information

If you have any questions about the ballot, email hunting.ballot@dpird.nsw.gov.au.