How Old Do You Have to Be to Hunt in Maine?

There is no minimum age to hunt in Maine. A child of any age can hunt on a junior hunting license as long as a qualified supervisor is with them, and how old you have to be to hunt in Maine really comes down to which rules apply at which age: hunters under 10 need a supervisor within 20 feet, hunters 10 through 15 need a supervisor in effective control, moose hunting requires age 10, and hunting on your own starts at 16 after you complete a hunter safety course or buy an apprentice license.¹

Hunters Under Age 10

A child younger than 10 can hold a junior hunting license and hunt in Maine, but the supervising adult has to stay within 20 feet at all times.¹ That is a strict distance rule, and it exists because children in this age bracket cannot yet take the state’s hunter safety course. The course is open to students 10 and older, so a 7- or 8-year-old is hunting entirely on the supervisor’s knowledge and judgment.²

The junior license itself is broad. For $8 for a resident child or $35 for a nonresident child, it covers big and small game with firearms or archery, and includes permits for muzzleloader, spring and fall turkey, bear, coyote night hunting, pheasant, state migratory waterfowl, and expanded archery deer.³⁴ One species is off limits: moose, which has its own age floor discussed below.

Ages 10 Through 15

From age 10 through 15, a junior hunter still needs a supervisor, but the supervisor no longer has to stay within 20 feet. The rule is that the young hunter must be in the presence of and under the effective control of a junior hunter supervisor at all times. The supervisor has to be close enough to intervene immediately if something goes wrong.¹

Age 10 is also when a child becomes eligible to take Maine’s hunter safety course. Anyone under 16 attending the course must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.² Taking the course during these years is worth doing early, because the certification is what unlocks adult, unsupervised hunting the moment the hunter turns 16.

Youth-Only Hunting Days

Junior license holders also get access to days reserved just for them. Maine sets aside a youth deer day before the regular firearm season, a youth bear day, a youth fall wild turkey day with a two-bird cap (within the Wildlife Management District bag limit), and youth spring turkey days, which fall on May 1 and 2 in 2026.⁵

On these days, the supervising adult cannot carry a firearm, bow, or crossbow for hunting. The one narrow exception is early goose season overlap, when the supervisor may hunt geese only. A supervisor can still carry a handgun under Maine’s concealed carry laws, but not use it to hunt.⁵

Turning 16: Hunting Independently

Sixteen is the age at which Maine treats a hunter as an adult. A hunter who turns 16 during the calendar year can finish out that year on their junior license, including the archery, pheasant, and migratory waterfowl permits that came with it. But a 16-year-old still on a junior license must either hunt with a supervisor or have already completed a hunter safety course. On January 1 of the following year, an adult license and proof of hunter safety certification are both required.¹

To buy an adult license, a hunter has to show one of three things: a hunter safety course completion, proof of having held a valid adult hunting license in any state, province, or country since 1976, or a signed affidavit when neither can be produced.⁶ Hunter education certificates earned in other states or Canadian provinces are generally recognized, so a hunter moving to Maine or visiting from out of state does not have to retake the course.

Three Ways to Complete Hunter Safety

Maine offers the hunter safety course in three formats:

An online course for ages 16 and older, costing $29.95. The completion voucher works as a hunter education card for buying a license.
A homestudy course that pairs an online or paper workbook with an eight-hour in-person session, including a safe handling demonstration and a 50-question exam that requires at least 70% to pass.
A traditional in-person course, open to all ages and taught by certified volunteer instructors.

The online-only option is restricted to hunters 16 and up, so younger students who want to certify before their 16th birthday need the homestudy or in-person path.²

The Apprentice Hunter License

Maine also lets anyone 16 or older skip hunter education at the start by buying an apprentice hunter license. It is open to residents and nonresidents who have never held an adult hunting license anywhere, costs $26 for residents and $115 for a nonresident big game apprentice license, and expires December 31 of the year it was issued.⁷³

A person can buy an apprentice license no more than five times total. After that, hunter education is mandatory. The apprentice license also cannot be used to satisfy the licensing requirement for a moose permit; a hunter drawn for moose has to hold a standard license.⁷

Apprentice supervision is tighter than junior supervision. The supervisor must be at least 18, hold a current adult hunting license, and have held a valid hunting license for the three consecutive years before the hunt. The supervisor has to stay in direct visual and voice contact with the apprentice, with no binoculars, radios, or similar devices filling in. Violating the supervision requirement draws a fine of $500 to $1,000 for the apprentice, and the supervisor faces a minimum $500 fine for allowing it. Repeat offenses can escalate to a Class E crime.⁷

Moose Hunting Has Its Own Age Floor

The one species with a hard age cutoff is moose. A hunter must be at least 10 years old by the first day of the September moose season to receive a moose permit or serve as a sub-permittee. Children under 10 can still apply for bonus points to improve their odds in future lottery years, but they cannot actually hunt moose until they hit the age minimum.⁸

Who Can Supervise a Young Hunter

Because the answer to the age question depends so heavily on who the supervising adult is, it is worth being specific about who qualifies as a junior hunter supervisor. There are two routes:

A parent or guardian who holds or has held a valid Maine hunting license, or who has completed a hunter safety course.
A person 18 or older who is approved by the parent or guardian and who holds or has held a valid Maine hunting license or completed a hunter safety course.⁵

In practice, the age rules and the supervisor rules work together. A 6-year-old can legally hunt in Maine on the day a qualified parent takes them out and stays within 20 feet. A 13-year-old can hunt with an approved adult friend of the family who holds a valid Maine license. A newly minted 16-year-old with a hunter safety card in hand can head into the woods alone. The age itself is only part of the answer; what you can do at that age always ties back to the license, the certification, and the adult standing next to you.

1
Maine State Legislature. Maine Code Title 12 11108-C – Eligibility and Restrictions for a Junior Hunting License
2
Maine Dept of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. Maine Firearms Hunter Safety Course
3
Maine Dept of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. Hunting License Information
4
Maine Dept of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. Hunting Licenses and Permits – Laws and Rules
5
Maine Dept of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. Junior Hunters Laws and Rules
6
Maine State Legislature. Maine Code 12 11105 – Safety Course
7
Maine State Legislature. Maine Code Title 12 11108-B – Apprentice Hunter License Restrictions
8
Maine Dept of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. FAQ – Moose Permit