How to Get and Fill Out a Pennsylvania Hunting Permission Form

Pennsylvania’s hunting permission form is a free one-page document called the Permission to Hunt/Trap form, published by the Pennsylvania Game Commission as a downloadable PDF.¹ Print it, have the landowner sign it, and carry the completed copy with you whenever you are on their property. A signed form proves you have authorization to be there, which is what separates a routine warden check from a trespass citation under Pennsylvania’s Game and Wildlife Code.²

Where to Get the Form

The Game Commission hosts the official Permission to Hunt/Trap form on its website as a free PDF.¹ Print as many copies as you need. One form covers one property, so if you have access to three different parcels owned by three different people, you need three signed forms. Blank copies are also available at regional Game Commission offices and from many license issuing agents.

You are not legally required to use the PGC template. A handwritten letter or any other written document signed by the landowner works just as well, as long as it identifies who is granting permission, who is receiving it, and what property is covered. The agency form just makes it harder to leave something out.

What to Fill In

Complete every field before your first day on the property. A half-finished form invites questions during a field check that you would rather not answer standing in the woods.

Your Information

Write your full legal name and current home address. Include your Customer Identification Number, which appears on your Pennsylvania hunting license. Officers use the CID to verify your identity against the Game Commission database, so check the digits before you leave the house.³

The Property and the Landowner

Describe the property with enough detail that a warden can confirm you are where you say you should be: the township, the county, and either a street address or an acreage and parcel reference for larger rural tracts. The landowner fills in their own name and address and signs the form. Without that signature, the form is just paper.

Dates and Conditions

Enter the start and end dates of the permission. Some landowners grant access for the full license year; others limit it to a particular season. If the owner wants to restrict your activities, such as archery only, no Sunday hunting, or certain areas off-limits, write those conditions directly on the form. The PGC template also includes language where you agree to obey all game laws and observe safety precautions in exchange for the privilege of access.¹

Carrying the Form in the Field

Keep the signed form on you the entire time you are hunting the property. A folded paper copy in a jacket pocket is reliable; a legible photo on your phone works too, though paper survives a wet day better. Game Commission enforcement officers have broad authority to inspect your license, permits, and related documentation in the field under 34 Pa. C.S. § 901.⁴ When a warden asks who gave you permission to be there, handing over the form settles it on the spot.

If the landowner appears and tells you to leave, comply immediately, no matter what the form says. Permission can be revoked at any time, and staying after being told to go turns a civil disagreement into a trespass offense under the Game Code.²

What You Risk Without a Signed Form

Pennsylvania’s Game Code treats trespass while hunting as a graded offense, and the signed form is often what stands between you and the following penalties:

Entering posted, fenced, or purple-painted land without authorization is a summary offense of the second degree, with a fine of $400 to $800, possible imprisonment up to one month, and a possible one-year forfeiture of hunting privileges.²⁵
Refusing to leave after the owner or an authorized person tells you to go is a misdemeanor and carries a mandatory three-year statewide loss of hunting privileges.²
A second or subsequent violation of this section within seven years is a misdemeanor with a five-year forfeiture of hunting privileges.²

Court costs stack on top of the base fine, and a misdemeanor conviction leaves a criminal record. A forfeiture of hunting privileges applies statewide for the full term, not just to the property where the incident happened.

A Note for Waterfowl Hunters

Written permission from the landowner handles the state side, but if you are after ducks, geese, or other migratory birds, federal rules apply on top. Every migratory bird hunter in Pennsylvania must hold Harvest Information Program certification, obtained by completing a short survey about past harvest. HIP certification is required in each state where you hunt migratory birds and must be renewed annually, even if you hold a lifetime license.⁶

Federal baiting rules apply regardless of whose land you are on. You cannot hunt waterfowl over any area where grain or feed has been placed to attract birds, and a baited area remains off-limits for ten days after all bait is removed. Hunting over standing crops or grain scattered by normal agricultural harvesting is legal, but mowing or manipulating a crop to expose grain for a hunt is not, unless the field has already gone through a normal harvest and the grain has been removed.⁶ Violations carry separate federal penalties.

1
Pennsylvania Game Commission. Permission to Hunt Trap
2
Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 34 Section 2314 – Trespass on Private Property While Hunting
3
Pennsylvania Game Commission. 2025-26 PA Hunting and Trapping Digest
4
Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code Title 34 Chapter 9 – Enforcement – Section 901 Powers and Duties of Enforcement Officers
5
Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code Title 34 Chapter 9 Section 925 – Penalties
6
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Information for Waterfowl Hunters