The draw uses a pure random number system. Idaho Fish and Game does not use preference points or bonus points. Every applicant gets one random number assigned, and tags flow from the lowest number to the highest until quota is exhausted. There's no advantage to applying multiple years in a row, and no points carry over.

Pure random is a clean system in one sense — nobody burns years of preference points chasing a unit — but it also means your buddy from out of state can't build toward anything. Every year is a cold start. If you've got nonresident friends who've been hunting Idaho for years expecting to just log on and grab a tag like they used to, that conversation needs to happen now.

You cannot apply for the draw without first purchasing a valid 2026 Idaho hunting license. For nonresidents, that's a Nonresident Hunting License at $185. That fee is nonrefundable — if you don't draw, you don't get it back.

That's $185 just to enter the lottery. Not the tag — the application. The article makes a fair point that the license has real utility beyond the general draw, but let's be honest: most guys calling about an Idaho elk trip aren't planning to pivot to a returned tag sale or a moose application when they strike out. Know what you're buying before you buy it.

If you drew a tag in the first period, you cannot apply in the second period for that same species — even if you chose not to claim the tag.

This one will catch people. You draw, you decide the timing doesn't work, you let the tag expire — you still can't re-enter for that species in the second period. That's the kind of rule that only matters once, right up until it matters to you.

In some units, specific transport restrictions apply to how you can move carcasses and parts across county or state lines. Don't assume it's fine because you followed Idaho's rules — your home state or destination state may have its own CWD import restrictions.

CWD transport rules are the thing most hunters blow off until a game warden is standing at a check station asking questions. If you're packing out a deer from Units 1, 14, 23, 24, or 32A and you're headed back to Oregon or Nevada or wherever — don't assume Idaho compliance covers you on the other end.

For those of you who've drawn nonresident tags in other states that run draw systems — how many years did it take before you actually connected, and did the draw format (random vs. preference points) change how you planned your applications?

Read the full article in The Handbook →