You don’t need to draw anything to hunt elk in Washington. General season tags are sold over the counter. Special permits are extra: they let you hunt units, seasons or animals the general season doesn’t cover, such as quality bull hunts with few hunters, antlerless hunts, and hunts for youth, seniors and hunters with disabilities. Here’s how the drawing works.

Key dates

Step	2026 date
Applications open	April 20
Application deadline	May 27 (WDFW extended it from May 20)
Results	By the end of June, in your WILD account and by email
Return a permit to restore points	Up to two weeks before the season opens

The 2027 dates will be in next year’s pamphlet. The application period has been in late April through May in recent years.

Step 1: Buy your license and choose your tag

This is the step that surprises nonresidents. To apply for a deer or elk special permit, you must first buy a hunting license and select your general season transport tag, including the weapon and area. Only then can you buy a special permit application.

Item (2026)	Resident	Nonresident
Elk license	$69.29	$685.60
Deer and elk license	$116.85	$1,020.06
Special permit application	$9.61	$152.30
Quality special permit application	$18.72	$152.30

Youth under 16 pay $29.82 for an elk license and $5.05 per application. A 2.9% processing fee is added to card purchases made online or by phone.

Since you’re buying the license anyway, you can also hunt the general season with the tag you chose.

Step 2: Pick your permit categories

Washington sorts elk permits into categories. You apply once per category, and you build points separately in each one.

Category	What it covers
Quality Elk	Limited hunts with low hunter density and better bull quality
Bull Elk	Antlered-only hunts
Antlerless Elk	Cow and calf hunts
Elk – Youth	Hunters under 16
Elk – Hunters 65 and over	Senior hunts
Elk – Disabled	Hunters with a WDFW disability designation
Elk – Master Hunters	Hunts open only to certified Master Hunters
Multi-Season Elk	A tag good for archery, muzzleloader and modern firearm general seasons (separate application, December – March 31)

Step 3: Choose your hunts

You can list up to four hunt choices on an application. Quality hunts allow only two. The drawing looks at your choices in order. Hunt numbers, dates and permit counts are in the Big Game pamphlet’s elk special permit section.

Step 4: Understand how points work

• Each application earns you one point in that category.
• Points can’t be moved between categories or people.
• Washington uses a weighted system. More points improve your odds, but the draw is still random. Hunters with zero points can draw.
• When you’re drawn, your points in that category drop to zero.
• If you want to build points without hunting, choose the “point saver” option.

Nonresidents apply through the same system. The pamphlet’s application instructions don’t list a separate nonresident quota, but the nonresident application fee is much higher.

Step 5: Apply alone or in a group

Elk applications can have up to eight hunters in a group (two for multi-season). The leader applies first, and each member applies using the leader’s WILD ID. The group’s points are averaged, everyone must be eligible for the hunts chosen, and if the group is drawn, everyone gets a permit.

If there are fewer permits for a hunt than people in your group, the group size is capped to the number of permits.

Step 6: Check your results

Results are posted to your WILD account by the end of June and emailed to the address on file. They aren’t in the mobile app. It’s on you to check.

If you draw a permit you can’t use, call WDFW at (360) 902-2515 at least two weeks before the season to return it and get your points back. WDFW has also allowed hunters worried about wildfire to return permits and have points reinstated.

Multi-season elk tags

A multi-season tag lets you hunt elk in the archery, muzzleloader and modern firearm general seasons in units open to those seasons, on both sides of the state. It’s awarded by drawing only, through a separate application (for 2026, December 1, 2025 – March 31, 2026, with results in April). If you’re drawn, the tag costs $250.97 in 2026, on top of your license.

Point rules at a glance

• System: Squared points. Your points in a category are squared to set your number of entries in a fully random drawing, so 3 points means 9 entries. Nothing is reserved for top point holders.
• Points by category: Points are tracked separately for each elk permit category you apply for.
• Nonresident share: None set. Residents and nonresidents enter the same drawing.
• You lose your points if: you are drawn in that category (points reset to zero). Current rules describe no expiration for skipped years.
• Groups: Up to 8 hunters (2 for multi-season), with points averaged.
• Point only: Choose the Point Saver option on the special permit application. It costs the same as an application.

Full breakdown: how the draw works, with examples · check last year’s odds for every hunt

Didn’t draw?

• Hunt the general season. Your general season tag is still good. See how general season tags work.
• Raffles and auctions. WDFW runs raffles, and conservation groups auction a few big game permits.
• Apply again. Your point carries forward.

Related: How Washington draw points work · Draw odds by unit · Washington Elk Hunting Guide · General season elk tags · Season dates · Cost of a Washington elk hunt

Fees and dates are from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife for 2026. Always confirm in the current Big Game Hunting Seasons and Regulations pamphlet before you apply.