Licenses / Add-ons
Having a license isn't always enough. Most game birds and archery-only seasons need a small endorsement (older guides call it a stamp) on top, waterfowl hunters need a federal stamp, and migratory-bird hunters need a free certification. Here's the whole list.
The #1 license mistake
The #1 license mistake isn't skipping the license - it's skipping the endorsement. People buy a hunting license, head out for dove or turkey, and never realize they needed a $7 bird endorsement on top. If you bought anything other than the Super Combo, check that you have the add-on for what you're actually hunting or fishing.
An endorsement (older guides call it a 'stamp') is a small add-on you buy on top of your base license for specific game or water. Forgetting one is the most common way otherwise-licensed people end up illegal. The Super Combo already includes the five common ones; if you bought a plain license a la carte, add what you need.
| Endorsement | Price | When you need it |
|---|---|---|
| Migratory Game Bird | $7 | Required for waterfowl (ducks, geese, teal), dove, sandhill crane, coot, rail, gallinule, snipe, and woodcock. |
| Upland Game Bird | $7 | Required for wild turkey, quail, pheasant, and chachalaca. |
| Archery | $7 | Required to hunt during archery-only seasons (and to deer-hunt anytime in Collin, Dallas, Grayson, or Rockwall counties). |
| Reptile & Amphibian | $10 | Required to collect indigenous reptiles or amphibians from a public road shoulder or right-of-way. |
One is a paid federal stamp; the other is free but mandatory. Waterfowl and migratory-bird hunters need both.
Federal, and separate
A federal requirement for waterfowl hunters 16 and older - on top of the state Migratory Game Bird endorsement. It is NOT included in the Super Combo, so duck and goose hunters must buy it separately. Buy it from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service or at many license retailers and post offices.
USFWS Federal Duck Stamp ->Free, but mandatory
HIP certification is FREE but mandatory for anyone hunting migratory birds (ducks, geese, dove, cranes, and the rest). It's not a stamp you buy - the clerk asks a few questions when you get your license and prints 'HIP' on it. Skip it and you're hunting illegally even with the right endorsement.
TPWD Harvest Information Program (HIP) ->You only buy these if you got a plain license instead of a package - every annual fishing package already includes the right one.
| Endorsement | Price | When you need it |
|---|---|---|
| Freshwater Fishing | $5 | Required to fish fresh water - but only if you bought a plain license a la carte. A freshwater or all-water package already includes it. |
| Saltwater Fishing | $10 | Required to fish salt water a la carte; comes with red drum and spotted seatrout tags. A saltwater or all-water package already includes it. |
Opens 180+ public hunting areas (over a million acres) for hunting, plus fishing, camping, and hiking, for the license year.
Official sources
Hunting and fishing endorsements and the HIP program come from Texas Parks & Wildlife; the Federal Duck Stamp is the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. The Super Combo bundles the five common state endorsements.
Caution: Prices and requirements change every license year. The official TPWD and USFWS pages are the final word.
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