Denmark’s deer hunting season begins with 2,000 hunters missing licence renewals

Denmark’s annual deer hunting season opened at dawn on Saturday, but around 2,000 hunters will be unable to participate after failing to renew their hunting licences, national broadcaster DR reports.

Police sent reminders to 29,000 hunters this year—nearly double last year’s figure—urging them to renew their licences before the deadline. In 2025, 15,000 hunters received similar notices.

“Unfortunately, it’s worse than last year,” said Sune Espersen, head of the National Police’s Administrative Centre. “Most hunters have renewed, but those who haven’t will miss the opening day.”

The spring hunting season for male roe deer runs from 16 May to 15 July 2026. Only rifles or bows are permitted; shotguns remain prohibited until 1 October.

Hunters must renew their licences annually through the Danish Nature Agency’s online portal at a cost of 680 kroner (approx. €91). However, technical issues have plagued the system, according to Morten Sinding-Jensen, senior consultant at the Danish Hunters’ Association.

“We know many hunters have struggled to log in, with some trying repeatedly without success,” he said. Despite the problems, he stressed that hunters bear personal responsibility for ensuring their licences are valid before using firearms.

The Danish Nature Agency’s portal acknowledged “current challenges” due to high traffic from hunters reporting game yields and processing payments. The agency has not commented on the cause of the disruptions.

Denmark’s hunting community has grown in recent years, though Espersen noted this alone does not fully explain the rise in unrenewed licences.