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State Cert Guide

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Do I need a hunter safety course to hunt in Missouri?

Yes, if you were born on or after January 1, 1967, and you will hunt in a firearms season or act as an adult mentor, unless an exception fits you. Kids 15 or younger can skip it if they hunt with a properly permitted adult mentor 18 or older. So can owners who hunt their own land with Resident Landowner permits. Born earlier? You don't need it.

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The rule, fact by fact

Who needs it
Any hunter born on or after Jan. 1, 1967If you were born on or after January 1, 1967, Missouri requires it before you hunt in a firearms season or act as an adult mentor, unless an exception fits you.
Verified. Missouri Department of Conservation · Hunter Education (opens state website) · checked Nov 12, 2026
Free option
The self-study guide is free: order it online or pick it up at an MDC officeFree. MDC lets you study from a guide you order online or pick up at one of its offices. You still attend the in-person skills session.
Same source and date as above
Cost
$24.95MDC lists two online courses. The cheaper one is a textbook-style online course with illustrations and animations. You pay its fee to the course provider.
Same source and date as above
Online accepted
Missouri residents 16 and older can complete the entire program onlineMDC words the all-online route for Missouri residents 16 or older. The other route has two steps: a knowledge part, then an in-person skills session.
Same source and date as above
Youth exemption
Exempt: age 15 or younger, hunting with a properly permitted adult mentor 18 or olderMDC lists this among the exemptions to the firearms-season and mentor rule.
Same source and date as above

How to get it done

  1. Step 1. Check your birth date. Missouri requires the course for any hunter born on or after Jan. 1, 1967 who will hunt in a firearms season or act as an adult mentor, unless an exception fits you.

  2. Step 2. Pick how you'll do the knowledge part. Two ways have no fee: a self-study guide or a four-hour class with lectures and videos. Online courses charge the provider's fee. The traditional course is the cheaper one, and the interactive one is $39.95. MDC's course page links to each one.

  3. Step 3. The two-step route has the knowledge part first, then a separate four-hour in-person part. Find one on MDC's course finder. Bring your student manual with all chapter reviews done, or your online qualifier certificate, or you can't get in. The session ends with a final exam.

  4. Step 4. If you live in Missouri and are 16 or older, you can do the whole course online, with no skills session. You get your certificate after you pass the 60-question online final with a score of 80 percent or better. To check your number later, use MDC's certificate look-up.

Before you pay

Look at the free options before you pay. MDC says the self-study guide and the classroom lessons have no fee, though the in-person part still applies.

The online fee goes to the course provider, so read the course page before you pay.

Under 16 when you sign up for an online course? You still need the in-person part. MDC drops it only for people who are 16 or older when they register, and it words the all-online route for Missouri residents. Don't live in Missouri? Ask MDC before you pay.

Took a hunter course in another state? Missouri takes a complete certificate, so you may not need Missouri's course. Keep your proof.

We haven't confirmed how long the certificate lasts, so ask MDC through its course page.

Questions

Does my child need the course to hunt?

Not yet, if an adult goes along. MDC says youths younger than 16 don't need the course until they're ready to hunt alone. A child age 15 or younger needs a properly permitted adult mentor age 18 or older.

I'm 16 or older and I just want to try hunting. Do I have to take the course first?

No. MDC's Apprentice Hunter Authorization lets people age 16 or older hunt with a properly permitted adult mentor age 18 or older. You have to buy it first.

Does Missouri accept my hunter course from another state?

Yes, if it's complete. MDC says it accepts complete certifications from all other states. If you can prove you finished an approved course in another state, you don't have to take Missouri's.

Do I have to show proof when I buy a firearms permit?

Usually not. MDC says it can usually verify your certificate electronically. If it can't, you must provide proof. Once you're in its database, you don't send it again. On the two-step route, pass the final with 80 percent or better and you get a temporary certificate to buy a permit.

I own land. Do I need the course to hunt on it?

Not if you hunt on land you own with Resident Landowner permits. MDC lists that as a reason to skip it.

What if I have a disability?

If MDC's Protection Division gave you a disability exemption, you don't need the course. Ask that division about it.

What to do next

Match your birth date to Missouri's rule first. If it names you, pick your route on MDC's course page.

mdc.mo.gov

Sources we read