The 2026 Tennessee elk quota hunt application is open from February 4 to February 25 at 11:59 pm CST. Instructions on how to apply for the 2026 elk drawing can be found at https://www.tn.gov/twra/hunting/quotahunts/elk-draw.html. Successful draw applicants will be notified by email and a phone call from the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) in early March.

Nineteen elk quota permits will be issued for the 2026 Tennessee elk hunt. Nine will be issued for the archery-only season, another nine will be issued for the any weapon season, and one additional permit will be issued for the youth any weapon season. One of the any weapon permits will be given to a wildlife organization to be raffled. No more than 25% of successful applicants can be non-residents. No license is required to apply and there is no fee for the elk permit if drawn.

Applicants may select up to four hunt choices on their application. All four choices are considered before moving on to the next applicant. You may mix weapon choices among the four choices. Each permit holder will be allocated the Elk Hunt Zone (EHZ) and weapon choice they were successful in drawing.

Once your application is complete, you may review your application by logging into your GoOutdoorsTennessee account. Applications may be edited until the deadline. If successfully drawn for an elk permit, applicants cannot submit an application for ten years.

There is no application fee for Annual Sportsman, Lifetime Sportsman, or Annual Senior Citizen license holders. For all other applicants, there is a non-refundable $12 application fee and a $1 agent fee. There is a $2 processing fee if the application is made on the internet. All application fees must be paid with a Visa, MasterCard or Discover card.

In 2025, there were a total of 1,627 applicants (gun and archery) and another 532 youth applicants (resident only).

In 2025, there were a total of 1,627 applicants (gun and archery) and another 532 youth applicants (resident only).

Non-resident youth applicants must be at least 16 years old to apply. One youth-only elk quota permit will be offered in the draw for resident applicants ages thirteen to sixteen years old. If drawn for this permit, the youth hunter is permitted to hunt all open elk zones. Youth may not apply for both the youth elk quota hunt and elk quota hunt. Only one application may be submitted for any elk hunt.

Arrows for archery equipment (longbows, recurves, compounds, and crossbows) must be equipped with sharpened broadheads. Muzzleloading firearms are defined as those firearms in which a projectile (rifle) or projectiles (shotgun) must be loaded from the muzzle (front) end of the barrel due to design and manufacturing that prevent the projectile(s) from being loaded from the breech (rear) end. Muzzleloading firearms must be .36 caliber or larger. Rifles and handguns must use centerfire ammunition; full metal jacket ammunition is prohibited.

Of the nineteen elk permits in 2026, one will be issued to a qualifying non-profit wildlife conservation organization, and all proceeds benefiting the TWRA. Elk Management Program. The person drawn for the non-profit conservation organization will be October 3–9, 2026 in EHZ 1 and private land counties opened by the TWRA. The permit will be available through an online raffle. To purchase tickets for the raffle, visit the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Foundation website at www.twrf.net. In 2025 the deadline to purchase tickets was September 14, and the winner was announced September 18. Raffle tickets are $20 each, three for $50, or ten for $100, and there is no limit on the number of tickets you may buy. The 2026 raffle winner will hunt during the 2027 season.

Tennessee’s elk hunting takes place within zones 1, 2&6, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9 and 10. Each zone will offer one antlered, archery hunt and—aside from zone 1—one antlered any weapon hunt in the elk quota draw. Zones 2 and 6 are hunted on the same permit and there will be one hunter offered under the archery and gun categories for these two zones together. The any weapon hunt in zone 1 is issued through a raffle. See other tag opportunities for more information.