Last updated 2026-08-21
TL;DR
Georgia falconry is a state DNR permit sitting on federal 50 CFR 21.82. You renew with the Wildlife Resources Division, not a federal office. Keep your 3-186A reports current, keep the mews legal, and hold a hunting license if you take game. Confirm the fee and the permit term with the Special Permit Unit. Nobody should guess those from a blog.
Do you need a license for falconry in Georgia?
Yes. You need a Georgia falconry permit from the Department of Natural Resources, Wildlife Resources Division, before you possess a raptor for falconry. A regular hunting license does not cover the bird. A duck stamp does not cover the bird. Keeping a hawk in a garage without that permit is not a gray area.
Georgia runs the permit because it is a federally certified falconry state. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service wrote the floor rules in 50 CFR 21.82. Your state permit is the ticket you actually carry. [1]
The Migratory Bird Treaty Act is why this is not optional. 16 U.S.C. 703 says, "it shall be unlawful at any time, by any means or in any manner, to pursue, hunt, take, capture, kill, attempt to take, capture, or kill" migratory birds except as permitted by regulation. [3] That is the statute falconry sits on. The permit is the exception, not a hobby club card.
Take game with the hawk and you also need the right Georgia hunting license, and you hunt only in open seasons for that species. Falconry is a method of take. It is not a free season. [9]
People mix falconry paper with rehab, education, and propagation permits. Those are different files. Renewing falconry georgia paper does not make you a rehabilitator and does not let you keep a bird "just until it gets stronger."
Want to only watch hawks? You need nothing. Want a bird on your fist? Get the DNR permit first. There is no single-kestrel exemption. Do not test that.
How do you renew a falconry permit in Georgia?
You renew with Georgia DNR, Wildlife Resources Division, not with a federal falconry office. The Service stopped issuing a separate federal falconry permit to residents of certified states after the 2008 rule rewrite. Your current state permit is the one that expires. [2]
Start with the permit in your hand. Read the expiration date on the face. Read any conditions printed on it. Then ask the Special Permit Unit what they want this cycle: application, fee, photos of the mews, a sponsor note if you are still an apprentice, or an inspection. I will not invent a packet list. Packets change. Confirm it.
Do the bird paperwork first. Federal rules still make you report acquisition, transfer, rebanding, and loss on Form 3-186A within 10 calendar days. [1] [4] If your electronic file in the Service database is a mess, fix it before you ask Georgia to stamp another year. Renewals go smoother when the bird list on the form matches the bird on the perch.
Pay whatever fee WRD quotes for this year. I am not printing a number. Fees move, and a blog fee is how people mail the wrong check. Hunting licenses are sold on Go Outdoors Georgia. Falconry permit money is a Special Permit question. [8]
Mail or submit on their timeline, not yours. Nobody has a public dashboard I trust for Georgia falconry turnaround. If someone online says "two weeks," that is a story, not a standard. Ask the unit what they are seeing.
Hunt in a neighbor state too? Their renewal clock is a different clock. The Alabama packet is not the Georgia packet. Compare the paper, do not copy it. falconry renewal in Alabama
I would put a reminder 60 days out. Not 6. Sixty. That is enough time to replace a rotting perch block, find a missing 3-186A, and still hunt October.
What federal rules still apply when Georgia renews you?
Almost all of the operating rules. Georgia can be stricter. It cannot go below the federal floor in 50 CFR 21.82. [1]
Three classes still exist: Apprentice, General, and Master. The supervised exam still has a hard cut score. 50 CFR 21.82 requires that "You must correctly answer at least 80 percent of the questions on an examination." [1] That sentence is why cram sheets exist. It is also why you should not expect a wink at 78 percent.
Housing still has to be humane and healthful. The current federal text is performance based. There is no single magic box size for every hawk. If Georgia's Chapter 391-4-9 adds tighter mews language, the tighter language wins on your property. Read the current rule text, not a forum memory. [6]
Take, banding, release, and transfer still run through federal forms. Form 3-186A is a Service form even when Georgia never touches the PDF. File it in the electronic system when you can. [4] [5]
Eagles are a separate statute. The Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act still sits on top of falconry class. A master permit is not an eagle permit. [11]
The 2008 federal rule is why you are dealing with Atlanta and not a regional FWS desk. The Service handed administration to certified states. Georgia took that job. [2] That is good news on one point. You have one falconry permit to renew, not two.
How much does falconry cost in Georgia?
The permit fee is the small line. Confirm that number with WRD. Confirm the hunting license price on Go Outdoors Georgia the day you buy it. I will not freeze either figure here. [8]
The real money is the bird, the building, and the grocery bill. A legal mews and weathering area can run from a careful homemade setup in the high hundreds to several thousand dollars if you hire the work out. A slick new shed with bad perches is a waste. Spend on shade, a bath pan that actually holds water, and perch surfaces that do not slick over.
Food is the bill that never ends. Quail, rats, and beef add up every week you have a bird in. Telemetry is not optional if you fly in pecan country or along a river bottom. A cheap used receiver can work. A second transmitter is cheaper than losing a passage red-tail on day four.
Vet care is lumpy. Budget for it even if last year was quiet. Captive-bred birds, when you are legal to own them, cost whatever the breeder asks. Wild take has a different price: your time, your trapping gear, and the chance you trap nothing.
First year costs dwarf a renewal year. Exam time, sponsor miles, lumber, and the first season of food hit at once. A renewal year should be food, license, permit fee, and repairs. If your "renewal" includes a new mews, you waited too long on maintenance.
Want a single binder that lines up exam topics, a sponsor letter, and a mews checklist? FalconryPath sells a $149 one-time State Exam + Sponsor + Mews Kit. It is optional. It is not a DNR form and it does not renew anything.
I would not hire a consultant to fill a Georgia renewal. The paper is not that exotic. I would spend that cash on food and a spare battery.
How long does falconry take in Georgia?
The class ladder is measured in years, not weekends. Federal rules say you practice at Apprentice level for at least 2 years, and you maintain, train, fly, and hunt a raptor for at least 4 months in each of those years, before you can move to General. Master takes another 5 years at General. [1]
That is the floor. Georgia can demand more time or more proof. Confirm the upgrade file with WRD before you assume a calendar anniversary is enough. [6]
Getting the first permit is a different clock. You need a passing exam, a sponsor if you are an apprentice, and facilities that pass inspection. How many weeks that takes depends on the inspector's schedule and whether your mews was ready the first visit. I will not promise a number. No approval timeline I print here would be honest.
Renewal itself should be shorter than the original issue if your birds, address, and housing did not change. Should is not a guarantee. File early.
Hunting time is its own answer. You can fly a trained bird in any open season you are licensed for. The bird does not create extra days. [9]
Plan on falconry georgia as a multi-year craft. Want a six-month hobby? Buy a camera.
What paperwork do you keep on the birds you still hold?
Keep a file that would make sense to a stranger. Permit copy. 3-186A history for every bird you have held. Band numbers. Captive-bred paperwork if the bird is captive-bred. Vet notes if you have them. Photos of the mews help if the inspector cannot come tomorrow.
Form 3-186A is the spine. File it within 10 calendar days after you acquire, transfer, reband, or lose a raptor. [1] [4] The electronic FALCON system is the clean way to do that. Paper still exists if the system is down, but electronic is what most people should use. [5]
Georgia may ask for an annual report or a bird list at renewal. Some years they do not. Ask. Do not invent a report just because Alabama asked for one. Their form is their form. falconry renewal in Alabama
A bird died? The 3-186A is still due. A bird was stolen? Same. You released a passage bird at season's end? Same. Silence looks worse than a late sad form.
I keep mine in one binder, oldest in back. Fancy software is optional. A binder you can hand through a truck window is enough.
Do you need a Georgia hunting license to hunt with a hawk?
Yes, if you take game. The falconry permit covers possession and the method. The hunting license covers the hunt. Seasons, legal game, and landowner rules still apply. [9]
Buy the license on Go Outdoors Georgia. Get the resident or nonresident product that matches how you actually live, not how you wish you were classified. [8]
Fly at starlings or other unprotected targets where that is legal, and you still need the falconry permit for the hawk. Do not confuse "no bag limit on that pest" with "no hunting license ever." Read the current hunting regulations before you invent a loophole. [12]
A falconry permit does not replace a big game license if you are after something that needs one. Check the species rules, not a memory of 2014.
I would renew the hunting license the same week as the falconry permit. One sitting. Fewer expired-card surprises at a check station.
What if your Georgia falconry permit lapses?
You stop possessing the birds for falconry. That is the clean reading. A lapsed permit is not a grace club. The MBTA does not pause because you forgot a date. [3]
Call WRD the day you notice. Ask whether they treat you as a late renewal or as a new applicant. I cannot answer that for them, and anyone who swears they know this week's policy without asking is guessing.
Do not transfer a bird to yourself on a dead permit. Do not "hold it for a friend" in your mews. If you still have birds, you need a legal possessor with a live permit and a proper 3-186A transfer. [4]
Some states make you retake the exam after a long gap. Georgia's current stance is a question for the Special Permit Unit, not for a comment thread. [6]
Did the permit lapse because you moved? Say that. Address changes and true lapses are different files. See falconry renewal in Florida if you split time south of the line. Their clock will not save a dead Georgia permit.
Can you renew if you just moved to Georgia?
You do not "renew" a Georgia permit you never held. You apply as a new Georgia resident falconer and you show the class you already earned. Bring the old state permit, the 3-186A history, and photos or inspection proof of the new mews.
Federal rules expect you to get a permit in the state where you reside. Temporary travel with a valid home-state permit is a different question, and Georgia's guest rules are theirs to set. Confirm before you move a bird across the line. [1] [6]
Build the Georgia mews first. Inspectors look at Georgia housing, not the mews you left in another state. A gorgeous Colorado weathering yard does not count in Griffin. For a sense of how another mountain-west packet reads, see falconry renewal in Colorado. Do not copy their forms into a Georgia envelope.
Tell both states. The state you leave needs to know the birds left. Georgia needs to know the birds arrived. Two 3-186A events, not one vague story. [4]
I would not move birds until the Georgia facilities can hold them legally overnight. A hotel shower is not a mews.
Does renewal change apprentice, general, or master status?
No. Renewal keeps the class you already hold, if you still qualify. An upgrade is a separate ask. Do not hide an upgrade inside a renewal and hope a clerk notices.
Federal floors still shape the ask. Apprentice is the entry class, with a 1-raptor possession limit at the federal floor. General needs those 2 apprentice years with real flying time. Master needs 5 years at General. Possession limits at the federal floor are 3 raptors for General and 5 for Master. Georgia can sit at or below those caps. Read Chapter 391-4-9 and your permit conditions. [1] [6]
| Class | Federal minimum age | Time in grade (federal floor) | Possession floor (federal) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apprentice | 12 | none | 1 raptor |
| General | 16 | 2 years as apprentice, with at least 4 months of flying each year | up to 3 raptors |
| Master | 18 | 5 years as general | up to 5 raptors |
Apprentices still need a sponsor. If your sponsor dropped you, fix that before you file. A renewal will not invent a new sponsor. [1]
Species limits stay class-based. An apprentice who trapped a legal red-tail does not get a gyrfalcon because the permit year flipped.
Comparing how a heavier paper state writes class upgrades? falconry renewal in California is a useful contrast. Still file Georgia forms in Georgia.
What will an inspector actually look at?
The bird. The mews. The weathering area. Water. Perches. Tether setup if you use one. Shade. Whether a bird can break feathers on wire or hardware cloth. Whether you can get a bird out in a fire without tearing the building apart.
Federal language is about humane and healthful conditions, not about stained cedar. [1] Georgia can add specifics in Chapter 391-4-9. If the rule names a lock, install the lock. If it names a double door, build the double door. Do not argue taste with an inspector who has the rulebook. [6]
They may ask to see the permit, the 3-186A printout, and the band on the bird. Have the band readable. Have the paperwork in the truck, not "on the other phone."
A renewal inspection is not automatic every cycle. Some years you get a visit. Some years you get a photo request. Some years you get neither. I have no public count of how often Georgia actually walks a renewal mews. Ask what they want this year.
Fix the dumb stuff before anyone drives out. Loose welds. Slick perch barrels. A bath pan with mosquito soup. That is what gets people failed, not the lack of a carved nameplate.
Want another state's inspection flavor? falconry renewal in Arkansas is next door in spirit. Still build to Georgia's text.
What should you do 60 days before the permit ends?
Pull the permit. Circle the date. Open the FALCON file and match every living bird to a 3-186A. [5] Walk the mews with a screwdriver. Call WRD and ask for this year's renewal list, fee, and whether they want photos. [6]
Order food so you are not trapping bait the week the form is due. Buy the hunting license if it dies in the same season. [8]
Apprentice? Talk to the sponsor now, not the night before. Want to upgrade? Ask for the upgrade checklist as its own file.
Hunt across the state line? Put those renewals on the same calendar. Illinois is not Georgia, and their date will not save you. falconry renewal in Illinois
FalconryPath is an independent publisher, not a law firm and not a service company. If you still want the optional $149 State Exam + Sponsor + Mews Kit, it is on /start. You can finish a clean Georgia renewal without it.
Then file. Early. And keep a copy of whatever you sent.
Frequently asked questions
Do you need a license for falconry in Georgia?
Yes. You need a Georgia DNR falconry permit before you possess a raptor for falconry. A hunting license does not replace it. The Migratory Bird Treaty Act makes unauthorized possession illegal. If you take game with the hawk, you also need the matching Georgia hunting license and you hunt only in open season.
How much does falconry cost in Georgia?
Confirm the current falconry permit fee with WRD and the hunting license price on Go Outdoors Georgia. Those two lines are the cheap part. Housing, food, telemetry, and vet care are the real bill. A renewal year should be fees plus food plus repairs. A first year costs much more because the mews and the exam hit at once.
How long does falconry take in Georgia?
Federal rules require at least 2 years as an apprentice, with at least 4 months of real flying each year, before General. Master needs 5 more years at General. First-permit timing depends on the exam, a sponsor, and the facility inspection. Renewal should be shorter if nothing changed. Confirm every clock with WRD. Nobody should promise you a stamp date.
When should I start a Georgia falconry renewal?
Sixty days before the date on the permit face is a sane start. That window covers a missing 3-186A, a rotting perch, and a question to the Special Permit Unit. Filing the week it expires is how people lapse. Ask WRD what they want this cycle instead of copying last year's envelope.
Can I hunt while my renewal is pending?
Only if the permit in your pocket is still valid that day. A pending application is not a permit. If the old permit has expired, stop possessing and stop hunting with the bird until WRD says you are legal again. Carry the paper you have, not a screenshot of an email you hope counts.
Do I need a new facility inspection to renew?
Not always. Some renewals are paper only. Some ask for photos. Some get a visit. There is no public schedule I can cite. Ask the Special Permit Unit what they want this year. If you moved the mews or added birds, expect them to look. Build to Chapter 391-4-9 either way.
What is Form 3-186A and do I file it with Georgia?
Form 3-186A is the federal acquisition and disposition report for each raptor. You file it with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, usually in the electronic FALCON system, within 10 calendar days of acquire, transfer, reband, or loss. Georgia may ask for a copy or a bird list at renewal. The legal filing is still the Service form.
Can an apprentice renew without a sponsor?
Do not assume yes. Federal apprentice rules are built around a sponsor. If your sponsor quit, get a new one before you file and tell WRD. A renewal will not invent supervision. If you already qualify to test up to General, ask for the upgrade checklist instead of renewing into a sponsor hole.
What if I lost my paper permit?
Call the Wildlife Resources Division Special Permit Unit and ask for a replacement copy. Do not fly on a photo of a lamination that tore in the truck and hope. Keep a scan at home after they reissue it. Losing the card is annoying. Hunting without proof is worse.
Does Georgia allow nonresident falconry?
Short visits with a valid home-state permit are a state-policy question, not something to guess from federal text alone. If you now live in Georgia, you apply here. Confirm guest hunting and temporary possession with WRD before you bring a bird across the line. Do not treat a weekend trip like a residence change.
Can I keep the bird if I let the permit expire?
Not as a falconer. A lapsed permit does not cover possession. Transfer the bird to a currently permitted falconer with a 3-186A, or ask WRD what legal options exist that day. Holding the hawk "just until the check clears" is how people turn a paperwork miss into an MBTA problem.
Do I need a federal falconry permit too?
No separate federal falconry permit is issued to residents of certified states. Georgia's permit is the one you renew. You still follow 50 CFR 21.82, still file Form 3-186A with the Service, and still need extra federal paper for eagles. One state falconry permit. Several federal duties.
How do I change from apprentice to general at renewal time?
Treat the upgrade as its own request. Show the 2 years, the 4 months of flying each year, the sponsor sign-off, and whatever else Georgia lists this year. A plain renewal keeps you an apprentice. Ask WRD for the upgrade checklist and do not bury the request in a fee-only envelope.
Who do I call at DNR about falconry georgia paper?
The Wildlife Resources Division Special Permit Unit. Use the contact path on georgiawildlife.com so you get a live number. County game management offices can often point you there, but they do not print falconry permits. Have your permit number and band numbers in front of you when you call.
Sources
- eCFR, 50 CFR 21.82 Falconry standards and falconry permitting: Federal falconry floor rules: state permit required, 80 percent exam, three classes, 2-year apprentice period with 4 months flying each year, housing standard, 10-day 3-186A reporting, possession limits
- Federal Register, Migratory Bird Permits; Changes in the Regulations Governing Falconry (E8-23759): The 2008 rule shifted falconry administration to certified states and ended the need for a separate federal falconry permit in those states
- U.S. Government Publishing Office, 16 U.S.C. 703 (Migratory Bird Treaty Act): It is unlawful to take or possess migratory birds except as permitted by regulation
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, FALCON electronic permitting system: Electronic system used to file falconry acquisition and disposition reports
- Georgia Secretary of State, Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. Chapter 391-4-9 Raptors: Georgia's administrative raptor and falconry rules, which may be stricter than the federal floor
- Go Outdoors Georgia, official license sales portal: Current Georgia hunting license products and live prices are sold through the official Go Outdoors Georgia system
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Migratory Bird Treaty Act overview: The Service administers the MBTA, which is the statute authorizing regulated falconry take and possession; falconry is a method of take that still requires open season and a hunting license for game
- U.S. Government Publishing Office, 16 U.S.C. 668 Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act: Eagle possession needs separate federal authorization beyond a state falconry class
- Georgia Secretary of State, Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. Chapter 391-4-2 Wildlife Resources hunting regulations: Georgia hunting regulation chapter that sits beside raptor rules when falconry is used as a method of take