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97A.405 LICENSE REQUIREMENTS.
    Subdivision 1. Protected wild animals. Unless allowed under the game and fish laws, a
person may not take, buy, sell, transport, or possess protected wild animals of this state without
a license.
    Subd. 2. Personal possession. (a) A person acting under a license or traveling from an area
where a licensed activity was performed must have in personal possession either: (1) the proper
license, if the license has been issued to and received by the person; or (2) the proper license
identification number or stamp validation, if the license has been sold to the person by electronic
means but the actual license has not been issued and received.
    (b) If possession of a license or a license identification number is required, a person must
exhibit, as requested by a conservation officer or peace officer, either: (1) the proper license if
the license has been issued to and received by the person; or (2) the proper license identification
number or stamp validation and a valid state driver's license, state identification card, or other
form of identification provided by the commissioner, if the license has been sold to the person by
electronic means but the actual license has not been issued and received. A person charged with
violating the license possession requirement shall not be convicted if the person produces in court
or the office of the arresting officer, the actual license previously issued to that person, which
was valid at the time of arrest, or satisfactory proof that at the time of the arrest the person was
validly licensed. Upon request of a conservation officer or peace officer, a licensee shall write the
licensee's name in the presence of the officer to determine the identity of the licensee.
    (c) If the actual license has been issued and received, a receipt for license fees, a copy of a
license, or evidence showing the issuance of a license, including the license identification number
or stamp validation, does not entitle a licensee to exercise the rights or privileges conferred by
a license.
    (d) A license issued electronically and not immediately provided to the licensee shall be
mailed to the licensee within 30 days of purchase of the license. A pictorial turkey, migratory
waterfowl, pheasant, or trout and salmon stamp shall be provided to the licensee after purchase of
a stamp validation only if the licensee pays an additional $2 fee.
    Subd. 3. Duplicate licenses. The commissioner shall prescribe rules for issuing duplicate
licenses to persons whose licenses are lost or destroyed. A duplicate license may not be issued
unless the applicant takes an oath covering the facts of loss or destruction of the license.
    Subd. 4. Replacement licenses. (a) The commissioner may permit licensed deer hunters to
change zone, license, or season options. The commissioner may issue a replacement license if
the applicant submits the original deer license and unused tags that are being replaced and the
applicant pays any increase in cost between the original and the replacement license. A refund of
the difference in fees may be issued when a person changes from a regular deer license to a youth
deer license. When a person submits both an archery and a firearms license for replacement, the
commissioner may apply the value of both licenses towards the replacement license fee.
    (b) A replacement license may be issued only if the applicant has not used any tag from the
original license or licenses and meets the conditions of paragraph (c). The original license or
licenses and all unused tags for the licenses being replaced must be submitted to the issuing agent
at the time the replacement license is issued.
    (c) A replacement license may be issued under the following conditions, or as otherwise
prescribed by rule of the commissioner:
    (1) when the season for the license being surrendered has not yet opened;
    (2) when the person is upgrading from a regular firearms or archery deer license to an all
season deer license;
    (3) when the person is upgrading from a regular firearms license to a multizone deer license;
or
    (4) when the person is changing from a regular firearms deer license to a youth deer license.
    (d) Notwithstanding section 97A.411, subdivision 3, a replacement license is valid
immediately upon issuance if the license being surrendered is valid at that time.
    Subd. 5. Resident licenses. To obtain a resident license, a resident 21 years of age or older
must:
(1) possess a current Minnesota driver's license;
(2) possess a current identification card issued by the commissioner of public safety; or
(3) present evidence showing proof of residency in cases when clause (1) or (2) would
violate the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993, Public Law 103-141.
History: 1986 c 386 art 1 s 54; 1987 c 149 art 1 s 25; 1997 c 216 s 81; 2000 c 495 s 31;
1Sp2001 c 2 s 106; 2005 c 146 s 10,11; 2006 c 281 art 2 s 28; 2007 c 57 art 1 s 84; 2007
c 131 art 1 s 22,23

Official Publication of the State of Minnesota
Revisor of Statutes