Statutory guidance

Licence to kill deer at night by shooting (CL55)

Published 23 February 2026

Applies to England

Reference: CL55

This is a class licence to shoot deer at night for the purposes of:

• preserving public health and public safety
• conserving the natural heritage
• preventing serious damage to property

To use this licence, you must:

• meet the eligibility criteria
• register successfully
• either submit a site notification form or obtain a copy of the notification confirmation from another registered user who has notified the site

This page includes the conditions and advice for using this licence.

This licence permits a registered person to kill deer at night by shooting during the relevant open season for each species and sex of deer. You can use this licence until 31 July 2026.

‘At night’ is the time between one hour after sunset and one hour before sunrise.

Before you register to use this licence

Find out how to register to use this licence and other important information.

Who can use this licence

To be eligible for this licence, you must meet one of the 4 registered person categories. You must meet all the criteria in a category to be eligible.

Some of the categories have a qualification requirement. Find out more about the suitable qualification criteria.

Category 1

To be eligible under category 1, you will need to meet all the following conditions. You must have:

• been named within the past 6 years as either the licensee or an additional authorised person on an individual deer night shooting licence issued by a statutory nature conservation body
• taken action under such licence
• had no documented compliance issues relating to a deer shooting licence

Category 2

To be eligible under category 2, you will need to meet all the following conditions. You must have:

• a basic deer shooting qualification
• a deer night shooting qualification
• been actively controlling deer in the last 3 years

Category 3

To be eligible under category 3, you will need to meet all the following conditions. You must have:

• a basic deer shooting qualification
• been actively controlling deer in the last 3 years
• been named within the past 7 years as an additional authorised person on a licence to control other wildlife at night
• taken action under such licence with no documented compliance issues

Category 4

To be eligible under category 4, you will need to meet all the following conditions. You must have:

• an advanced level deer qualification
• knowledge and understanding of the use of night-shooting aids, such as spotlights, night vision and thermal imaging equipment
• been actively controlling deer in the last 3 years

If you do not meet any of the 4 categories, or if this class licence does not cover the action you want to take, then you may be eligible instead for an individual licence.

Who cannot use this licence

You cannot use this licence if you have been convicted of a wildlife offence, unless either of the following applies:

• you have served your conviction and are a rehabilitated person under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974
• a court has made an order discharging you of the wildlife offence

You cannot use this licence if Natural England has withdrawn permission to use it.

Register to use this licence

To apply for registration, you must complete the CL55 registration form. You must only register with your own details.

Natural England will contact you with the outcome of your registration application. This usually takes 10 working days. If your application is successful, you will receive an email to confirm this.

You must wait until you have received an email confirming you are a registered person before you can either:

• submit a site notification form
• take any action under this class licence on a site that has been notified by another registered user

Before you take action under the licence: site notification

A site notification form must be submitted and approved for the land you intend to shoot on (this will be known as a ‘notified site’).

You must ensure you can meet the terms and conditions of this licence before submitting a deer night shooting site notification form or taking action under the licence.

Only one form is needed for each site. Other people can shoot on the notified site if they are registered to use the class licence.

The notification form must be submitted at least 5 working days before any action is planned. If you receive an approval email, you must wait at least 5 working days before taking any action under the licence. This allows time for Natural England to contact you with any questions.

The person who submits the notification form will be regarded as the site co-ordinator. They will need to provide details of the notified site to any other registered users intending to take action on that site. They should also make sure that all registered users submit reports of their actions.

What is a notified site

Each ‘notified site’ is a discrete, defined area of land comprising one or more landholdings supporting the same population of deer where deer night shooting will be undertaken.

You must ensure you can meet the terms and conditions of this licence before submitting a deer night shooting site notification form.

What you can do under this licence

You can act in England under this licence to kill at night by shooting:

• red deer at night in certain named counties
• fallow, roe, sika, red/sika hybrids, muntjac and Chinese water deer at night anywhere in the country

You can use this licence for one or more of the following purposes:

• preserving public health and public safety
• conserving natural heritage
• preventing serious damage to property

Preserving public health and public safety

You can shoot deer at night in situations where they pose a serious risk to public health and safety, for example road traffic collisions, airfields and race circuits.

Conserving natural heritage

You can shoot deer at night in situations where they pose a serious risk of causing deterioration of woodland, hedgerows or other landscape features, and designated sites for nature conservation. 

Preventing serious damage to property

You can shoot deer at night if there is evidence of serious damage that has occurred in the past 12 months preceding this licence application.

‘Serious damage’ means evident economic damage to crops, vegetables, fruit or growing timber that is more than just a nuisance, minor damage or a normal business risk.

When and where you can use this licence

You can use this licence to shoot deer at night only on notified sites in England according to the species and dates stated below.

Red deer (Cervus elaphus)

You can shoot:

• males between 1 August and 30 April
• females between 1 November and 31 March

You can shoot red deer in:

• Berkshire
• Cambridgeshire
• Cornwall
• Cumbria
• Derbyshire
• Devon
• Dorset
• Essex
• Hampshire
• Lancashire
• Norfolk
• North Yorkshire
• Somerset
• Staffordshire
• Suffolk
• Surrey

Fallow deer (Dama dama)

You can shoot:

• males between 1 August and 30 April
• females between 1 November and 31 March

You can shoot male and female fallow deer anywhere in England.

Roe deer (Capreolus capreolus)

You can shoot:

• males between 1 April and 31 October
• females between 1 November and 31 March

You can shoot male and female roe deer anywhere in England.

Sika deer (Cervus nippon)

You can shoot:

• males between 1 August and 30 April
• females between 1 November and 31 March

You can shoot male and female sika deer anywhere in England.

Red/sika deer hybrids

You can shoot:

• males between 1 August and 30 April
• females between 1 November and 31 March

You can shoot male and female red/sika deer hybrids anywhere in England.

Chinese water deer (Hydropotes inermis)

You can shoot:

• males and females between 1 November and 31 March

You can shoot male and female Chinese water deer anywhere in England.

Muntjac deer (Muntiacus reevesi)

You can shoot male and female muntjac all year round, anywhere in England.

Record and report your actions

As a registered person you must keep a written record of all the activities that you carry out under this licence and submit those records to Natural England within 2 weeks.

For details, see licence condition 13: reporting action.

Duration of the licence

Ordinarily, this licence will be reissued on 1 August each year. Your registration will remain active provided you submit an annual renewal form and meet the reporting requirements. On re-issue of the licence, you should check the terms and conditions of the licence before you use it for the first time each year, in case of amendments. Note that licences can be modified or revoked at any time by Natural England or the Secretary of State, but this will not be done unless there are good reasons for doing so.

Licence conditions

You must meet all the licence conditions relevant to your activities.

You must also follow the conditions for European protected sites when shooting deer at night, if they are relevant to where you want to use this licence.

You must ensure your contact details are kept up to date. 

You must keep accurate and sharable records of your activities where you have shot deer at night or attempted to shoot deer at night.

Condition 1: consider suitable alternative actions

You must only use this licence when there are no other suitable alternatives. You must consider all other lethal (day-time shooting) and non-lethal solutions and reasonably conclude that they’re not appropriate.

You do not need to use an alternative solution if the method would be ineffective or disproportionate in the circumstances. For example, it may depend on the cost of the alternative methods, or the size or type of problem.

Condition 2: keep a copy of your user registration confirmation

You must make a copy of the email confirming your registration available at any time for inspection by Natural England or any police officer on demand.

Condition 3: get all necessary permissions and consents

You must get all necessary permissions and consents before you submit a site notification. This includes access to the relevant land, and site of special scientific interest (SSSI) consent if relevant. You must keep records of these permissions for at least 24 months after you take any action.

For the avoidance of doubt, this Licence does not constitute written consent under S28E of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.

You must have right of entry to the land for the purpose of taking or killing deer before you use this licence.

The licence does not give any right of entry upon land.

Condition 4: site notification

This licence can only be used where both of the following apply:

• the site has been successfully notified to Natural England
• the information in the site notification form remains accurate for the duration of the licensed activities

Action can only start at a site 5 working days after receipt of an email from Natural England confirming that:

• the site has been successfully notified
• works can proceed as described in the site notification form and in accordance with this licence

Natural England reserves the right to request further information before a site is registered.

Condition 5: comply with this licence

You must comply with the terms and conditions of this licence, and any information contained in the site notification form. Natural England will advise you of any change in registered status and explain the reasons for this.

Condition 6: keep a copy of site notification emails

You must make the following available to any other registered users involved in action on that site:

• the successful site notification email
• a map of the site for reference

You must also provide these for inspection by Natural England or any police officer on demand.

Condition 7: notify others

Before taking action under the licence you must:

• inform the local police and relevant firearms licensing authority at least 24 hours before any night shooting
• notify the owners or occupiers of adjoining land in advance if it is reasonable to conclude that the use of this land will be affected or disturbed by night shooting.

Condition 8: comply with firearms legislation

You must comply with the terms of the Firearms Act 1968 (as amended) and the Deer Act 1991 (as amended) and take all necessary precautions when using firearms under this licence. If there is any inconsistency between the terms of this licence and applicable legislation, follow the legislation.

You must inform Natural England within 48 hours of any changes to your firearms certificate which would prohibit you from operating under this licence. This includes revocation.

Condition 9: use specific equipment for shooting at night

Daytime telescopic sights (used with a spotlight):

• telescopic sights with a minimum light gathering power of 6x40
• minimum spotlight rating of 1 million candle-power (1200-1500 lumens)
• any coloured filters or bulbs

Night vision riflescopes:

• generation ‘2’ or ‘3’ imaging intensifying night vision sights with infrared (IR) illumination
• comparable digital night vision sight with IR illumination

Thermal imaging riflescopes:

• dedicated digital thermal imaging riflescopes with a microbolometer (sensor) resolution of 640x480 or higher, a pixel pitch of 17μm or smaller, a lens focal length of 50mm or larger and a frame rate of 50Hz or above may be used
• front attachment (‘add-on’) digital thermal imaging equipment with a microbolometer (sensor) resolution of 640x480 or higher, a pixel pitch of 17μm or smaller, a lens focal length of 50mm or larger and a frame rate of 50Hz or above may be used on a daytime riflescope

Condition 10: follow best practice

You must comply with the Deer Initiative Partnership guidance on night shooting, in force at the time of action, and any other relevant best practices guidelines relating to the shooting of deer. If there is conflict between a licence condition and the guidelines, follow the licence condition.

Condition 11: activities conducted under this licence must comply with existing laws that protect species

All birds, their eggs and nests (while in use or being built) are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. This licence does not allow you to intentionally take, damage or destroy such nests. Bird species listed under Schedule 1 of the ‘1981 Act’ have additional legal protection concerning reckless disturbance during their breeding season, so care must be taken.

European Protected Species (EPS) are listed in Schedule 2 (animals) and Schedule 5 (plants) of The Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017. These include all bat species, great crested newts, dormice and otters. It’s an offence to damage or destroy breeding sites or resting places, for example care must be taken along riverbanks that support otter holts.

Many species are listed in Schedule 5 (animals) and Schedule 8 (plants) of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended). All bat species, great crested newts, dormice and otters are also listed in this legislation. It’s an offence to recklessly disturb such an animal while it’s occupying such a structure or place or obstruct access to any such structure or place.

Condition 12: protect animal welfare

You must take all reasonable precautions to ensure no deer is subjected to cruelty, unnecessary suffering or distress. All actions taken must comply with the requirements of any relevant animal welfare legislation.

Condition 13: reporting action

If you go out at night to act under this licence, you must keep records of any action you have attempted or undertaken. Within 2 weeks of the date of that action, you must upload your actions using the Report of action form. You must include the site notification reference number (for example DNSL0123-01).

Condition 14: report breaches of the licence

You must inform Natural England at wildlife@naturalengland.org.uk within 48 hours of any breach of this licence.

Condition 15: report any change in circumstances

You must inform Natural England if you are subject to any criminal investigation by the police or other statutory body for any wildlife-related offences, setting out what these are, when the outcome is likely to be known, and what the outcome is following completion of the investigation. This will enable Natural England to assess whether your registration for use of this licence needs to be reviewed.

Condition 16: site visits for compliance monitoring

You may be selected for compliance monitoring to check you are following this licence’s terms and conditions.

If you are asked to contact Natural England for the purpose of checking compliance with licence conditions, you must:

• allow them to monitor your activity
• assist them in arranging site visits
• allow them to inspect your activity records
• give them reasonable notice of when you plan to start shooting deer at night under this licence (minimum of 10 days)

Licence conditions relating to European protected sites

These restrictions relate to:

• vehicle use on European sites or on any land that surrounds European sites (see the section ‘Definitions used in this licence’)
• any activity within any European site and any land that surrounds European sites
• laws that protect species across England

Condition 17: you must restrict vehicle use only to existing tracks within any European Site

Protected site locations can be found using the Magic Map Application by clicking on ‘Designations’, then ‘Land-Based Designations’, then ‘Statutory’, then select one of the following:

• Ramsar sites (England)
• special areas on conservation (England)
• special protection areas (England)

Condition 18: you must not drive a vehicle through or across the following habitat types on or near any European site

This applies to the following habitat types:

• intertidal habitats
• large waterbodies (for example, ponds)
• reed-beds more than 25 metres across
• grazing marsh fields
• any other type of wetland, including fens, bogs or mires

Condition 19: you must not disturb any significant breeding bird colony within or near any European site

A ‘significant breeding bird colony’ is a dense grouping of occupied nests used by relatively large numbers of any bird species. To avoid disturbance, you and any other authorised people must find out (from the owner or occupier) the locations of any significant breeding bird colony within or adjacent to a Special Protection Area (SPA) (see the section ‘Definitions used in this licence’).

Except on existing roads and tracks, you may need to avoid access within 200 to 750 metres (depending on the species) of a significant breeding bird colony, particularly from March to August (inclusive). Local circumstances, such as land features, habitat cover, weather and the nature of operator activities will influence safe working distances that you can avoid causing disturbance.

Condition 20: you must not disturb any significant non-breeding communal bird of prey roost site within any listed SPA

The listed SPAs are:

• Blackwater Estuary (Mid-Essex Coast Phase 4) SPA
• Broadland SPA
• Colne Estuary (Mid-Essex Coast Phase 2) SPA
• Dengie (Mid-Essex Coast Phase 1) SPA
• Dorset Heathlands SPA
• Dungeness, Romney Marsh and Rye Bay SPA
• Foulness (Mid-Essex Coast Phase 5) SPA
• Humber Estuary SPA
• Minsmere-Walberswick SPA
• New Forest SPA
• Ouse Washes SPA
• Salisbury Plain SPA
• Stodmarsh SPA and Ramsar site
• Thames Estuary and Marshes SPA

A significant non-breeding communal bird-of-prey roost site describes a place habitually used by multiple individuals of hen harrier, merlin, short-eared owl or other bird-of-prey species. To avoid disturbance, before commencing licensed activities, operators must determine the locations of any such roost sites. The owner or occupier might have this information.

Except on existing roads and tracks, it may be necessary to avoid access within 500 metres of any such roost site, depending on the species, particularly from November to February (inclusive). Local circumstances, such as land features, habitat cover, weather and the nature of operator activities will influence safe working distances that you can avoid causing disturbance.

Condition 21: you must not disturb any significant flock of wildfowl or wading birds at a roost site within or near any European site

Ducks, geese and wading birds can group together in significantly large and dense flocks to roost over a high tide period or overnight.

Except on existing roads and tracks, it may be necessary to avoid access within 300 metres of any such roost site when occupied, particularly November to February (inclusive). Note that significant numbers of waterbirds at roosts can be present throughout the year. Roost sites exist typically on large waterbodies, across or adjacent to intertidal areas, saltmarshes, reed beds and on grazed marshy grasslands. Local circumstances, such as land features, habitat cover, weather, tide and the nature of operator activities, will influence safe working distances that you can avoid causing disturbance.

Condition 22: you must not disturb any seal or seal pup whilst it is on land within or near any European site

To avoid disturbing a seal, you must maintain a safe working distance of at least 100 metres away, or at least 300 metres when discharging a firearm. Local circumstances, such as land features, habitat cover, weather, tide and the nature of operator activities, will influence safe working distances that you can avoid causing disturbance. You must follow Defra guidelines on marine and coastal wildlife code: advice for visitors.

Penalties if you breach the licence conditions

Natural England may make pre-arranged site visits to check you are following the terms and conditions of this licence. They also monitor annual reports to make sure you are meeting all the licence conditions.

If you do not follow the conditions of this licence, you are committing an offence under the Deer Act 1991. You could:

• receive a prison sentence of up to 3 months
• be given a £2,500 fine
• lose your permission to use this licence

Natural England will write to tell you if they withdraw your permission to use the licence.

Natural England can also apply the withdrawal to other similar licences you hold.

Legislation

This licence authorises certain acts that would otherwise be offences under the Deer Act 1991 (as amended). Registered persons must ensure they comply with all other relevant legislation.

Natural England has issued this licence under section 8 (3D) for the purposes set out in Section 8 (3E) of the Deer Act 1991 (as amended) of:

• preserving public health or public safety
• conserving the natural heritage
• preventing serious damage to property

Natural England has used the common names in this licence for guidance only. In the case of disputes or proceedings, Natural England will only consider the scientific name of the species.

Natural England or the Secretary of State can modify or withdraw this licence at any time. This will not be done without good reason.

Wildlife crime includes any action that contravenes legislation protecting wild animals and plants, including but not limited to an offence under The Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017, the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, the Protection of Badgers Act 1992, the Deer Act 1991, the Hunting Act 2004, the Wild Mammals (Protection) Act 1996, the Animal Welfare Act 2006 or the Protection of Animals Act 1911 (all as amended).

Definitions used in this licence

Unless expressly stated in this licence to the contrary, references to legislation are references to that legislation as it had effect on 1 January 2025.

‘European sites’ means any:

• Special Areas of Conservation (SAC)
• Special Protection Areas (SPA)
• Ramsar sites

‘Land that surrounds these sites’ means land used by features of European sites to support them, and habitats that support the health of European sites. Land of significant importance to a European site is mostly within 2km of it, but not all land will be.

‘1981 Act’ means the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended).

Interpretation

Within these licence conditions, use of the word ‘avoid’ denotes a prohibition, meaning it indicates that an area must be excluded from relevant activities or that activities must not be undertaken during the time period stated or in the manner described. Similarly, the word ‘restrict’ means that activities must be confined to the areas or time periods stated.

For further details on protected sites and their notified features of special interest or a European site’s qualifying features please enter the site name into the Designated Sites View.

Contact Natural England

You can contact the Natural England wildlife licensing team if you need help with:

• licence registration, renewal or reporting
• the licence conditions
• site notification

Wildlife licensing

Natural England
Horizon House
Deanery Road
Bristol
BS1 5AH

Email wildlife@naturalengland.org.uk

Telephone 0300 060 3900

If you have questions about deer management or you’re not sure if you need a licence, you can contact the Natural England enquiry line.

Email: enquiries@naturalengland.org.uk

Phone: 0300 060 3900