Wales: exempt hunting and Natural Resources Wales land permission

Key facts

Landholder requirement

Express NRW permission for exempt hunting [source]

The Hunting Act and NRW’s land-management role

Natural Resources Wales publishes a specific resource for exempt hunting on the land it manages. It explains the prohibition on hunting wild mammals with dogs in Wales and the existence of conditional exemptions, including some stalking and flushing with no more than two dogs. Its discussion concerns particular humane-control purposes and points readers to the full Hunting Act exemptions. The agency also explains why mammal management may be needed for conservation, habitat protection, productive land use and the prevention of damage to neighbours’ livestock or crops. This is a land-management context within a statutory framework.

Express permission for a defined area

NRW states that exempt hunting is not allowed on any part of its managed land without express permission. It says licences will relate to clearly defined, manageable areas and that it will periodically monitor compliance with their terms. That adds a concrete administrative layer beyond identifying a potentially relevant exemption in national law. A person discussing an activity with NRW needs the proposed area and purpose, rather than assuming that a public woodland, access route or nearby sporting permission includes it. The licence boundary and conditions describe the authorised operation on that land.

How the resource connects with wider rules

GOV.UK’s mammal guidance supplies the broader explanation of method and permission conditions, including the distinction between a pack hunt, limited flushing and below-ground fox work. The Hunting Act’s Schedule 1 supplies the complete exemption structure. NRW’s page should therefore be used for its own landholder role alongside those sources. It does not create a permission covering private farms or another public body’s estate. The page also gives a route for reporting suspected illegal hunting on NRW land. Together the resources identify who controls the land, what activity is proposed and where both the statutory requirements and the landholder’s written terms can be found.

Common questions

Sources & further reading

References for this guide. Rules and services can change; check the responsible organisation for current details.

• NRW: exempt hunting on managed land (opens in a new tab)
• GOV.UK: mammal hunting conditions (opens in a new tab)
• Hunting Act: exemption conditions (opens in a new tab)

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