Why would an outfitter do this? Because all reindeer hunting licenses are issued strictly through a lottery drawing, and the chances of drawing a permit fluctuate between 30 to 70 percent. This year, 1,300 permits were issued, but 3,200 hunters applied. Of those, 80 applications were for foreign hunters.
The deadline to apply for a reindeer permit is February 15th of each year. To be able to apply for you, your outfitter will need a copy of your passport, a US hunting license and your full address by February 10th. The result of the draw is usually published within a week after the application deadline.
A permit lottery system for reindeer hunting was instituted in Iceland in 2003 due to the increasing popularity of reindeer hunting among Icelandic hunters. There is no nonresident quota, and foreign hunters' applications are on an equal basis with the Icelandic hunters.
Besides your reindeer permit, you will need an Icelandic hunting license and a gun license for a rifle in a minimum caliber of 242 Win. Your outfitter can get the gun and hunting licenses for you ahead of time.
Also, while the Icelandic Environment Agency can and will transfer a permit from one hunter to the next hunter on the list, your guide or outfitter cannot. US hunters who take a reindeer there on someone else's license will be guilty of........(continued)
