Permits to take or interfere with wildlife

To take, interfere with or undertake scientific research on Northern Territory (NT) wildlife, you must have a permit.

If you take or interfere with wildlife without a permit, there are heavy penalties.

You must also contact the Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Logistics for approval if you're doing research on road reserves.

What you can apply for

You can apply for a permit to:

  • take or interfere with wildlife for:
    • plant harvesting
    • crocodile egg harvesting
    • observing nesting marine turtles
    • pet trade collection
    • removal of problem animals
    • scientific purposes
    • seed harvesting
    • taking timber for didgeridoos
  • undertake scientific research on wildlife to:
    • watch, collect, survey, measure, assess or monitor
    • engage in bioprospecting - research on the genetic and biochemical properties of plants or animals that may be used to develop commercial products.

Before you apply

Read the relevant section below.

Take or interfere with wildlife

Before you apply for a permit to take or interfere with wildlife, you must get written permission from the:

  • landholder or lands authority
  • relevant land council - if you are on Aboriginal land.

You should also allow at least 2 weeks for your permit to be approved.

For more information on how your application will be assessed, read the following policy.

Provision of advice by Flora and Fauna division on permits to take or interfere with wildlife PDF (287.9 KB)
Provision of advice by Flora and Fauna division on permits to take or interfere with wildlife DOCX (658.2 KB)

Marine turtle watching activities

If your tour goes to parks or reserves managed by the Parks and Wildlife Commission, you must also have a tour operator permit.

Read the turtle watching guidelines.

Marine turtle watching community guidelines PDF (651.1 KB)
Marine turtle watching community guidelines DOCX (1.1 MB)

To get a copy of the NT Parks and Wildlife Commission's marine turtle watch policy, contact the Parks and Wildlife permits and concessions office.

Once your permit has expired, you must submit all data by email to biodiversity@nt.gov.au.

Undertake scientific research on wildlife

Before you apply for a permit to undertake scientific research on wildlife,, you must:

  • get an approval letter from an approved animal ethics committee - if you're researching vertebrates
  • enter into a benefit sharing agreement - if your research involves bioprospecting.

Read more about collecting plant materials or collecting animal materials for scientific research.

You should also allow at least 4 weeks for your permit to be approved.

How to apply

To apply, follow these steps.

Step 1. Fill in the relevant application.

If you are researching or collecting flora or fauna in parks and reserves, you must sign the special conditions form at the end of the permit application.

Application for a permit to take or interfere with wildlife DOCX (80.0 KB)
Application for a permit to take or interfere with wildlife PDF (270.5 KB)

Application for a permit to undertake scientific research DOCX (66.7 KB)
Application for a permit to undertake scientific research  PDF (177.1 KB)

Step 2. Submit your application to the Parks and Wildlife permits office.

Contact

For more information, contact Parks and Wildlife.


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