2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWELVE - Conservation (§§ 1-16 — 8162) › Subtitle 1 - Protection of Game and Fish (§§ 1-16 — 107u) › Chapter 5A - Wildlife Act of 1999 (§§ 107 — 107u) › § 107k - Sports hunting license

(a) Sports hunting license.— Any person who applies for a sport hunting license shall meet the following requirements:
(1) To be mentally and physically fit. The applicant shall establish said fitness by attaching to his/her license application a certificate from a physician duly authorized to practice medicine in Puerto Rico. Said certificate shall be made in the blank form authorized for such a purpose by the Secretary.
(2) To have reached the age of eighteen (18), except as hereinafter provided.
(3) To have passed a training course for sports hunters which will include an examination on the provisions of this chapter, the regulations promulgated by virtue thereof, the skills and knowledge on the use and handling of hunting weapons and basic knowledge of the wildlife of Puerto Rico. Said course must be requested through the form authorized by the Secretary for said purpose and furnished in the form and manner determined by the latter. The Secretary shall determine the cost to be paid by the student to take said course. The Secretary shall accredit the certifications from other jurisdictions in which the course for the training of hunters has a similar content to that of Puerto Rico.
(4) To be a person of recognized moral probity in the judgment of the Secretary based on all the information submitted to such effect. The Secretary shall establish, through regulations, the procedure to obtain the necessary information to comply with this objective; however it shall be deemed to be sufficient evidence to present a copy of the target practice license currently in effect, or any other license or permit to own firearms for which the Puerto Rico Police or the Ranger Corps of the Department conduct an investigation, which includes the moral probity of the applicant.
(5) To include an affidavit with the application for a hunting license, that states that the applicant has never been convicted by any court of Puerto Rico, of a foreign country or of the United States of America, of a felony or of any other offense involving acts of violence or moral turpitude, or of any violation of the Puerto Rico Weapons Act, §§ 455–460j of Title 25, or the Puerto Rico Controlled Substances Act or §§ 2101 et seq. of Title 24, or having been convicted or fined for violating any provision of this chapter or the regulations promulgated by virtue thereof, or any federal wildlife regulations.
(6) To have a clean penal record as stated in a good conduct certificate issued by the Puerto Rico Police.
(7) To pay the corresponding fees prescribed by the Secretary through regulations. The revenues collected on this account shall be covered into the Special Fund for Wildlife Management in Puerto Rico.
(8) To fulfill any other requirements the Secretary may deem pertinent in order to carry out the purposes of this chapter.
(b) Renewal of sports hunting license.— The Secretary may renew a hunting license after the applicant has filed the form provided for such purpose, in the Department, and include a negative criminal record certificate and an affidavit stating that the conditions which existed at the time the original license was granted continue unaltered.
(1) The application for renewal shall be made, in writing, thirty (30) working days prior to the expiration date of the license, which shall be the birth date of the applicant.
(2) In the event that the renewal is not requested within said term, and if not more than six (6) months have elapsed from the expiration date of the license, the interested party shall complete the sports hunting license renewal form and pay the fees determined by the Secretary through regulations for the late renewal.
(3) If a term of more than six (6) months has elapsed, the interested party shall meet all the requirements established in subsection (a) of this section, in order to obtain a hunting license from the Secretary.
(4) The Secretary shall fix the fees to be charged for the renewal of licenses, through regulations. The revenues obtained by this account shall be deposited into the Special Wildlife Management Fund.
(5) Hunting licenses may be renewed as provided by this subsection, for only three (3) consecutive terms; Provided, That when applying for a fourth renewal, the petitioner shall meet the requirements of subsection (a) of this section, with the exception of the hunting education course. Nevertheless, the Secretary may require hunters to approve pass continuing education courses for sports hunters, or the basic education course for hunters, if they have never taken it.
(c) Denial of sport’s hunting license.— The Secretary shall refuse to issue or renew a sport’s hunting license in any of the following cases:
(1) When the applicant fails to fulfill some requirement of this chapter or the regulations promulgated by virtue thereof.
(2) When the information furnished in the application for a hunting license and in the accompanying affidavit proves to be false or insufficient.
(3) When the applicant, by virtue of reliable information, constitutes a menace to public safety or, in the judgment of the Secretary, is unfit to handle a weapon.
(d) The Secretary shall revoke the sport’s hunting license if the hunter has violated the provisions of this chapter or its regulations or any provision of federal wildlife laws and regulations or if the information furnished by the hunter proves to be false.
(e) Hunters Education Program.— Applicants for the education course for hunters, and the instructors, may use the facilities of the target shooting clubs, as well as those of any private or government shooting range for training in the use and handling of firearms. The weapons to be used for said training shall be provided by the instructors certified by the Secretary to such effects and purposes. These shall be the property of the Department, and the certified instructors may bear, transport and use them, in order to give the course.
History —Aug. 15, 1999, No. 241, § 13; Jan. 8, 2004, No. 34, § 5.