State
CWD rules in North Dakota
CWD zone status
Agency
North Dakota Game and Fish Department
Last verified
June 16, 2026
CWDCrossing provides informational summaries of state CWD carcass-transport regulations. Rules change annually pre-hunting-season; verify with both the origin and destination state wildlife agencies before transport. Failure to comply may result in citations. Not affiliated with the CWD Alliance, the National Deer Association, or any state agency.
Bringing a carcass into North Dakota
North Dakota is the regulating authority for what you can bring in. The whole-carcass import ban applies to cervids harvested out of state regardless of CWD status.
Allowed for import
- Deboned/boned-out meat
- Meat cut and wrapped (commercial or private)
- Quarters or portions of meat with no spinal column or head attached
- Hides with no heads attached
- Skull plates with antlers attached and no hide or brain tissue present
- Intact skulls with no visible brain or spinal tissue (eyes, lower jaw, tongue, glands, tonsils, lymph nodes removed)
- Antlers separated from the skull plate
- Upper canine teeth
- Finished taxidermy heads
Restricted from import
- Whole carcass of out-of-state cervids
- Brain
- Spinal column / spinal cord
- Head with brain, spinal, or lymph tissue
Handling + processing
Only the listed lower-risk parts may be transported into or within North Dakota. Heads submitted for testing must have lymph nodes in a sealed bag.
Taking a carcass out of North Dakota
When you hunt in North Dakota and bring the carcass to another state, that destination state sets the rule. Because North Dakota has confirmed CWD detections, several destination states apply their stricter "from a CWD-affected state" rule to carcasses originating here — plan to bring back lower-risk parts only.
North Dakota on the CWD map
- CWD confirmed in state
- Under heightened surveillance
- No known CWD detections
Zone status is informational, not a hazard rating. Detections expand over time — confirm current status with each state's wildlife agency.
CWDCrossing provides informational summaries of state CWD carcass-transport regulations. Rules change annually pre-hunting-season; verify with both the origin and destination state wildlife agencies before transport. Failure to comply may result in citations. Not affiliated with the CWD Alliance, the National Deer Association, or any state agency.