What most people call the Texas "ag exemption" isn't an exemption. It's a special appraisal.
Instead of taxing your land at market value, the appraisal district values it at productivity value: what the land can produce in agriculture. That number is usually much lower. The most common kind is 1-d-1 open-space agricultural appraisal. It is named for Article VIII, Section 1-d-1 of the Texas Constitution.
Who qualifies
According to the Texas Comptroller, the land must:
- Be currently devoted principally to agricultural use, such as raising livestock, growing crops or leaving land idle in a government program or normal rotation.
- Be used to the degree of intensity generally accepted in your area. Each appraisal district sets these standards, such as minimum acres or stocking rates. Ask yours.
- Have been in agriculture or timber production for at least 5 of the past 7 years.
Land inside a city or town has extra tests.
Wildlife management can also qualify, but only on land that already qualified for ag or timber appraisal. It must be actively managed in at least 3 of 7 approved ways. Texas Parks and Wildlife has the management plan forms.
How to apply
- Use Form 50-129, Application for 1-d-1 (Open-Space) Agricultural Use Appraisal. File it with your county appraisal district, not the Comptroller.
- Deadline: file it before May 1 of the year you want the special appraisal. In practice, that means by April 30.
- Once approved, you usually don't refile every year. A new application is needed if ownership changes, eligibility ends, or the chief appraiser asks for one.
- Exception: if land passes from a deceased owner to the surviving spouse, ownership is not treated as changed.
- Answer requests fast. If the appraisal district asks for more information, you generally have 30 days to respond.
Late filing
You can file late until the appraisal review board approves the year's records, which usually happens in July. A late application, if approved, carries a penalty of 10% of the difference between the tax at ag value and the tax at market value.
The rollback tax
If ag-appraised land changes to a non-agricultural use, such as building a subdivision or a commercial site, the owner who changed the use owes a rollback tax. That is the difference between the taxes paid at ag value and the taxes that would have been paid at market value, for each of the previous three years.
Under the Comptroller's explanation, rollback is tied to the change in use, not the sale itself. A new owner who keeps the land in ag use generally needs to file their own Form 50-129. The form explains a narrow exception when the same people keep running it the same way.
Some changes are exempt, such as certain right-of-way sales and condemnations. Ask your appraisal district.
You must tell the chief appraiser if you stop using the land for agriculture. There can be a penalty if you don't.
What to do next
- Call your county appraisal district. Ask for its ag guidelines: minimum acres, stocking rates and what records it wants.
- Keep records showing ag use, such as grazing leases, cattle receipts, sale barn tickets, hay sales and FSA records.
- If you just bought land, file Form 50-129 before May 1.
- If you're changing how you use the land, talk with your appraisal district and a tax professional first.
Cownty keeps a deadlines calendar and can text you a reminder before the April 30 Texas ag appraisal deadline.
Cownty is an independent service and is not affiliated with the Texas Comptroller, any appraisal district or any government agency. This is general information, not legal or tax advice.
Check your county
Every county, by state: Texas · Oklahoma · Kansas · New Mexico
Official sources
- Texas Comptroller – Agricultural, Timberland and Wildlife Management Use Special Appraisal
- Texas Comptroller – Form 50-129, Application for 1-d-1 (Open-Space) Agricultural Use Appraisal
Rules and dates checked against these pages on Oct 18, 2026. Information only, not legal, tax, insurance or financial advice: the agency decides. Not affiliated with USDA or any government agency.