Statutes Regulating Ownership of
Agricultural Land

Compiled by:   Micah Brown Staff Attorney & Nick Spellman Research Fellow  

Foreign ownership of U.S. land, specifically private agricultural lands, is an issue that traces to the origins of the United States. State laws vary widely and without a generalized or uniform approach. The following compilation includes state statutory prohibitions on foreign ownership of agricultural land, foreign ownership of other real property, reporting requirements, and corporate farming restrictions. It bears noting that some states’ laws restrict only ownership of agricultural lands while allowing for at least some level of ownership of non-agricultural land. Some states, such as Arizona, contain prohibitions on foreign ownership of public lands, which is outside the scope of this compilation. 

In some states, foreign persons and entities have the same property rights as the citizens of those states. In other states, however, foreign ownership of agricultural land is prohibited or significantly limited within the boundaries of the state. Approximately twenty-four states specifically forbid or limit nonresident aliens, foreign businesses and corporations, and foreign governments from acquiring or owning an interest in agricultural land within their state. A few states, such as Georgia, Maryland, and New Jersey have enacted statutes the permit foreign persons to purchase or hold real estate within their state to some degree; however, these states’ laws condition land ownership rights on certain factors. Although these laws do not contain language that strictly prohibits foreign ownership of real property within their state, these statutes could be construed as a restriction on foreign investments that are not expressly permitted under these states’ laws.

Additionally, some states require foreign persons and entities to report their purchase or ownership interest in farmland within their state. These state reporting statutes often correspond with the federal reporting law under the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act.

These compilations are only an aid to research. State courts and federal courts, including United States Supreme Court decisions, have interpreted and continue to interpret these statutes. Further, this publication does not include case annotations, which a researcher must consult to thoroughly understand any particular statute. As such, these charts are intended for use solely as an educational tool and research aid, and not as a substitute for individual legal advice.  Additionally, the reader is cautioned that these laws are subject to changes that are often significant.

For each state, the first column of the chart includes a reference and link to the text of the relevant state constitutional and statutory provisions. Each compilation contains the code sections relevant to the topics found at the head of the chart and are linked to the specific language at issue. This compilation was last updated on November 30, 2023.

State	Relevant Provision(s)	Prohibition	Permission	Reporting	Corporate Farming
Alabama	Ala. Const. § 34 Ala. Code § 35-1-1 Ala. Code § 35-1-1.1	Yes	Yes*	None	None
Alaska	None	None	Not Expressly	None	None
Arizona	Ariz. Const. art. X, § 11 Ariz. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 37-240	Yes—public land only	Not Expressly	None	None
Arkansas	Ark. Const. art. II, § 20 Ark. Code Ann. § 2-3-111 Ark. Code Ann. § 18-11-101 ;18-11-110 Ark. Code Ann. §§ 18-11-801 to 18-11-805	Yes	Yes*	Yes	Yes, but limited
California	Cal. Const. art. I, § 20 Cal. Civ. Code § 671	None	Yes	None	None
Colorado	Colo. Const. art. II, § 27	None	Yes	None	None
Connecticut	Conn. Gen. Stat. Ann. § 47-7a	None	Yes	None	None
Delaware	Del. Code Ann. tit. 25, § 305 Del. Code Ann. tit. 25, § 306 Del. Code Ann. tit. 25, § 308	None	Yes	None	None
Florida	Fla. Const. art. I, § 2 Fla. Stat. Ann. §§ 692.201 to 692.205	Yes	Yes*	Yes	Yes, but limited
Georgia	Ga. Code Ann. § 1-2-11	None	Yes**	None	None
Hawaii	HI Organic Act § 73(f) Haw. Rev. Stat. § 171-68	Yes—public land only	Not Expressly	None	None
Idaho	Idaho Code Ann. § 55-103 Idaho Code Ann. § 58-313	Yes	Yes*	None	Yes, but limited
Illinois	765 Ill. Comp. Stat. Ann. 50/1 to 50/8 765 Ill. Comp. Stat. Ann. 60/7	None	Yes	Yes	None
Indiana	Ind. Code Ann. §§ 1-1-16-6, 8 to 10.2 Ind. Code Ann. § 32-22-2-1 Ind. Code Ann. § 32-22-2-5 Ind. Code Ann. §§ 32-22-3-0.5 to 32-22-3-6.5	Yes	Yes*	Yes	Yes
Iowa	Iowa Const. art. I, § 22 Iowa Code Ann. §§ 9H.1 to 9H.5 Iowa Code Ann. §§ 9I.1 to 9I.12 Iowa Code Ann. §§ 10.1 to 10.14 Iowa Code Ann. §§ 10B.1 to 10B.7 Iowa Code Ann. §§ 202B.101 to 202B.402 Iowa Code Ann. § 511.8A Iowa Code Ann. § 558.44	Yes	Yes*	Yes	Yes
Kansas	Kan. Const. Bill of Rts. § 17 Kan. Stat. Ann. § 17-5904 Kan. Stat. Ann. § 17-7505	Yes—business entities only	None	Yes—foreign for-profit corporations and cooperatives only	Yes
Kentucky	Ky. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§ 381.290 to 381.300	Yes	None	None	None
Louisiana	La. Const. Ann. art. I, § 4 La. Stat. Ann. § 9:2717.1	Yes	Yes*	None	Yes
Maine	Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 7, §§ 31 to 36 Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 33, § 451	None	Yes	Yes—foreign corporations and partnerships only	None
Maryland	Md. Code Ann., Real Prop. § 14-101	None	Yes**	None	None
Massachusetts	Mass. Gen. Laws Ann. ch. 184, § 1	None	Yes	None	None
Michigan	MI CONST Art. 10, § 6 Mich. Comp. Laws Ann. § 554.135	None	Yes	None	None
Minnesota	Minn. Stat. Ann. §§ 500.24 Minn. Stat. Ann. §§ 500.221	Yes	None	Yes	Yes
Mississippi	Miss. Const. Art. 4, § 84 Miss. Code Ann. § 11-39-1 to 11-39-3 Miss. Code Ann. § 29-1-75 Miss. Code Ann. § 89-1-23	Yes	None	Committee monitors foreign ownership	None
Missouri	Mo. Rev. Stat. §§ 350.010 to 350.040 Mo. Rev. Stat. §§ 442.560 to 442.592	Yes	None	Yes	Yes
Montana	Mont. Code Ann. § 35-30-103	Yes	Not Expressly	None	Yes, but limited
Nebraska	Neb. Rev. Stat. § 4-107 Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 76-402 to 76-415 Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 76-1520 to 76-1524	Yes	None	Yes	Yes
Nevada	Nev. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 111.055	None	Yes	None	None
New Hampshire	N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 477:20	None	Yes	None	None
New Jersey	N.J. Stat. Ann. § 46:3-18	None	Yes**	None	None
New Mexico	None (but see N.M. Stat. Ann. § 45-2-111)	None	Not Expressly	None	None
New York	N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 10	None	Yes	None	None
North Carolina	N.C. Gen. Stat. Ann. §§ 64-1	None	Yes	None	None
North Dakota	N.D. Cent. Code Ann. §§ 10-06.1-01 to 10-06.1-27 N.D. Cent. Code Ann. § 47-01-09 N.D. Cent. Code Ann. §§ 47-10.1-01 to 47-10.1-06	Yes	None	Yes	Yes
Ohio	Ohio Rev. Code Ann. § 2105.16 Ohio Rev. Code Ann. §§ 5301.254; 5301.256; 5301.99	Yes	Yes*	Yes	None
Oklahoma	Okla. Const. art. XXII, § 1 Okla. Const. art. XXII, § 2 Okla. Stat. tit. 18, §§ 951 to 956 Okla. Stat. tit. 60, §§ 121 to 125	Yes	None	None	Yes
Oregon	Or. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 273.255	Yes—public land only	Not Expressly	None	None
Pennsylvania	68 Pa. Stat. Ann. §§ 22 to 24; 28 to 31 68 Pa. Stat. Ann. §§ 41 to 47	Yes	Yes*	State monitors AFIDA reporting	None
Rhode Island	34 R.I. Gen. Laws Ann. § 34-2-1	None	Yes	None	None
South Carolina	S.C. Const. art. III, § 35 S.C. Code Ann. §§ 27-13-10 to 27‑13‑40	Yes	None	None	None
South Dakota	S.D. Const. art. VI, § 14 S.D. Codified Laws §§ 43-2A-1 to 43‑2A-7 S.D. Codified Laws §§ 47-9A-1 to 47‑9A-23	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Tennessee	Tenn. Code Ann. § 66-2-101 Tenn. Code Ann. § 66-2-102 Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 66-2-301 to 66-2-306	Yes	Yes*	Yes	Yes
Texas	Tex. Prop. Code Ann. § 5.005	None	Yes	None	None
Utah	Utah Code Ann. §§ 63L-13-101 to 63L-13-202	Yes	Not Expressly	None	Yes, but limited
Vermont	Vt. Const. CH II, § 66	None	Yes	None	None
Virginia	Va. Code Ann. § 55.1-100; 55.1-507 to 509	Yes	Yes*	None	Yes, but limited
Washington	Wash. Rev. Code Ann. § 64.16.005	None	Yes	None	None
West Virginia	W. Va. Const. art. II, § 5 W. Va. Code Ann. § 11A-3-45a W. Va. Code Ann. 11A-3-48a W. Va. Code Ann. § 36-1-21	None°	Yes	None	None°
Wisconsin	Wis. Const. art. I, § 15 Wis. Stat. § 182.001 Wis. Stat. §§ 710.01 to 710.02	Yes	Yes*	Yes	Yes
Wyoming	Wyo. Const. art. I, § 29	None	Yes	None	None

* State Code contains law(s) that permit and prohibit foreign individuals and/or entities from acquiring, holding, or owning an interest in real estate located within the boundaries of their state.

** State Code contains law(s) that include restrictions on certain foreign individuals and/or entities from acquiring, holding, or owning an interest in real property within the state; however, these laws derive from legislation enacted in the late-1700s and are likely not enforceable as currently written.

° West Virginia enacted in 2023 a law (W. Va. Code Ann. §§ 11-A-3-45a, -48a) restricting certain foreign purchases of real property located within the state, but the restriction limits these foreign investors from participating or purchasing property at a public auction. Because of the scope of this chart and the limited circumstances in which the state’s restriction applies, West Virginia is not credited as having a restriction in this chart. Nevertheless, readers should be aware this type of law restricting certain foreign investments may exist in different states.