Habitat Ledger › Guides › Converting ag to wildlife

Converting from an ag exemption to wildlife management

Updated November 1, 2026 · by Adam McLaughlin

If your land is already appraised for agricultural or timber use, you can switch it to wildlife management use and keep the same productivity-based valuation. Here's how the switch works.

Who can convert

• The land has to be already appraised as open-space agricultural (1-d-1) or timber land in the year before you switch. Wildlife management is a change of agricultural use, not a new way to qualify raw land.
• Land under the older 1-d agricultural appraisal has to get 1-d-1 open-space appraisal first.
• If your tract has been made smaller since the previous January 1, a minimum acreage rule applies.

The steps

1. Write your wildlife management plan on TPWD form PWD-885. See how to write it.
2. Get the 1-d-1 open-space application from your county appraisal district (the Comptroller's application for 1-d-1 agricultural use appraisal, Form 50-129). Find your district in the Texas Comptroller county appraisal district directory.
3. File the application and the plan together with your appraisal district between January 1 and April 30 of the year you're switching. The law says the application is due before May 1.
4. Start doing and documenting your practices right away. Your first annual report covers the work you do this year.

What stays the same

The switch is meant to be revenue neutral: your land keeps the productivity value it had under agricultural use. Livestock can stay, and timber management is compatible with wildlife management. You generally don't reapply every year, but you have to tell the chief appraiser when your use changes, and many districts ask for an annual report.

More guides: How to file the annual report (PWD-888) · The 7 wildlife practices, with examples · Writing your wildlife plan (PWD-885) · Minimum acreage when land is split · Rollback taxes explained

Sources

• TPWD: Tax valuation for wildlife management FAQ
• Texas A&M AgriLife Extension: Wildlife Management as Agricultural Use for Property Tax Valuation in Texas (SCS-2010-03)
• Texas Comptroller county appraisal district directory

This is general information, not legal or tax advice. Talk with your appraisal district or a property tax professional about your situation.

Common questions

Can bare land with no ag history qualify for wildlife management?

Generally no. Wildlife management is a change of use for land that is already appraised as 1-d-1 open-space agricultural or timber land.

When is the application due?

File the 1-d-1 open-space application and your wildlife management plan with your county appraisal district between January 1 and April 30 of the year you switch.

Will my taxes go up when I convert?

The conversion is designed to be revenue neutral, so the land keeps the productivity value it had under agricultural use.