How to Get an Ag Exemption in Texas: Form 50-129, Start to Finish
Updated: Aug 13
Every agricultural valuation in Texas runs through one document: Form 50-129, the Application for 1-d-1 (Open-Space) Agricultural Use Appraisal. We file these alongside landowners across 40+ Texas counties every year. The form itself takes twenty minutes. The applications that fail are the ones filed without proof behind them. Here is the full walkthrough.
New to the topic? Start with our complete Texas ag exemption guide — the statewide rules, savings, and application process in one place.
Own 5–20 acres in Texas? We place and manage the hives; you keep the valuation. Free eligibility check — call 469-573-4232 or get a quote.
The Short Version: How to Get an Ag Exemption in Texas
Five steps, in order:
Confirm your land and use qualify — acreage, degree of intensity, and the use itself. For bees that means 5 to 20 qualifying acres and your county’s hive count.
Confirm your history — agricultural use in 5 of the last 7 years, or start building it. Land that already holds a valuation can switch uses with no new wait.
Get the right form from YOUR county — usually Form 50-129, but not always (next section).
File between January 1 and April 30 with your evidence attached.
Respond fast to anything the district sends back — most denials are paperwork, not eligibility.
First, Check Which Form Your County Actually Wants
The statewide application is Form 50-129, and in most counties it’s all you file. But several North and East Texas districts use their own application or require county supplements alongside it — filing only the state form there is one of the quiet ways applications stall. From our county-by-county verification (2026):
Smith County uses its OWN 1-d-1 application — not the statewide 50-129.
Kaufman County has its own 1-d-1 application plus an Ag Supplement and a History Affidavit.
Montague County requires its county Ag Application, a Beekeeping Supplement, and an Annual Beekeeping Report due April 30 every year to keep the valuation.
Grayson County requires a county beekeeping application alongside the 50-129 — apiary receipts, transport permits, photos, and marketing materials.
Collin County requires an annual county Beekeeping Report with the 50-129.
Denton and Bosque add a Beekeeping Questionnaire to the 50-129; Comanche prefers its office-generated application (and requires USDA FSA certification).
Everywhere else we service, the state Form 50-129 is the application. When in doubt, call the district and ask for their current beekeeping packet — it’s a two-minute call that prevents a season-long delay.
What the form actually asks
Form 50-129 wants four things: who owns the land, the legal description and account number from your appraisal notice, what agricultural use the land is under (beekeeping counts under Tax Code Section 23.51), and the history of that use. The history section is where applications live or die. The district is looking for agricultural use in 5 of the past 7 years, and they want you to name the use for each year.
The deadline that matters
File by April 30 with your county appraisal district — not the tax office, not the county clerk. Miss it and you can still file late until the appraisal roll is certified (usually mid-July), but you pay a 10% penalty on the tax savings for that year. After certification, you wait until next year. If you are switching an existing Ag valuation to beekeeping, the same deadline applies to the new application in your name.
Miss April 30 and you’re usually not done for the year: most districts accept late applications until the appraisal roll is certified (around mid-July) with a 10% penalty on the tax savings. Liberty County processes anything after June 30 the following year. Henderson County’s 2026 window has already closed — 2027 applications open after tax statements go out. File in the January–April window and none of this applies.
What to attach
The form does not require attachments. Winning applications include them anyway. For beekeeping: your hive management contract, receipts for colonies and equipment, photos of hives on the property with something identifiable in frame, TAIS beekeeper registration if you have it, and a simple map showing hive locations on the tract. If the appraisal district can approve your application without calling you, you did it right.
County wrinkles worth knowing: Hill and Dallas Counties require proof of current Texas Apiary Inspection Service registration. Kaufman wants at least three current receipts (bees, boxes, sugar, seed, or honey products) plus current hive photos and a forage-planting plan. Hays and Hill both ask for a landscape plan showing bee-forage plantings. Fannin, Liberty, and Lamar require the landowner-beekeeper lease agreement with the application when the hives are managed for you.
The three mistakes that get applications denied
First: claiming acreage the statute does not allow. Beekeeping qualifies 5 to 20 acres of open-space land, and the district will carve out roughly an acre under your house. Second: vague history. Writing 'grazing' across five years with no lease, no receipts, and no county record invites a denial. Third: filing in the wrong name after a purchase. The valuation follows the land, but the application must be in the current owner's name — new owners must re-file, even when the land already carries the valuation.
After you file
Districts may approve, deny, or request more information. A request for more information has a deadline attached — miss it and the application is treated as waived. If you are denied, you have protest rights with the Appraisal Review Board, and the deadlines move fast. We cover that fight in a separate guide.
If you would rather hand the whole thing off — hives placed to your county's standard, records kept, application supported with documentation the district cannot argue with — that is exactly what we do. Request a quote from your county's page and we will take it from there.
Filing FAQs
Do I have to file Form 50-129 every year?
No. It's a one-time application filed when you first claim the valuation. The qualifying use has to continue every year, and the appraisal district can ask for a new application or verify your use — but annual re-filing isn't the normal requirement.
What's the deadline to file Form 50-129?
April 30 for the tax year you're claiming. Late applications are accepted until the appraisal roll is certified (typically mid-summer), but they carry a 10% penalty on the tax savings — filing on time is free, filing late isn't.
Where do I send the form?
To your county appraisal district (CAD) — not the tax assessor-collector's office. Every one of our county pages lists the CAD mailing address, phone, and website for that county.
I bought land that already has an ag valuation. Do I still need to file?
Yes. The land's use history carries over to you, but the application doesn't — new owners file their own Form 50-129 to keep the valuation in their name.
Related guides
the 5-year history playbook — not qualified yet? here's the path
protesting a denial — if the CAD says no
our managed ag exemption service — filing support included
Want us to handle it?
Timber Creek Bees manages 2,000+ hives across 40+ Texas counties. We place hives to your county's exact standard, keep them on your property a minimum of seven months a year, manage them year-round, and hand you the documentation your appraisal district asks for.
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How long does it take to get an ag exemption approved in Texas?
Most districts review applications between filing and roll certification — figure weeks to a few months, with approval reflected on that year’s appraisal notice. The 5-year history requirement is the long pole: if your land has no ag history, the application is the fast part and the history is the wait.
Do I have to reapply every year?
Generally no — a granted 1-d-1 valuation carries forward until the use changes or the chief appraiser requests a new application. The exceptions are county-specific annual reports: Collin, Montague, and Wise all require yearly beekeeping reports (typically due April 30) to keep the valuation active.
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