Squatters Rights in Alabama: 10-Year Adverse Possession Law
Alabama requires 10 years of actual, open, hostile, exclusive, and continuous possession; a claimant without color of title and without paying property taxes needs 20 years instead. Separately, Alabama enacted one of the toughest anti-squatting enforcement laws in the country in 2024.
Last reviewed July 8, 2026 — statutes and case law independently verified against official sources
Alabama vs Neighboring States: Quick Comparison
- Statutory Period
- 10 years
- Tax Payment Required
- No
- Color of Title
- Not required
- Expedited Removal Law
- Yes 2024–2025
- Statutory Period
- 20 years
- Tax Payment Required
- No
- Color of Title
- Not required
- Expedited Removal Law
- Yes 2024–2025
- Statutory Period
- 7 years
- Tax Payment Required
- Yes
- Color of Title
- Not required
- Expedited Removal Law
- Standard process
- Statutory Period
- 10 years
- Tax Payment Required
- No
- Color of Title
- Not required
- Expedited Removal Law
- Yes 2024–2025
Data verified for 2026. Laws subject to change, verify with official state statutes.
The Path to Adverse Possession in Alabama
A visual summary of what a claimant must complete, start to finish.
How Adverse Possession Works in Alabama
To claim ownership of property through adverse possession in Alabama, a claimant must possess the land for 10 years while meeting the legal requirements established under state law.
Legal Basis and Statutory Period
Alabama’s adverse possession law is codified under Ala. Code § 6-5-200; Act 2024-237 (HB 182). The standard statutory period is 10 years of continuous, open, and hostile possession.
Property Tax Requirements
Alabama's standard 10-year claim does not require tax payment. A separate 20-year period applies to possession without color of title and without tax payment, which functions as a fallback track rather than a reduction.
Color of Title Rules
Color of title is not required for the standard 10-year claim. Possession without color of title and without paying taxes extends the required period to 20 years.
Key Legal Requirements
- Actual possession
- Open and notorious possession
- Hostile possession
- Exclusive possession
- Continuous possession for 10 years (20 years without color of title and tax payment)
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Recent Law Changes in Alabama
2024: Act 2024-237 (HB 182), effective June 1, 2024, gave property owners an expedited, law-enforcement-assisted removal process outside the traditional eviction court system — owners post a demand to vacate, then submit a sworn affidavit to the sheriff, who can serve a notice to vacate after 24 hours. The law also created new criminal penalties for fraudulent leasing or sale of property. This is a removal-process change; it does not alter the underlying 10/20-year adverse possession timeline.
Alabama Adverse Possession Procedures
Making an Adverse Possession Claim
To establish adverse possession in Alabama, a claimant typically must:
- File a quiet title action in the circuit court of the county where the property is located
- Provide evidence meeting all statutory and common law requirements: actual, exclusive, hostile, open, and continuous possession for 10 years under Ala. Code Section 6-5-200
- Show that the land was annually listed for taxation in the proper county for the 10 years before the action, if the land is subject to taxation
- Present evidence of color of title or claim of right
- Provide witness testimony, photographs, surveys, and other documentation supporting the claim
- Be prepared to address any evidence of permissive use or interruption of possession
The court evaluates all evidence to determine whether the claimant has satisfied every requirement; Alabama also recognizes a separate common-law prescription doctrine after 20 years of possession that does not require proof of tax payment.
Defending Against Squatters
Alabama property owners can protect against adverse possession claims by:
- Regularly inspecting property boundaries and addressing any encroachments
- Posting "No Trespassing" signs along property boundaries
- Maintaining accurate property surveys and documentation
- Providing written permission for any allowed use of the property
- Keeping property tax payments and tax listings current
- Taking legal action against unauthorized users before the 10-year statutory period expires
- Documenting property visits and boundary inspections
- Considering a declaratory judgment action to establish property rights if a dispute arises
Any action that interrupts the continuity of possession will restart the 10-year statutory period in Alabama.
Removing Squatters
Alabama has both a traditional court process and a newer expedited process for removing squatters:
- Expedited Affidavit Removal (Act 2024-237 / HB 182): Effective June 1, 2024, a property owner can submit a sworn affidavit of ownership to the local law enforcement agency; after 24 hours, law enforcement can remove the unauthorized occupant and pursue trespass, burglary, or theft charges where applicable, without a traditional eviction lawsuit.
- Unlawful Detainer Action: File an unlawful detainer action in district court to remove occupants who have no legal right to occupy the property.
- Ejectment Action: When title to the property is genuinely in dispute, file a complaint for ejectment in circuit court, serve notice on all occupants, attend the court hearing, obtain a writ of possession, and have the sheriff execute the writ to remove the squatters.
- Criminal Trespass: Squatting can also be prosecuted as criminal trespass under Alabama law, a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail and fines, or as a more serious offense under the 2024 amendments if the occupant intended to commit a crime or caused significant property damage.
Act 2024-237 did not change Alabama's adverse possession law itself; it only created a faster removal process. Alabama still prohibits "self-help" evictions such as changing locks, removing doors, or shutting off utilities, which remain illegal and can create liability for the property owner.
Notable Alabama Adverse Possession Cases
Long v. Ladd (1962)
273 Ala. 410, 142 So.2d 660 (Ala. 1962)
A family paid taxes on rural land for 15 years, posted 'No Trespassing' signs bearing their name, built and maintained a road and fence, sold timber off the property, employed a caretaker, granted a utility easement, and hunted the land. The Alabama Supreme Court held that this combination of acts, taken together over the statutory period, was sufficient to establish a claim of ownership by adverse possession even without a single dramatic act of exclusion.
Smith v. Brown (1968)
282 Ala. 528, 213 So.2d 374 (Ala. 1968)
In a dispute over wooded, undeveloped acreage, the Alabama Supreme Court held that because the land was woodland rather than cleared farmland, the claimant had to show continuous and persistent cutting of timber or wood substantial enough to serve as visible evidence of a claim of ownership. Sporadic or occasional timber cutting alone was not enough to satisfy the open and notorious possession element.
McCallister v. Jones (1983)
432 So.2d 489 (Ala. 1983)
A claimant argued that hunting and occasionally using a wooded parcel established adverse possession. The trial judge found the use of the disputed land was merely casual and intermittent, and the Alabama Supreme Court agreed that this fell short of the continuous, exclusive possession required, reinforcing that sporadic recreational use cannot ripen into ownership.
Strickland v. Markos (1990)
566 So.2d 229 (Ala. 1990)
Neighboring landowners disputed ownership of a shared driveway and parking area, with one side claiming title through years of exclusive use and maintenance. The Alabama Supreme Court upheld the trial court's finding of adverse possession, reaffirming that consistent, exclusive use and improvement of a specific strip of land can satisfy Alabama's adverse possession elements in a boundary-type dispute.
Cooper v. Cate (1991)
591 So.2d 68 (Ala. 1991)
Neighbors disputed a boundary after one family treated an old, long-standing fence line as the property line rather than the surveyed legal boundary. The Alabama Supreme Court addressed the presumptions that apply when coterminous landowners have recognized a fence as their dividing line for many years, reinforcing that a durable, visible fence line can support an adverse possession or boundary-by-acquiescence claim.
Connell v. Moody (2012)
No. 2101149 (Ala. Civ. App. June 1, 2012)
Neighboring landowners built a barbed-wire fence along a tree line that did not match their recorded deed boundaries, and the family on one side then planted a garden, kept livestock, and built a shed partly beyond the true line. The Alabama Court of Civil Appeals held that the neighbors' long recognition of the fence as the boundary, combined with open, exclusive use up to that line, supported a claim of ownership up to the fence even though it departed from the deeds' legal description.
Frequently Asked Questions About Alabama Adverse Possession
How long must someone occupy my property in Alabama to claim adverse possession?
In Alabama, the statutory period for adverse possession under Ala. Code Section 6-5-200 is 10 years of continuous, open, notorious, exclusive, and hostile possession, combined with annually listing the land for taxation. Alabama also recognizes a separate common-law prescription doctrine that can establish a boundary after 20 years of recognized possession without the tax-listing requirement.
Do squatters have to pay property taxes in Alabama to claim adverse possession?
Yes, for a claim under the 10-year statute. Alabama Code Section 6-5-200 requires that the person claiming adverse possession have 'annually listed the land for taxation in the proper county for 10 years prior to the commencement of the action if the land is subject to taxation.' This tax-listing requirement is a necessary element distinct from the common-law 20-year prescription doctrine, which does not require it.
What changed under Alabama's 2024 squatter law (Act 2024-237 / HB 182)?
Act 2024-237, effective June 1, 2024, created a faster removal process: a property owner can submit a sworn affidavit of ownership to local law enforcement, and after 24 hours, officers can remove the occupant and pursue criminal charges where warranted. Importantly, the law did not change Alabama's underlying adverse possession requirements; someone who has genuinely met all the elements of adverse possession for the full statutory period can still assert that claim.
Can I legally remove squatters from my property in Alabama?
Yes. Since June 2024, you can use the expedited affidavit process under Act 2024-237, submitting a sworn ownership affidavit to law enforcement for removal within 24 hours. Alternatively, you can file an unlawful detainer action (if there is no title dispute) or an ejectment action (if title is disputed). You cannot use 'self-help' methods like changing locks or cutting off utilities, as these actions could expose you to liability.
Can I lose part of my property because my neighbor's fence is over the boundary line?
Potentially, yes. As Connell v. Moody (2012) and Cooper v. Cate (1991) illustrate, if a neighbor maintains a fence over the true boundary line for the statutory period, treats the fence as the property line, and meets the other requirements for adverse possession or boundary-by-acquiescence, they may gain legal ownership of that strip of your property. Boundary disputes are among the most common adverse possession cases in Alabama.
Can someone claim adverse possession against government-owned land in Alabama?
Generally, no. Alabama has widely adopted the principle that 'no time runs against the state,' protecting land owned by the state of Alabama, counties, municipalities, or other government entities from adverse possession claims regardless of how long someone occupies the property.
Can police remove squatters in Alabama?
Yes, but through a specific affidavit procedure rather than a simple 911 call. Since Act 2024-237 (HB 182) took effect June 1, 2024, an owner can file a sworn affidavit with the local sheriff attesting the occupant entered unlawfully, was never authorized, is not a current or former tenant, and was already told to leave; the sheriff verifies ownership and, after 24 hours, can remove the person and pursue trespass or burglary charges (unauthorized occupation with intent to commit a crime or over $1,000 in damage is burglary in the third degree, a Class C felony, under the 2024 amendments). If the occupant is or was a tenant, this fast-track process doesn't apply, and the owner must instead pursue an unlawful detainer action in district court or, where title is disputed, an ejectment action in circuit court under Ala. Code § 6-5-200 to obtain a writ of possession for the sheriff to enforce.
This information is provided for general educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Adverse possession claims are highly fact-specific. Consult a licensed attorney in the relevant state before relying on this information.