State law reference
Do Mineral Rights Expire in Minnesota?
Do mineral rights expire in Minnesota? Minnesota does not end mineral interests for nonuse. Owners of severed mineral interests must record a statement with the county, and an unrecorded interest can be forfeited to the state, but only after a show cause proceeding and a court order.
Official text cited Researched and checked by American Mineral Registry against the official text; review completed October 1, 2026. Reference research, not legal advice.
- Rule type
- Registration or claim rules
- Period
- Fixed past dates
- Ends without a surface owner step
- Not applicable
- Preservation filing
- Not applicable
- Forced pooling statute
- No statute found
- Surface damages statute
- No statute found
- Deceased or unlocated owner
- Partly checked
How the rule works
Recorded statement of severed mineral interest required; unrecorded interests can be forfeited to the state by court order. Minnesota does not end severed mineral interests for nonuse. Since January 1, 1970 every owner of a fee interest in minerals held apart from the surface must record a verified statement with the county recorder or registrar of titles (Minn. Stat. 93.52). An interest not recorded before January 1, 1975 (if owned on or before December 31, 1973) or within one year after it was acquired (if acquired later) forfeits to the state, but only after the commissioner of natural resources gives notice of an order to show cause and a court adjudges the forfeiture absolute; the owner defeats it by showing substantial compliance, which requires both that the county records showed the true owner and that all severed mineral taxes were paid on time (93.55). The obligation is ongoing, not only historical, because each later acquisition starts a new one year recording window.
What has to happen
The commissioner of natural resources notifies the last owner of record, served like a summons in an adverse claims action under chapter 559, of a hearing on an order to show cause why the interest should not forfeit to the state absolutely; the court is asked to adjudge the forfeiture absolute unless substantial compliance is shown (93.55 subd. 2). Before finishing that procedure the commissioner may lease the interest, but the lessee may not mine (exploration excepted) until a court has adjudged the forfeiture absolute (subd. 1a). A person who owned the interest before forfeiture may recover its fair market value, either as an alternative claim at the show cause hearing or in an action brought within six years after the judgment (subd. 4).
What counts as use or preserves the interest
Recording the verified statement required by 93.52 before the deadline in 93.55 subd. 1
Substantial compliance: during the filing period the county records showed the true owner, or probate, divorce, bankruptcy, mortgage foreclosure or other title proceedings were timely started and diligently pursued, and all severed mineral taxes, including 273.165 taxes that would have been due had the interest been recorded, were timely paid (93.55 subd. 2(b))
A timely statement is valid despite a wrong fraction, more than one government section, missing verification, or recording in the wrong office, and may be corrected by amendment (93.551)
Relief under 93.55 subd. 1b for unrecorded conveyances made on or after December 31, 1969 and before July 1, 2007, if substantial compliance is shown and a new statement is recorded within one year of any conveyance on or after July 1, 2007
Interests valued and taxed under other mineral tax laws are outside 93.55 forfeiture while a tax is imposed and no tax forfeiture is complete (93.55 subd. 5)
Preservation filing
Verified statement, in triplicate, citing sections 93.52 to 93.551 and giving the owner's address, the interest in the minerals, the legal description of the land, and the book and page or document number of the instrument by which the interest was created or acquired; one government section per statement unless the source instrument covers more than one; recorded with the county recorder, or the registrar of titles for registered land, in the county where the interest lies (93.52 subd. 2).
Scope
- Interests covered
- Every fee simple interest in minerals owned separately from the fee title to the surface (93.52 subd. 2). Exempt owners: the United States, the State of Minnesota, and any American Indian tribe or band owning reservation lands (93.52 subd. 3). The statute does not say whether royalty or other nonfee interests are covered.
- Minerals covered
- All minerals. The companion tax statute defines a mineral interest as an interest in any minerals, including gas, coal, oil or similar interests, owned apart from the surface (273.165 subd. 1).
- Exceptions
Interests owned by the United States, the State of Minnesota, or a tribe or band owning reservation lands (93.52 subd. 3)
Interests valued and taxed under other laws relating to the taxation of minerals, gas, coal, oil or similar interests, so long as a tax is imposed and no tax forfeiture is complete (93.55 subd. 5)
No condemnation rights over overlying surface interests for a lessee of an interest leased under 93.55 (subd. 3)
- Enactment and amendments
- Created by Laws 1969 c 829, with recording required from January 1, 1970. 93.55 history: 1969 c 829 s 4; 1969 c 1129; 1973 c 492; 1973 c 650 art 20 s 6; 1979 c 303 art 10 s 1; 1Sp1985 c 14; 1988 c 508 s 1 to 3; 1989 c 277; 2005 c 4 s 21 to 24; 2007 c 131 art 2 s 3, 4 (subd. 1b added); 2009 c 101. 93.52 last amended 2023 c 25 s 20. 93.551 created 1979 c 303 art 10 s 2. No 2026 session flag on any of these sections on October 1, 2026.
Dates and what they mean
A date cannot be computed for Minnesota from a last use date alone; the note below explains what the rule turns on. The rule finder shows the same explanation.
A last use date is irrelevant: production or use neither keeps nor loses the interest. A calculator can state the recording deadline (before January 1, 1975 for interests held on December 31, 1973; one year after acquisition for later acquisitions), but missing it only exposes the interest to a forfeiture proceeding, and the loss happens on the court's order, so no forfeiture date can be computed.
Deceased or unlocated owner
Partly checked What the law of Minnesota says when the owner of record has died, is unknown, or cannot be found. It sets out the questions; it does not decide who owns an interest, whether a notice was valid, or whether an interest ended.
Why only partly checked. Minnesota appellate decisions after Contos v. Herbst (1979) were not searched because the case search was rate limited.
Minnesota does not end severed mineral interests for nonuse; instead every owner of a severed fee mineral interest must record a verified statement, and an unrecorded interest forfeits to the state only after the commissioner of natural resources serves the last owner of record with notice of a show cause hearing and a court adjudges the forfeiture absolute. Notice is served in the manner used for chapter 559 adverse claims actions, where unknown heirs of a deceased person may be served by publication after an affidavit of reasonable diligence. Timely and diligently pursued probate by the true owner, together with timely tax payment, counts as substantial compliance, and a former owner may recover fair market value within six years after the forfeiture judgment. The Minnesota Supreme Court held in Contos v. Herbst (1979) that the earlier published notice only, no hearing version violated due process.
- Owner of record has died
- Notice goes to "the last owner of record" (P3). Timely initiated and diligently pursued probate by the true owner counts toward substantial compliance (P5). Chapter 559 allows publication on unknown heirs of a deceased person (P4), and 93.55 adopts chapter 559 service.
- Current owner unknown
- Section 93.55 names no separate procedure; it adopts chapter 559 service, which permits publication on "all other persons unknown" and unknown heirs after an affidavit (P4).
- Owner known but cannot be found
- Section 93.55 relies on chapter 559 service of summons; the chapter 559 rules for nonresident or absent defendants by publication were referenced in 559.02 but not separately read.
How the nonuse rule treats these owners Statute and court decisions
Registration, not nonuse: failure to record the verified statement leads to forfeiture to the state only after notice and a court hearing. Contos struck the earlier version that lacked individual notice and a hearing.
Statute
Every owner of a severed fee interest in minerals must record a verified statement of ownership with the county recorder or registrar of titles. Minn. Stat. 93.52 subd. 2
“every owner of a fee simple interest in minerals, hereafter referred to as a mineral interest, in lands in this state, which interest is owned separately from the fee title to the surface of the property upon or beneath which the mineral interest exists, shall record”
Scope: Severed fee interests in minerals; exempts the United States, the state and tribes owning reservation lands (subd. 3). Whether royalty or other nonfee interests are covered is not stated.
An unrecorded interest forfeits to the state, but only after notice and opportunity for hearing; later acquirers must record within one year after acquiring. Minn. Stat. 93.55 subd. 1
“or within one year after acquiring the interests as to interests acquired after December 31, 1973, the mineral interest shall forfeit to the state after notice and opportunity for hearing as provided in this section.”
Scope: All unrecorded severed fee mineral interests. "Acquiring" is not defined, so whether inheritance or devise starts the one year window is not stated.
Court decisions
The court held that forfeiture without a hearing on its validity violates due process. 278 N.W.2d 732 (Minn. 1979)
“We are also in agreement with plaintiffs’ argument that the statutory scheme attending the forfeiture provisions violates due process because it contains no provision for a hearing to determine the validity of the forfeiture.”
Scope: Minnesota Supreme Court, controlling statewide, but it judged the 1969 to 1973 version of the act, which relied on published notice and had no hearing; the current 93.55 adds served notice and a court hearing. Decided before Texaco v. Short (1982). It did not address heirs or unlocated owners specifically.
Heirs, devisees and successors Statute
Every owner must record, and later acquirers within one year after acquiring; "acquiring" is undefined. Probate timely initiated and diligently pursued by the true owner is part of the substantial compliance defense.
Statute
An unrecorded interest forfeits to the state, but only after notice and opportunity for hearing; later acquirers must record within one year after acquiring. Minn. Stat. 93.55 subd. 1
“or within one year after acquiring the interests as to interests acquired after December 31, 1973, the mineral interest shall forfeit to the state after notice and opportunity for hearing as provided in this section.”
Scope: All unrecorded severed fee mineral interests. "Acquiring" is not defined, so whether inheritance or devise starts the one year window is not stated.
Substantial compliance includes timely initiated and diligently pursued probate or other title proceedings by the true owner during the recording window. Minn. Stat. 93.55 subd. 2(b)(1)
“or that probate, divorce, bankruptcy, mortgage foreclosure, or other proceedings affecting the title had been timely initiated and diligently pursued by the true owner during the time period within which the severed mineral interest statement should have been recorded”
Scope: Defense in 93.55 forfeiture hearings; must be combined with timely payment of severed mineral taxes (subd. 2(b)(2)).
Search required to find the owner Statute
Section 93.55 itself requires no search beyond the county records naming the last owner of record. Chapter 559 publication on unknown heirs requires an affidavit that names and residences cannot with reasonable diligence be ascertained.
Statute
The commissioner notifies the last owner of record of a show cause hearing, served like a summons in a chapter 559 adverse claims action. Minn. Stat. 93.55 subd. 2(a)
“The commissioner shall notify the last owner of record ... of a hearing on an order to show cause why the mineral interest should not forfeit to the state absolutely. The notice shall be served in the same manner as provided for the service of summons in a civil action to determine adverse claims under chapter 559”
Scope: Forfeiture proceedings under 93.55. Notice is directed to the last owner of record; the section does not separately name heirs.
In a chapter 559 action, unknown persons and the unknown heirs of a deceased person may be served by publication on an affidavit that their names and residences cannot with reasonable diligence be ascertained. Minn. Stat. 559.02
“the heirs of a deceased person are proper parties defendant, and their names are unknown, and such affidavit shall further state ... that their names and residences cannot with reasonable diligence be ascertained, then service of summons may be made on such unknown heirs by publication”
Scope: This is the chapter 559 rule for adverse claims actions. Section 93.55 subd. 2(a) adopts the chapter 559 manner of service; no decision read confirms that 559.02 applies in 93.55 forfeiture proceedings.
Who gets notice, and how Statute and court decisions
The commissioner notifies the last owner of record, served as a summons under chapter 559. Contos held published notice alone inadequate under the earlier statute.
Statute
The commissioner notifies the last owner of record of a show cause hearing, served like a summons in a chapter 559 adverse claims action. Minn. Stat. 93.55 subd. 2(a)
“The commissioner shall notify the last owner of record ... of a hearing on an order to show cause why the mineral interest should not forfeit to the state absolutely. The notice shall be served in the same manner as provided for the service of summons in a civil action to determine adverse claims under chapter 559”
Scope: Forfeiture proceedings under 93.55. Notice is directed to the last owner of record; the section does not separately name heirs.
Court decisions
Under the earlier statute, the court held published notice inadequate where forfeiture follows mere failure to act. 278 N.W.2d 732 (Minn. 1979)
“Under these circumstances, notice by publication is inadequate where forfeiture is the penalty imposed for mere failure to act.”
Scope: Minnesota Supreme Court, controlling statewide, but it judged the 1969 to 1973 version of the act, which relied on published notice and had no hearing; the current 93.55 adds served notice and a court hearing. Decided before Texaco v. Short (1982). It did not address heirs or unlocated owners specifically.
Notice by publication Statute and court decisions
Through chapter 559, publication is available on unknown persons and unknown heirs after an affidavit of reasonable diligence; Contos held publication alone inadequate under the earlier statute.
Statute
In a chapter 559 action, unknown persons and the unknown heirs of a deceased person may be served by publication on an affidavit that their names and residences cannot with reasonable diligence be ascertained. Minn. Stat. 559.02
“the heirs of a deceased person are proper parties defendant, and their names are unknown, and such affidavit shall further state ... that their names and residences cannot with reasonable diligence be ascertained, then service of summons may be made on such unknown heirs by publication”
Scope: This is the chapter 559 rule for adverse claims actions. Section 93.55 subd. 2(a) adopts the chapter 559 manner of service; no decision read confirms that 559.02 applies in 93.55 forfeiture proceedings.
Court decisions
Under the earlier statute, the court held published notice inadequate where forfeiture follows mere failure to act. 278 N.W.2d 732 (Minn. 1979)
“Under these circumstances, notice by publication is inadequate where forfeiture is the penalty imposed for mere failure to act.”
Scope: Minnesota Supreme Court, controlling statewide, but it judged the 1969 to 1973 version of the act, which relied on published notice and had no hearing; the current 93.55 adds served notice and a court hearing. Decided before Texaco v. Short (1982). It did not address heirs or unlocated owners specifically.
How the owner responds or preserves Statute and court decisions
At the show cause hearing the owner may show substantial compliance (true ownership shown of record or probate and other title proceedings timely pursued, and taxes timely paid); after forfeiture the former owner may recover fair market value within six years. Contos requires a hearing before forfeiture.
Statute
Substantial compliance also requires that all severed mineral taxes were timely paid. Minn. Stat. 93.55 subd. 2(b)(2)
“that all taxes relating to severed mineral interests had been timely paid, including any taxes which would have been due and owing under section 273.165, subdivision 1, had the interest been properly recorded”
Scope: Defense in 93.55 forfeiture hearings.
After forfeiture, a person who owned the interest may recover its fair market value, in the hearing or in a separate action within six years. Minn. Stat. 93.55 subd. 4(b)
“An action may be commenced within six years after entry of judgment under this section to determine the ownership and the fair market value of the mineral interests in the property both at the time of forfeiture and at the time of bringing the action.”
Scope: Forfeited interests; refund is reduced by taxes, penalties, costs and interest that could have been collected (subd. 4(c)).
Court decisions
The court held that forfeiture without a hearing on its validity violates due process. 278 N.W.2d 732 (Minn. 1979)
“We are also in agreement with plaintiffs’ argument that the statutory scheme attending the forfeiture provisions violates due process because it contains no provision for a hearing to determine the validity of the forfeiture.”
Scope: Minnesota Supreme Court, controlling statewide, but it judged the 1969 to 1973 version of the act, which relied on published notice and had no hearing; the current 93.55 adds served notice and a court hearing. Decided before Texaco v. Short (1982). It did not address heirs or unlocated owners specifically.
Court, receivership or trust for missing owners Statute
Commissioner of natural resources may lease an unrecorded severed interest before forfeiture is complete (93.55 subd. 1a and 3); mining waits for an absolute forfeiture judgment.
Statute
Before completing forfeiture, the commissioner may lease an unrecorded severed interest, but the lessee may not mine until forfeiture is adjudged absolute. Minn. Stat. 93.55 subd. 1a
“A lessee holding a lease issued under this subdivision may not mine under the lease until the commissioner completes the procedures set forth in subdivision 2 and a court has adjudged the forfeiture of the mineral interest to be absolute.”
Scope: Unrecorded severed interests only; exploration is excluded from "mine".
What a title review must establish
- Was a verified statement under 93.52 recorded for this interest, and within one year after each later acquisition?
- If the record owner died, was probate timely initiated and diligently pursued, and were severed mineral taxes paid on time?
- Has the commissioner brought a 93.55 forfeiture proceeding, who was served as last owner of record, and were unknown heirs served under chapter 559?
- Has the commissioner issued a lease of the interest under 93.55 subd. 1a?
Dates. Recording due "before January 1, 1975" for interests owned "on or before December 31, 1973", or "within one year after acquiring the interests" for later acquisitions (93.55 subd. 1). Exemption for conveyances "on or after December 31, 1969, but before July 1, 2007" if a new statement is recorded "within one year of any conveyance of ownership on or after July 1, 2007" (subd. 1b). Fair market value action "within six years after entry of judgment" (subd. 4(b)). Minors served as unknown heirs under 559.02 "may be allowed to defend at any time within two years after becoming of age". The provisions read do not say whether death starts a new one year window. The rule finder does not calculate this period.
What AMR searched. Read Minn. Stat. 93.52 to 93.551 and the chapter 93 table of sections (revisor.mn.gov, 2025 Statutes, read directly), and 559.01 to 559.02. Read Contos v. Herbst, 278 N.W.2d 732 (Minn. 1979) from the Caselaw Access Project. Not read: 559 rules on nonresident service by publication (Rule 4 of the Rules of Civil Procedure), severed mineral tax and tax forfeiture chapters (273.165, 279 to 282), and any later Minnesota decision applying 93.55, because CourtListener was rate limited. A point marked not addressed means only that the provisions read do not address it; probate, quiet title and other general procedures may still apply and were not reviewed.
Not settled by this review.
Whether inheritance or devise is "acquiring" that starts a new one year recording window under 93.55 subd. 1.
Read any Minnesota appellate decision applying the current 93.55 notice and hearing procedure.
Whether chapter 559.02 publication on unknown heirs is used in 93.55 proceedings in practice, and whether the commissioner still brings them.
Tax forfeiture of severed mineral interests for unpaid 273.165 tax and its notice rules.
Checked October 6, 2026. Also in the dormant mineral rule finder.
Forced pooling
No statute found No compulsory pooling identified. Minn. Stat. 93.515 (1993) and 93.514(a)(4) (2024) authorize and require DNR rules on spacing, pooling and unitization, but 93.513 bars gas or oil production without a DNR permit that demonstrates control of the extraction area through ownership, lease or agreement, and DNR's 2026 notice of proposed rules says the applicant must control 100 percent of the mineral interests in the spacing unit.
Searched: Minn. Stat. chapter 93 table of sections; 93.513 to 93.516 and 103I.681 read in full on the official revisor site; DNR notice of intent for proposed rules R-4995 (Minn. R. parts 6124), comment period closed July 2, 2026. Whether those rules were adopted after that date, and their final pooling text, was not checked.
- Minn. Stat. 93.513 subd. 1
- Minn. Stat. 93.515(2)
- Notice of intent to adopt expedited rules, Minn. R. parts 6124, R-4995
Surface damages
No statute found No Minnesota statute was found that requires oil and gas operators to notify and compensate surface owners for damage. 93.516 lets DNR require financial assurance for damages only on state gas and oil leases, and 103I.681 does the same for underground storage permits.
Searched: Minn. Stat. chapter 93 table of sections; 93.513 to 93.516; 103I.601 (exploratory borings) and 103I.681 (underground storage) read on the official revisor site. No section creates a surface owner notice and compensation duty for oil and gas operations. The proposed DNR rules R-4995 were not read in full.
Taxes
Broad personal income tax: yes. Nonresidents are taxed on income or gains from tangible property located in Minnesota that is not employed in their business and on rents and royalties from Minnesota sources, while resident income is not subject to allocation outside Minnesota. Official text cited Source and notes.
Severance or production tax. Not part of AMR’s October 2026 tax review, which covered 25 producing states; that is not a finding that Minnesota levies none. Use the state revenue agency’s own pages.
Not tax advice. Rates change and the cited source controls.
Sources for the dormant mineral rule
Each source was read on the date shown. Where an official site was not available, the official page was read through a dated Internet Archive copy and that is stated.
- Minn. Stat. 93.52 subd. 2
“from and after January 1, 1970, every owner of a fee simple interest in minerals ... which interest is owned separately from the fee title to the surface of the property ... shall record in the office of the county recorder or, if registered property, in the office of the registrar of titles ... a verified statement”
- Minn. Stat. 93.55 subd. 1
“If the owner ... fails to record the verified statement required by section 93.52, before January 1, 1975, as to any interests owned on or before December 31, 1973, or within one year after acquiring the interests as to interests acquired after December 31, 1973, the mineral interest shall forfeit to the state after notice and opportunity for hearing”
- Minn. Stat. 93.55 subd. 2(a)
“The commissioner shall notify the last owner of record in either the county recorder's or registrar of titles' office of a hearing on an order to show cause why the mineral interest should not forfeit to the state absolutely.”
- Minn. Stat. 93.55 subd. 2(b)(2)
“that all taxes relating to severed mineral interests had been timely paid, including any taxes which would have been due and owing under section 273.165, subdivision 1, had the interest been properly recorded as required by section 93.52 within the time specified in this section.”
- Minn. Stat. 273.165 subd. 1
“A tax of 40 cents per acre or portion of an acre of mineral interest is imposed and is payable annually.”
- Minn. Stat. 272.039
“This result is caused in part by the decision in Wichelman v. Messner, 1957, 250 Minn. 88, 83 N.W. (2d) 800, where the so called "40 year law" was held inapplicable to mineral interests owned separately from surface interests.”
- Severed Mineral Interest Research Program, 1992 fiscal year end report, part IV.C
“No payment of the delinquent taxes was made during the time for redemption and the title to the severed mineral interests forfeited to the state on February 14, 1992.”
Open questions for a specialist
This review did not settle these points. They are where a Minnesota title attorney or landman should look first.
The statute does not define "acquiring"; whether inheritance or devise starts the one year recording window was not researched (93.55 subd. 2(b)(1) treats timely probate as substantial compliance).
Whether royalty interests or other nonfee mineral interests are a "fee simple interest in minerals" under 93.52 was not researched.
Minnesota appellate decisions applying or testing 93.52 to 93.55 were not read.
The statutory chain for tax judgment and forfeiture of severed mineral interests for unpaid 273.165 tax (property tax chapters 279 to 282) was not read; the 1992 DNR report shows it has been used.
Whether DNR still brings 93.55 forfeiture proceedings today, and how many interests remain unrecorded, is not known.
Common questions
Can mineral rights lapse in Minnesota?
Only through its registration rules. Minnesota set deadlines for recording or claiming certain interests, and there is no rolling nonuse period. Whether a deadline still applies to your interest is under How the rule works.
Does Minnesota allow forced pooling?
A search of Minnesota’s official code found no forced pooling statute. The scope of that search is under Forced pooling above.
Does Minnesota require payment for surface damage?
A search of Minnesota’s official code found no surface damages statute of that kind. Leases, deeds and general law can still give the surface owner a claim.
What changed
The June 2026 edition listed Minnesota as Special mechanism, lapse period see note. Release 2026.10 replaced that entry with the reviewed rule above, and retired the June risk score and ranking for every state. Release 2026.10.1 added the deceased or unlocated owner section. See all changes.
Cite this page
American Mineral Registry. "Do Mineral Rights Expire in Minnesota?" U.S. Mineral Rights Law Atlas, release 2026.10.1, October 6, 2026. https:// americanmineralregistry.com/ research/ states/ do-mineral-rights-expire-in-minnesota
[Do Mineral Rights Expire in Minnesota?](https:// americanmineralregistry.com/ research/ states/ do-mineral-rights-expire-in-minnesota), U.S. Mineral Rights Law Atlas, American Mineral Registry, release 2026.10.1 (2026-10-06).
<a href="https:// americanmineralregistry.com/ research/ states/ do-mineral-rights-expire-in-minnesota">Do Mineral Rights Expire in Minnesota?</ a>, U.S. Mineral Rights Law Atlas, American Mineral Registry, release 2026.10.1 (2026-10-06).
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General information about statutes, not legal advice and not a title opinion. Facts about a specific interest decide the outcome. Published by American Mineral Registry, which also runs a commercial service for owners; see how the two relate.