How long is squatters' rights in Kansas?
Fifteen years under K.S.A. 60-503. Under the Removal of Squatters Act, approved in April 2026, an owner can also file a notarized affidavit with police, who serve a notice to vacate, with no eviction case.
If someone is living in your home now, the clock matters far less than getting them out lawfully, and that is where we can help.
- Statutory period
- 15 years
- What's different here
- since 2026 a notarized affidavit gets police to serve a notice to vacate
- Statute
- K.S.A. 60-503
Someone living in your home in Kansas? Dardaris helps you get them out.
Changing the locks or cutting the power turns the law against you. We hand it to people who remove squatters lawfully, for a living.
If they are moving in right now, call the police first. Once they have settled in, it takes a formal process, and that is where we come in.
Your contact at Dardaris
Dardaris is not a law firm and removes nobody itself. If you hire the specialist we introduce, they pay us a referral fee, and you deal with them under their own terms. We pass your details on only once you agree.
- Tell us what is happening, by email or on a call. Talking to us costs nothing.
- We put you in touch with a removal specialist who works through the court and the sheriff, never around them.
- Once the home is free, Dardaris manages the letting for you.
K.S.A. 60-503 says no action can be maintained to recover real property against a person who has been in open, exclusive and continuous possession of it for fifteen years, either under a claim knowingly adverse or under a belief of ownership. The second half matters: Kansas does not make the occupant prove good faith, and a squatter who knows the land is not theirs can still qualify. The statute names no tax payment condition and no shorter route.
The Removal of Squatters Act (2026 Session Laws of Kansas, ch. 56, House Bill 2378, approved April 6, 2026) changed removal. The owner of a dwelling unit, which the act extends to commercial property and mobile homes, or the owner's agent, submits a notarized affidavit to a law enforcement agency in the county. It says the person entered and remains unlawfully, was not authorized to enter, is not a tenant, a holdover tenant or an immediate family member, and was asked to leave and has not. The agency checks that the affiant is the record owner or an authorized agent, and after at least 24 hours from receiving the affidavit an officer serves a notice to vacate immediately, by hand or by posting it on the door. The agency may charge up to $50, and the owner must post a notice at the unit with the agency's address.
Squatter occupancy is outside the residential landlord and tenant act, and removing a squatter does not require an eviction action. The act has safeguards: an owner who knowingly files a false affidavit may be charged with a class A nonperson misdemeanor, and a person removed wrongly can sue for restored possession, actual costs and damages, punitive damages of triple the fair market rent, and court costs and attorney fees. Officers are not liable for good-faith actions.
Where Kansas sits against the rest of the United States, in years
Of 50 places in the United States on these pages, 32 have a shorter clock and 11 a longer one or none at all.
From the day someone moves in to the day a claim is possible
The same three stages in most places. The exact rule, and whether the last stage exists at all, is on each place's own page.
- Day oneMoving inCaught in the act, it is usually a matter for the police: a trespass, not a tenancy.
- Weeks to yearsSettled inOnce someone lives there, removing them usually takes a court order, the same route as for a tenant.
- After 15 yearsA claim becomes possibleOnly if every test held, without a break, for the whole period. Where the law allows no such claim, this stage never comes.
Not yours to do, once they have moved inChanging the locks, cutting the water or power, or removing belongings yourself. It is illegal in every US state and most places on these pages forbid it too. Each page says how removal works there.
The record a court asks for, kept as you go
Wherever your property stands, removing an occupant usually comes down to showing who had the right to be there, and since when. Dardaris files every lease, message and document for a building by date, so that record already exists on the day you need it.
- Every lease, with who signed it and when
- Every message with a tenant, on the thread it was sent in
- Every document, filed against the building it concerns
Frequently asked questions
What are the squatting laws in Kansas?
Kansas's squatter law comes down to K.S.A. 60-503: 15 years of open, exclusive and continuous possession before a squatter can claim ownership. What sets Kansas apart is the Removal of Squatters Act (2026 Session Laws, ch. 56): an owner files a notarized affidavit with police and an officer serves a notice to vacate. Squatting is trespassing, and where that route does not fit a settled squatter is removed through the courts, never by changing the locks or cutting the utilities.
How long is squatters' rights in Kansas?
Fifteen years of open, exclusive and continuous possession, under a claim knowingly adverse or a belief of ownership. K.S.A. 60-503.
What applies to an ordinary squatter with no deed in Kansas?
The same fifteen years, with no paper needed and no tax condition in the statute. The possession can be under a claim knowingly adverse or under a belief of ownership, so good faith is not required. Permission from the owner, or a lease, means the possession is not adverse.
Can police remove a squatter in Kansas without a court order?
Yes, under the Removal of Squatters Act. The owner or agent submits a notarized affidavit to a law enforcement agency in the county, the agency verifies the owner, and after at least 24 hours from receiving it an officer serves a notice to vacate immediately. Tenants, holdover tenants and immediate family are outside the act. A person removed wrongly can sue for possession, damages and triple the fair market rent.
Can I change the locks on a squatter in Kansas?
No. Changing the locks, removing belongings or shutting off utilities yourself is not a lawful route once someone is living there. Use the affidavit under the Removal of Squatters Act if its conditions fit, or the courts. Call the police while someone is still moving in.
Can someone help me get squatters out of my home in Kansas?
Yes. Removal specialists do it through the court and the sheriff. Changing the locks or cutting the power would put you in the wrong. Dardaris can put you in touch with one, and once the home is free, manage the letting for you.
Elsewhere in the United States
The same question, on a different clock. Every place sets its own period and its own shortcuts.
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
- See every place
This is general information, not legal advice.Laws change, and a county or a city can add its own wrinkle on top of the state rule, the way New York City does. Confirm the current rule for your address before acting on it, and talk to a local attorney before relying on any of it in a real dispute.