How long is squatters' rights in Oregon?
Ten years under ORS 105.620, but only for someone who honestly and reasonably believed they owned the land when they moved in. Since January 1, 2026, an Oregon owner can also serve a squatter a 24-hour written notice and go to court on the fast eviction track.
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
- 10 years
- What's different here
- an honest belief of ownership, plus a 24-hour squatter notice since 2026
- Statute
- ORS 105.620, ORS 12.050
Someone living in your home in Oregon? 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.
Oregon's adverse possession statute, ORS 105.620, asks for ten years of actual, open, notorious, exclusive, hostile and continuous possession, which matches the ten-year limit on suits to recover land in ORS 12.050. It adds a condition most states do not have. When the claimant first entered, they must have honestly believed they were the actual owner, that belief must have lasted through the ten years, and it must have an objective basis and be reasonable in the circumstances. The claimant must prove each element by clear and convincing evidence.
A person who knows the land belongs to someone else therefore cannot qualify, which describes the typical squatter. Possession counts as hostile only if it is under a claim of right or color of title, meaning a written conveyance or a claim through someone who holds one. Grazing livestock alone is not enough.
Removal changed in 2025. House Bill 3522, in force since January 1, 2026, lets a residential owner serve a squatter a written notice of at least 24 hours that states the date and time to leave and says the cause is squatter status. The notice creates no tenancy. A squatter who stays past it is holding unlawfully by force, and the owner files a forcible entry and detainer (FED) action, the same fast court track used for evictions, instead of the slower ejectment suit. A former tenant who stays after a lease ends is not a squatter under the bill and is handled under the landlord-tenant law.
Where Oregon sits against the rest of the United States, in years
Of 50 places in the United States on these pages, 17 have a shorter clock and 18 a longer one or none at all.
Sources checked
- oregon.public.law/statutes/ors_105.620
- oregon.public.law/statutes/ors_12.050
- tonkon.com/ear-to-the-ground-blog/oregons-hb-3522-a-new-tool-to-remove-squatters/
- harris-sliwoski.com/blog/a-squatter-wont-leave-now-what/
- swpdxlaw.com/oregon-enacts-a-new-law-allowing-landlords-to-use-the-eviction-process-against-squatters/
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 10 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 Oregon?
Oregon's adverse possession law is ORS 105.620: 10 years of actual, open, notorious, exclusive, hostile and continuous possession, with an honest belief of ownership. Squatting itself is trespassing. Since January 1, 2026, House Bill 3522 lets an owner give a squatter 24 hours' written notice and file a fast eviction case. A settled squatter is still removed through the courts, never by changing the locks or cutting the utilities.
How long is squatters' rights in Oregon?
Ten years of continuous possession, proved by clear and convincing evidence, and the claimant must have honestly and reasonably believed they were the owner from the start. ORS 105.620 and ORS 12.050.
What applies to an ordinary squatter with no deed in Oregon?
A squatter who knows the land belongs to someone else cannot meet Oregon's honest-belief test, so ten years of occupation gives them nothing. Possession must also be under a claim of right or color of title. Until then the person is a trespasser.
What is Oregon's new squatter law?
House Bill 3522 (2025), in force since January 1, 2026. The owner serves at least 24 hours' written notice that gives the date and time to leave and states the cause is squatter status. The notice creates no tenancy. If the person stays, the owner files a forcible entry and detainer (FED) case in court. It replaces the slower ejectment suit for squatters, and a tenant whose lease ended is not covered.
Can I remove a squatter in Oregon without a court order?
No. Even under the 2026 law the owner serves the notice and then goes to court. Changing the locks, removing belongings or cutting the utilities is illegal self-help. Call the police at once if you catch someone moving in, before they have settled.
Can someone help me get squatters out of my home in Oregon?
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
- Kansas
- 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
- 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.