BLM MINING CLAIM MAINTENANCE FEES: A COMPLETE GUIDE

What Is the Maintenance Fee?

Every holder of an unpatented mining claim, mill site, or tunnel site on federal land administered by the Bureau of Land Management must pay an annual maintenance fee to keep the claim in good standing. The fee was established in 1993 (Pub. L. 103-66) as a replacement for the historic assessment work requirement under the General Mining Act of 1872.

The maintenance fee is authorized under 30 U.S.C. §28f and is paid "in lieu of" the assessment work requirement and the related FLPMA Section 314(a) annual filing requirement. In other words, paying the fee satisfies both obligations -- you don't need to perform $100 of assessment work or file a separate annual affidavit with BLM.

Current Fee Amounts

As of the 2025 assessment year, the maintenance fee amounts are:

Fees are adjusted periodically based on the Consumer Price Index under 30 U.S.C. §28j(c). The fee was $100 when first established in 1993, increased to $125, then $140, then $155, then $165, and reached $200 in 2025.

The September 1 Deadline

The maintenance fee must be received by the appropriate BLM State Office on or before September 1 of each year. This is not a postmark deadline -- the payment must be received by BLM, not merely mailed, by September 1.

Payment Methods

BLM accepts the following payment methods for maintenance fees:

• Online via MLRS -- BLM's Mineral and Land Records System accepts online payments through Pay.gov. This is the fastest and most reliable method.
• Credit card -- Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and Discover are accepted.
• Check or money order -- Made payable to the Bureau of Land Management and mailed to the appropriate BLM State Office.
• Cash -- Accepted in person at BLM State Offices (not recommended for obvious reasons).
• BLM Declining Deposit Account -- A pre-funded account maintained with BLM.

Payments must be submitted to the BLM State Office for the state where the claims are recorded. Claims in different states require separate payments to each respective state office.

The Small Miner Waiver

If a claimant and all related parties own 10 or fewer mining claims or sites on federal land nationwide, they may qualify for a maintenance fee waiver (commonly called the "small miner waiver"). To apply:

• File BLM Form 3830-002 on or before September 1 each year
• The waiver must be filed with the appropriate BLM State Office
• Claimants filing a waiver must still perform and document annual assessment work on each claim (the waiver excuses the fee, not the work)
• The 10-claim limit applies across all states combined, and includes claims held by affiliated parties

What Happens If You Miss the Deadline

Forfeiture is automatic. Under §28i, the claim "shall be deemed null and void by operation of law." This means:

• No notice from BLM. BLM is not required to notify you that your claim has been forfeited. The forfeiture happens by statute, not by administrative action.
• No cure period. Unlike some other federal filing requirements, there is no statutory cure period for missed maintenance fee payments.
• No equitable defense. Good faith, mistake, reliance on BLM advice, and other equitable arguments have been rejected by courts in the FLPMA filing context (United States v. Locke, 471 U.S. 84, 1985).
• The ground opens up. Once a claim is void, the land reverts to open public domain. Anyone can file a new claim on that ground -- including claim jumpers who monitor MLRS specifically for this purpose.

Common Mistakes That Lead to Forfeiture

• Mailing too close to the deadline. The payment must be received by September 1, not postmarked. Mail delays can cause forfeiture.
• Paying the wrong BLM office. Claims in Nevada must be paid to the Nevada BLM State Office. Sending payment to the wrong state office is not compliance.
• Underpaying after a fee increase. When BLM raises the fee (as it did in 2025 from $165 to $200), claimants who pay the old amount have a deficient payment. BLM has sometimes offered cure periods for fee-increase deficiencies, but this is discretionary, not guaranteed.
• Assuming BLM recorded it correctly. BLM processes hundreds of thousands of payments each year. Data entry errors happen -- a payment may be recorded against the wrong serial number, or not recorded at all. If MLRS doesn't show the payment, the record says you didn't pay.
• Not monitoring MLRS after payment. You should verify in MLRS that your payment was recorded against each claim. If it wasn't, you need to contact BLM immediately with proof of payment.

The Gap Year: When the Fee System Broke

In 2011, Congress accidentally broke the maintenance fee statute for pre-1993 lode claims. For one assessment year (AY2013), paying the maintenance fee did not satisfy the FLPMA annual filing requirement for these claims. Thousands of claimants paid their fees as usual, unaware they also needed to file a separate FLPMA annual instrument. The error was fixed in 2013, but the fix was prospective only -- no retroactive cure was enacted.

ClaimWatch has already identified every claim affected by the gap year. If you hold pre-1993 lode claims, mill sites, or tunnel sites, you can check your exposure immediately.

Best Practices for Claim Holders

1. Pay early. Don't wait until August. Pay in June or July to give yourself a buffer.
2. Pay online. MLRS provides instant confirmation. Checks can get lost in the mail.
3. Verify the record. After paying, check MLRS to confirm every claim shows the payment for the correct assessment year.
4. Keep receipts indefinitely. Payment records are your defense against BLM recording errors.
5. Monitor your claims year-round. ClaimWatch's Claim Change Tracking reports catch new claims staked near your ground, competitor activity, and status changes you might otherwise miss.
6. Audit BLM's records against yours. If you manage a large portfolio, periodic comparison of your internal records against MLRS serial register data catches discrepancies before they become forfeitures.