IA timber buyer bonds.
From $100. Enter your amount.

Iowa requires a timber buyer (or buyer’s agent) to file a surety bond with the Department of Natural Resources before cutting any trees, under Iowa Code § 456A.36. The amount scales from $500 up to a $10,000 maximum by your prior-year purchases. Premiums are 0.5% of the bond amount, $100 minimum — your exact price appears in the on-page calculator.

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Required under Iowa Code § 456A.36 — file with the DNR before you cut timber

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Amount scales $500 to a $10,000 maximum by what you paid timber growers last year

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0.5% of the bond amount, $100 minimum — enter your required bond amount and the premium updates

0.5% rate$100 minimum, by bond amountInstantapproval for mostNo SSNin this application

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How it works

Apply to filed in one sitting.

No underwriting queue for the standard timber bond — enter your amount, pay, and file with the DNR. Here is the whole thing:

TODAY · ONLINE

Apply online

Your business details, the bond amount your purchases require, and the effective date — that is the entire application.

INSTANTLY

Issued on the spot

Most applications are issued as soon as you pay — the application collects no credit information.

SAME DAY

File with the DNR

Submit the executed bond with your timber buyer application to the Iowa DNR Forestry Bureau before cutting. Wet-ink originals mailed on request.

About this bond

What it is and who needs it.

What the timber bond actually covers

Iowa requires anyone buying standing timber for resale to register as a timber buyer and file a surety bond with the Department of Natural Resources before cutting, under Iowa Code § 456A.36. Buying or cutting without a bond on file is a serious misdemeanor.

The bond is conditioned on honest cutting and accounting, on payment to the timber growers, and on protecting growers against fraudulent acts in the purchase and cutting of Iowa timber. If a buyer shorts or defrauds a grower, the grower can recover against the bond.

The amount is $500 for a buyer who paid growers $5,000 or less last year, plus $100 for each additional $1,000 paid — capped at $10,000. A buyer may, with DNR approval, post a bank certificate of deposit instead of a corporate surety. Enter your figure — premiums start from $100 and the application collects no credit information.

Iowa Code § 456A.36Iowa Code § 456A.36 requires a timber buyer to file a surety bond with the DNR before cutting timber, in the principal amount of $500 for $5,000 or less paid to growers in the preceding year, plus $100 for each additional $1,000, not to exceed $10,000 — conditioned on honest cutting and accounting and payment to growers. A bank certificate of deposit may substitute with commission approval. Confirm your amount with the DNR.

You need this bond if you are

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Buying standing timber for resale anywhere in Iowa under § 456A.36

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A timber buyer’s agent acting for a buyer who needs a bond on file

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A logging or sawmill operation that purchases timber from Iowa growers

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Renewing your timber registration and resizing the bond to last year’s purchases

One application, issued on the spot for most.

Submit the application with your required bond amount — most executed bonds generate instantly, ready to file with the DNR.

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FAQ

Common questions.

How much is the Iowa timber buyer bond?The premium is 0.5% of the bond amount, $100 minimum. The bond amount runs $500 to $10,000, scaled to your prior-year purchases. Enter your amount and your exact price appears at the application.

How is the bond amount set?It is $500 if you paid timber growers $5,000 or less last year, plus $100 for each additional $1,000 paid, capped at $10,000. The DNR sets the figure from your registration — enter it and we issue.

Is there a credit check?The application collects no credit information — most applications approve instantly. If a check ever runs, it is a soft pull that never affects your score.

What does the bond protect against?It protects timber growers against dishonest cutting, failure to account, non-payment, and fraud by the buyer. If a grower is harmed and the surety pays, you repay the surety — it is not insurance for you.

Do I really need it before cutting?Yes. Under § 456A.36 a person who acts as a timber buyer without a bond on file with the DNR is guilty of a serious misdemeanor — file the bond before you cut.

Related bonds

Other Iowa bonds.

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