MFC Burn Permit

Applying for an MFC Burn Permit

In Mississippi, forestry and agricultural landowners have a property right to conduct prescribed burns according to state code §§ 49-19-303. However, landowners can obtain additional legal protection by abiding by the Mississippi Prescribed Burning Act (§§ 49-19-301 — 49-19-307) criteria. A prescribed burn permit is one of those four criteria (listed below). An MFC burn permit applies to forestry or agriculture-related burning under this state code.

To receive legal protection under state law, you must meet four criteria:

Get a burn permit from the Mississippi Forestry Commission (MFC)
Have a notarized prescribed burn plan
Have a Certified Prescribed Burn Manager supervise the burn
Burn must be in the public’s interest

MFC also provides opportunities and training to abide by the Act by certifying prescribed burn managers, teaching how to write prescribed burn plans, providing knowledge on smoke critical and sensitive areas, and giving prescribed burn permits.

Please note: MFC permits are for forestry and agriculture burns only. For residential, land clearing, or storm debris burning, please follow your local ordinances. You may also review MDEQ guidelines.

Why a Permit Is Important?

Satisfies one legal requirement for liability protection
Alerts responders that the smoke is from a planned burn
Helps MFC respond quickly if your fire escapes
Ensures burns occur under good smoke dispersion conditions

A permit does not guarantee safety. See Voluntary Smoke Management Guidelines for smoke dispersal guidelines. Our Certified Prescribed Burn Manager program teaches prescribed burn safety.

Some Reasons a Permit May Be Denied:

A county burn ban is active
Red flag fire weather
Air quality alert (MDEQ)
Poor smoke dispersion forecast

When to Apply

Fire Weather is pulled every morning for day permits and every evening for night permits. The exact time varies based on when the National Weather Service (NWS) uploads the current forecasts. Mississippi has four NWS centers serving us out of Memphis, Jackson, New Orleans, and Mobile (View the Map). The permit system pulls the weather forecast from all these centers at the top of the hour. This means a few things:

You will be denied a day permit until the day the weather is posted. This usually happens between 6 AM and 7 AM.
You will be denied a night permit until the night weather is posted. This usually happens around 3 PM to 4 PM, sometimes sooner.
Do not wait too long to get your day permit. If the night weather has already been posted, then you will be denied.

Current Permit Viewer Map