Is It Legal to Own a Cockatoo? State-by-State Guide
Most cockatoos are legal to own across the US, but 'is a cockatoo legal in Maine' doesn't have one answer, it depends on the species. Maine clears the whole parrot order except anything on CITES Appendix I or the IUCN's most endangered tiers, and that carve-out catches several of the most commonly kept pet cockatoos by name.
Is It Legal to Own a Cockatoo? State-by-State Guide
Cockatoos are legal to own across nearly every US state, but "is a cockatoo legal here" turns out to be the wrong question in at least one place. Maine's parrot rules don't treat cockatoos as one group; they single out specific species by conservation status, which means the answer can depend on which cockatoo you're asking about. For everything else about keeping one, see our full Cockatoo care guide, and the Cockatoo encyclopedia profile for more on the family Cacatuidae itself.
Where Cockatoos Actually Stand
| Where | Status | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Maine (Moluccan, yellow-crested, umbrella) | Permit required | Maine clears the whole parrot order except any species on CITES Appendix I or the IUCN's Endangered/Critically Endangered tiers; that carve-out catches these three species by name |
| Maine (cockatiel, galah, other smaller species) | Legal, no permit | Not on CITES Appendix I or the IUCN's most endangered tiers, so these clear Maine's blanket parrot exemption with no permit |
| Arkansas | Legal | Five cockatoo species, including the CITES Appendix I Moluccan and yellow-crested, are named directly on the state's unrestricted list with no conservation-status carve-out |
| Hawaii | Conditional, import process | Named on the state's conditionally approved animal list; keeping one requires an import permit, pre-departure quarantine, health certification, and permanent ID before the bird can enter |
| California | Legal | The only parrot on the state's restricted species list is the monk parakeet; every cockatoo species is outside it |
| New Jersey, Virginia | Legal | New Jersey's potentially-dangerous-species table names three psittacine groups by genus, ring-necked parakeets, monk parakeets, and Patagonian conures; Virginia's names only the monk parakeet. Cacatua is absent from both |
| Massachusetts | Legal, one detail unconfirmed | Parrots are on the state's license-exemption list, but whether Massachusetts carves CITES Appendix I or IUCN-endangered species back out the way Maine does wasn't confirmed |
| Everywhere else | Generally legal | No state-level restriction found; ordinary captive-bred psittacine pet |
Cockatoos Are an Easy Yes in Most States
In the great majority of states, a pet cockatoo doesn't raise any legal questions at all. Idaho and Colorado clear pet birds as a category outright, and Oklahoma's noncontrolled exotic-species exemption names cockatoos specifically, alongside cockatiels, macaws, and canaries. Others, including New Hampshire and Montana, name the order Psittaciformes or the family Psittacidae directly as unregulated. Where a state does restrict a parrot species, it's almost always the same one: the monk parakeet, named specifically in California, Connecticut, New Jersey, and Virginia, among others, while every other parrot, cockatoos included, is left alone.
Maine's CITES and IUCN Carve-Out: The Real Story
Maine clears the entire parrot order, Psittaciformes, from its captivity-permit requirement in one broad stroke, then takes a chunk back out: any species also listed on CITES Appendix I or the IUCN Red List's Endangered, Critically Endangered, or Extinct in the Wild tiers still needs a permit. That single clause catches some of the most commonly kept pet cockatoos by name. The Moluccan and yellow-crested cockatoos are both CITES Appendix I. The umbrella cockatoo is IUCN Endangered, even though it's only CITES Appendix II, which means the IUCN half of Maine's rule catches it on its own. Smaller, more secure species like the cockatiel or the galah clear Maine's list with no permit at all. So "is a cockatoo legal in Maine" isn't a single yes-or-no, it depends entirely on which cockatoo you're asking about. Arkansas took the opposite approach: its unrestricted list names five cockatoo species outright, Moluccan and yellow-crested included, with no conservation-status carve-out at all, the same CITES Appendix I birds Maine treats as needing a permit.
Hawaii: A Process, Not a Ban
Hawaii doesn't ban cockatoos, but it doesn't treat them as an ordinary pet either. White cockatoos, along with the galah, gang-gang, black cockatoos, and palm cockatoo, are named on the state's list of conditionally approved animals. Getting one into the state legally means securing an import permit, completing pre-departure quarantine, providing health certification, and having the bird permanently identified, all before it's allowed to land. It's a real, working process rather than a ban, but it's a meaningfully higher bar than most states set.
The Real Takeaway
Cockatoos are broadly legal pets in the US, and in most states that's the entire analysis. Maine is the exception worth remembering, not because it singles out cockatoos by name, but because its CITES Appendix I and IUCN Red List carve-out happens to catch several of the species people actually keep, the Moluccan, yellow-crested, and umbrella cockatoo among them, while leaving smaller parrots untouched. Arkansas shows the same birds can be regulated completely differently: named outright on an unrestricted list with no conservation-status test at all. Hawaii adds a real but manageable import process rather than a ban. Our African grey parrot legal guide covers another CITES-affected parrot with very different treatment, and our exotic pet legal hub has the broader framework behind rules like this.
To see this at a glance, our interactive map of cockatoo laws shades every state that restricts one, and clicking a state gives you the rule it comes from.
Sources & Further Reading
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
Is a Moluccan cockatoo legal to own in Maine?
Not under Maine's blanket parrot exemption. Maine clears the entire order Psittaciformes from its captivity-permit requirement, except for any species listed on CITES Appendix I or the IUCN Red List's Endangered, Critically Endangered, or Extinct in the Wild tiers. The Moluccan cockatoo is CITES Appendix I, so it falls into that carve-out and needs Maine's captivity permit rather than clearing automatically the way a cockatiel or galah would.
Does CITES Appendix I mean my cockatoo is illegal?
Not by itself. CITES governs international trade, not domestic ownership, so an Appendix I listing doesn't make owning a captive-bred bird illegal on its own. Maine is the specific case where it matters here, since its parrot exemption is written to carve Appendix I species back out, so in Maine that listing does trigger an extra permit requirement. Arkansas shows the opposite approach, naming the same Appendix I species, the Moluccan and yellow-crested cockatoo, directly on its unrestricted list with no such carve-out.
Is a cockatoo legal in Hawaii?
Yes, but not as a simple pet-store purchase. Cockatoos are on Hawaii's list of conditionally approved animals, which means bringing one into the state requires an import permit, pre-departure quarantine, health certification, and permanent identification before the bird arrives. It's a real, working process rather than a ban.
Written by Mike
Mike is the founder of Beastly Facts and a lifelong reptile enthusiast. He shares his home with Dex, a bearded dragon with strong opinions about crickets and basking schedules. Mike writes in-depth care guides, animal facts, and the occasional short story about life with exotic pets.
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