Council Approval for Tree Removal in Sydney Explained

There is no single tree-removal permit rule for all of Sydney. Start with the property's council, then check the tree, the proposed work and any heritage, biodiversity or development conditions.

Find the authority for your address

Use the NSW Office of Local Government's Find My Council (opens in new tab) with the street address. A suburb name alone can be misleading where council boundaries divide an area. For example, Croydon properties need an address check rather than assuming the whole suburb follows Inner West Council's rules.

The NSW Planning Portal Spatial Viewer (opens in new tab) can help identify planning layers. Ask the council to resolve an uncertain boundary or protection status.

Council tree guidance and applications

Choose your council below. Follow its current official instructions before pruning or removal; a guide is not approval for a particular tree.

Councils with a detailed AA guide

• Blacktown: rules and application pathway
• Hills Shire: tree and vegetation requirements
• Hornsby: protected trees and vegetation
• Inner West: permits, pruning and heritage
• Ku-ring-gai: applications and dead-tree checks
• Northern Beaches: conditional exemptions and permits
• Parramatta: permission and property controls
• Randwick: adopted tree controls
• Ryde: tree applications and exemptions
• Sutherland Shire: pruning, removal and urgent-risk evidence
• Willoughby: protection and application requirements

More Sydney councils

Bayside Council

Private-tree pruning and removal application (opens in new tab), including the permit check and supporting documents.

Burwood Council

Tree controls and applications (opens in new tab), including heritage and conservation-area requirements.

City of Canada Bay

Private-tree guidance, fact sheets and application links (opens in new tab).

Canterbury-Bankstown Council

Tree Management Order (opens in new tab), including the conditions for exempt work.

Cumberland Council

Private-tree guidance and the Tree Works Application (opens in new tab). Confirm the current form and fees directly with Council before lodging.

Georges River Council

Tree management guidance and applications (opens in new tab).

Hunter's Hill Council

Trees on your property (opens in new tab), with separate permit, development-application and exemption pathways.

Lane Cove Council

Tree FAQs and permit guidance (opens in new tab), including dead-tree permit requirements.

Mosman Council

Tree management and applications (opens in new tab).

North Sydney Council

Tree works that need consent (opens in new tab), with the private-land application pathway.

Strathfield Council

Tree pruning and removal (opens in new tab), including permit and development-application information.

City of Sydney

Pruning and removal guidelines (opens in new tab). These apply to the City of Sydney council area, not the whole metropolitan region.

Waverley Council

Tree pruning and removal (opens in new tab), including private-tree permit requirements.

Woollahra Municipal Council

Private-tree permits and exemptions (opens in new tab).

Before relying on an exemption

Check all relevant conditions, not just height or species. A heritage listing, habitat hollow, development-retention condition or protected vegetation can change the answer.

Pruning allowances also differ. A percentage quoted for another council is not a Sydney-wide rule, and permitted pruning is not permission for indiscriminate topping.

The Service NSW tree-removal referral (opens in new tab) explains why local controls matter. For bushfire clearing, use the RFS 10/50 entitlement tool (opens in new tab) on the day of work and retain the result. Follow its full conditions and land-ownership limits. Its clearing provisions do not authorise below-surface vegetation removal or soil disturbance; stump grinding must not be assumed to be covered.

Dead trees and immediate hazards

Dead or damaged trees can still require council confirmation, photographs or an independent assessment. Keep clear of hanging limbs, unstable trunks and electrical hazards.

For life-threatening danger call 000; for emergency storm assistance contact NSW SES on 132 500. Follow the storm-damage safety guidance. Do not delay emergency help to obtain photographs.

Prepare a clear application

Identify the property owner, each tree and its position. Describe the actual cuts or removal and the reason, with photographs and relevant property documents. Arrange any independent arborist report the council specifies. AA undertakes physical tree work; that is separate from independent report preparation.

Council permission does not grant access across another property or replace owners-corporation authority. Once permission is obtained, retain the conditions for pruning limits, replacement planting and any required records.

For suitable physical work, see tree removal, pruning and trimming and Sydney service areas.

Confirm current requirements with the responsible authority before work.