Tree Removal Permits in Albany, GA

Verified against Albany city sources · last checked 2026-08-06

Do you need a permit?

No permit required for most private trees

Albany has a full tree protection ordinance that on its face covers "any tree activity on all lands in the city, public and private" — and then exempts your house by name. The very first exemption reads: "Residential exemption. All single-family and duplex lots in any zone where permitted by the City of Albany zoning ordinance." So no permit, no diameter limit, nothing to file. The rules that do bite are about public trees and about who you hire: it is unlawful for anyone but the city or its contractors to prune or remove a public tree, and every private tree removal company must hold a city occupational tax certificate before starting any tree work.

Size threshold

None applies to a single-family or duplex lot, because those lots are exempt from the division entirely. The only diameter figure in the ordinance is scoped to property that is not exempt: "Tree clearing: The removal of any tree of four inches DBH or greater; or the removal of any tree planted, or conserved under the requirements of this division or under the previous ordinance on non-exempt property."

What's protected in Albany

Public trees. Section 62-46 makes it unlawful "for any person to damage, mutilate, destroy, cut, carve, paint, set fire or allow to burn or remove any public tree," to attach anything to one, to dump harmful substances within its critical root zone, to excavate near its roots, to compact or fill within the critical root zone, or to engage in "any pruning activity on public trees, including but not limited to: topping, heading, rounding or shearing."
Trees on non-exempt property at 4 inches DBH or greater, and any tree planted or conserved to satisfy the ordinance.
Trees within the 100-foot natural vegetative buffer along the Flint River and Kinchafoonee Creek established by the zoning ordinance. Single-family dwellings are permissible inside it, but "the natural vegetative buffer shall be restored as quickly as possible following any land disturbing activity."
Public trees generally — trees in city parks, cemeteries, public rights-of-way, alleys, city utility easements and other publicly owned property. The city reserves the right to plant, prune, maintain and remove these, and section 62-1 separately authorises the city manager to trim or remove right-of-way trees at discretion "because of age, condition, or other reason."

How to apply in Albany

1
For a single-family or duplex lot there is nothing to apply for. Section 62-31(a)(1) exempts the lot from the division.
2
For a tree on non-exempt property, no tree activity may begin "without first obtaining a tree permit from the city arborist," and submitting one grants the arborist access to enter and inspect the site.
3
For a hazardous tree on non-exempt property, section 62-31(b)(1) allows verbal authorization from the city arborist where the tree "requires immediate trimming or removal without delay," but "Application for a tree permit is required within 72 hours after the hazard action."
4
After a storm, check whether the ordinance has been suspended. Section 62-31(b)(2): "During the period of an emergency such as a flood, ice storm, thunderstorm, windstorm, tornado, or any other disastrous act of nature, the requirements of this division may be suspended by the city manager. No tree permit is required if the ordinance has been suspended."
5
For a tree in the right-of-way or on any other public property, contact the city arborist through Engineering. You may not do the work yourself.

Fees, penalties, and the ordinance

Fee: No fee applies to a single-family or duplex lot because no permit is required. The ordinance establishes a "dedicated tree account" funded "from fines, application fees, and payments," but the application fee amounts for non-exempt property are set administratively and are not stated in the code.
Penalties: Section 62-39: "Each violation of this division or failure to comply with any of the requirements hereof shall be additionally punishable by a fine of $500.00 for each violation of this division payable to the dedicated tree account," with damaged trees repaired or replaced with the corresponding tree density units, and "Each violation of a provision of this division shall constitute a separate offense." For public trees, section 62-46 charges the cost of replacement valued by the International Society of Arboriculture Guide for Plant Appraisal, and adds a sharp escalation: "Should any person cause removal of any tree upon the public right-of-way, or other public property, after being denied a permit to do so, the city arborist shall cause a penalty of up to treble damages of the appraised value of said tree to be assessed against the responsible party." Section 62-47 routes enforcement through the risk manager and municipal court with a fine up to $500 per violation.
Ordinance: City of Albany Code of Ordinances, Chapter 62 — Vegetation, Article II — Tree Protection, sections 62-25 through 62-50, with Division 2 covering private property and Division 3 covering public rights-of-way and other public lands. Adopted by Ord. No. 15-117, section 2 (Exhibit A), May 26, 2015. The residential exemption is at section 62-31(a)(1). Chapter 62 Article I, sections 62-1 and 62-2, are older and derive from the 1985 Code and Ord. No. 86-198. Municode is codified through Ordinance No. 22-103, adopted June 29, 2022 (Supplement 19).

Worth knowing

The exemption is unusually clean and worth quoting to anyone who tells you otherwise. Section 62-31(a): "The following are exempt from the provisions of this division: (1) Residential exemption. All single-family and duplex lots in any zone where permitted by the City of Albany zoning ordinance."
The tree company is regulated even though you are not. Section 62-45(d): "All private tree removal companies shall obtain an occupational tax certificate prior to commencing any tree work as per chapter 16, businesses, article II, regulations." Ask to see the certificate before work starts.
You cannot touch the tree in front of your house yourself, and neither can your crew. Section 62-44(c): "It shall be unlawful for any person(s) or firm to engage in pruning, treating or removing public tree(s), except those persons who are employees of the city, contracted by the city, or approved volunteers supervised by either the city arborist, the executive director of Keep Albany-Dougherty Beautiful or the chairman of the Albany Tree Board."
The city can remove a tree for you, or over your objection. Section 62-44(b) lets the city remove "any tree or part thereof which is in an unsafe condition or which, by reason of its nature, is injurious to sewers, electric power lines, gas lines, water lines, visibility of street intersections, traffic control devices or other public improvements, or is infected with any injurious fungus, insect, or other pest."
The exemption does not survive the river corridor. If your otherwise-exempt lot sits within 100 feet of the Flint River or Kinchafoonee Creek, the zoning ordinance requires a natural vegetative buffer and states that it "shall be restored as quickly as possible following any land disturbing activity." You can still take the tree down, but you owe the corridor its vegetation back. These buffers live in the zoning ordinance, not in the floodplain ordinances, which is why they are easy to miss.
A separate three-zone buffer system of 25 feet each applies in unincorporated Dougherty County only, not inside the city. It is worth knowing because the ordinance itself contemplates that the outer 25 feet is "in most instances... a residential backyard."
The zoning ordinance adds no tree removal permit. A full sweep of the Albany-Dougherty zoning ordinance found landscape, screening and transitional buffer duties attached only to commercial, industrial and multi-family development, and street tree provisions that are planting duties on new development rather than removal restrictions.
Dougherty County adds nothing either. The county subdivision regulations point back at the city: Section K reads "(See City of Albany Tree Ordinance, #92-124 as amended; No County Standards)." One honest caveat on that: the county publishes no code-of-ordinances compilation online at all, so this is a verified absence within county land-use regulation rather than across the whole county code.
Pruning standards still apply on non-exempt property: all alterations and maintenance must follow the Tree Care Industry Association pruning standards, ANSI A300.
Stumps on public land must be taken below grade, and anyone grinding stumps on public land is responsible for compliance with the Georgia Utility Facility Protection Act.

What we could not confirm

We would rather tell you what we don't know than guess. Call the office below to confirm these before you cut.

— The Albany code on Municode is Supplement 19, codified only through Ordinance No. 22-103 of June 29, 2022 — roughly a four-year gap, with 11 uncodified ordinances adopted since then that could not be enumerated. The Code Comparative Table shows nothing amending Chapter 62 since Ord. 15-117 of 2015, but confirm with the city arborist before relying on it.
— Whether the Historic Preservation Commission requires a certificate of appropriateness for tree removal in an Albany historic district. The ordinance text is genuinely ambiguous on this point and no answer should be assumed in either direction.
— The Georgia state waters buffer width that applies alongside the city rules. A buffer exists — the state EPD runs a buffer variance programme — but neither the width nor the O.C.G.A. citation could be retrieved from a primary source, so neither is stated here.
— Whether a single-family lot that is currently under new construction keeps the residential exemption, or is pulled back in as a land alteration activity.
— The name of the current city arborist. The office is confirmed and staffed but the officeholder as of 2026 was not verified.
— Application fee amounts for a tree permit on non-exempt property. The ordinance refers to application fees feeding the dedicated tree account but does not price them.
— The city website blocks automated access intermittently, so the arborist page could not be read directly. The contact details above come from the city's own Engineering Department arborist listing.

Sources

Who to contact in Albany

City Arborist, City of Albany Engineering Department (the code defines the city arborist as "A person duly appointed by the director of engineering")

(229) 302-1893 Official page

240 Pine Avenue, Suite 200, Albany, GA 31701

Cost Calculators

Find Tree Services

Browse tree trimming and removal companies in Albany.

View tree services

Related Permits

Get weekly cost & permit updates

Join homeowners who get free insights on project costs, permit changes, and money-saving tips. No spam — unsubscribe anytime.

Free forever. No credit card. Unsubscribe in one click.

Size threshold

What's protected in Albany

Public trees. Section 62-46 makes it unlawful "for any person to damage, mutilate, destroy, cut, carve, paint, set fire or allow to burn or remove any public tree," to attach anything to one, to dump harmful substances within its critical root zone, to excavate near its roots, to compact or fill within the critical root zone, or to engage in "any pruning activity on public trees, including but not limited to: topping, heading, rounding or shearing."

Trees on non-exempt property at 4 inches DBH or greater, and any tree planted or conserved to satisfy the ordinance.

Trees within the 100-foot natural vegetative buffer along the Flint River and Kinchafoonee Creek established by the zoning ordinance. Single-family dwellings are permissible inside it, but "the natural vegetative buffer shall be restored as quickly as possible following any land disturbing activity."

Public trees generally — trees in city parks, cemeteries, public rights-of-way, alleys, city utility easements and other publicly owned property. The city reserves the right to plant, prune, maintain and remove these, and section 62-1 separately authorises the city manager to trim or remove right-of-way trees at discretion "because of age, condition, or other reason."

How to apply in Albany

1
For a single-family or duplex lot there is nothing to apply for. Section 62-31(a)(1) exempts the lot from the division.
2
For a tree on non-exempt property, no tree activity may begin "without first obtaining a tree permit from the city arborist," and submitting one grants the arborist access to enter and inspect the site.
3
For a hazardous tree on non-exempt property, section 62-31(b)(1) allows verbal authorization from the city arborist where the tree "requires immediate trimming or removal without delay," but "Application for a tree permit is required within 72 hours after the hazard action."
4
After a storm, check whether the ordinance has been suspended. Section 62-31(b)(2): "During the period of an emergency such as a flood, ice storm, thunderstorm, windstorm, tornado, or any other disastrous act of nature, the requirements of this division may be suspended by the city manager. No tree permit is required if the ordinance has been suspended."
5
For a tree in the right-of-way or on any other public property, contact the city arborist through Engineering. You may not do the work yourself.

Fees, penalties, and the ordinance

Fee

No fee applies to a single-family or duplex lot because no permit is required. The ordinance establishes a "dedicated tree account" funded "from fines, application fees, and payments," but the application fee amounts for non-exempt property are set administratively and are not stated in the code.

Penalties

Section 62-39: "Each violation of this division or failure to comply with any of the requirements hereof shall be additionally punishable by a fine of $500.00 for each violation of this division payable to the dedicated tree account," with damaged trees repaired or replaced with the corresponding tree density units, and "Each violation of a provision of this division shall constitute a separate offense." For public trees, section 62-46 charges the cost of replacement valued by the International Society of Arboriculture Guide for Plant Appraisal, and adds a sharp escalation: "Should any person cause removal of any tree upon the public right-of-way, or other public property, after being denied a permit to do so, the city arborist shall cause a penalty of up to treble damages of the appraised value of said tree to be assessed against the responsible party." Section 62-47 routes enforcement through the risk manager and municipal court with a fine up to $500 per violation.

Ordinance

City of Albany Code of Ordinances, Chapter 62 — Vegetation, Article II — Tree Protection, sections 62-25 through 62-50, with Division 2 covering private property and Division 3 covering public rights-of-way and other public lands. Adopted by Ord. No. 15-117, section 2 (Exhibit A), May 26, 2015. The residential exemption is at section 62-31(a)(1). Chapter 62 Article I, sections 62-1 and 62-2, are older and derive from the 1985 Code and Ord. No. 86-198. Municode is codified through Ordinance No. 22-103, adopted June 29, 2022 (Supplement 19).

Worth knowing

The exemption is unusually clean and worth quoting to anyone who tells you otherwise. Section 62-31(a): "The following are exempt from the provisions of this division: (1) Residential exemption. All single-family and duplex lots in any zone where permitted by the City of Albany zoning ordinance."
The tree company is regulated even though you are not. Section 62-45(d): "All private tree removal companies shall obtain an occupational tax certificate prior to commencing any tree work as per chapter 16, businesses, article II, regulations." Ask to see the certificate before work starts.
You cannot touch the tree in front of your house yourself, and neither can your crew. Section 62-44(c): "It shall be unlawful for any person(s) or firm to engage in pruning, treating or removing public tree(s), except those persons who are employees of the city, contracted by the city, or approved volunteers supervised by either the city arborist, the executive director of Keep Albany-Dougherty Beautiful or the chairman of the Albany Tree Board."
The city can remove a tree for you, or over your objection. Section 62-44(b) lets the city remove "any tree or part thereof which is in an unsafe condition or which, by reason of its nature, is injurious to sewers, electric power lines, gas lines, water lines, visibility of street intersections, traffic control devices or other public improvements, or is infected with any injurious fungus, insect, or other pest."
The exemption does not survive the river corridor. If your otherwise-exempt lot sits within 100 feet of the Flint River or Kinchafoonee Creek, the zoning ordinance requires a natural vegetative buffer and states that it "shall be restored as quickly as possible following any land disturbing activity." You can still take the tree down, but you owe the corridor its vegetation back. These buffers live in the zoning ordinance, not in the floodplain ordinances, which is why they are easy to miss.
A separate three-zone buffer system of 25 feet each applies in unincorporated Dougherty County only, not inside the city. It is worth knowing because the ordinance itself contemplates that the outer 25 feet is "in most instances... a residential backyard."
The zoning ordinance adds no tree removal permit. A full sweep of the Albany-Dougherty zoning ordinance found landscape, screening and transitional buffer duties attached only to commercial, industrial and multi-family development, and street tree provisions that are planting duties on new development rather than removal restrictions.
Dougherty County adds nothing either. The county subdivision regulations point back at the city: Section K reads "(See City of Albany Tree Ordinance, #92-124 as amended; No County Standards)." One honest caveat on that: the county publishes no code-of-ordinances compilation online at all, so this is a verified absence within county land-use regulation rather than across the whole county code.
Pruning standards still apply on non-exempt property: all alterations and maintenance must follow the Tree Care Industry Association pruning standards, ANSI A300.
Stumps on public land must be taken below grade, and anyone grinding stumps on public land is responsible for compliance with the Georgia Utility Facility Protection Act.

What we could not confirm

We would rather tell you what we don't know than guess. Call the office below to confirm these before you cut.

— The Albany code on Municode is Supplement 19, codified only through Ordinance No. 22-103 of June 29, 2022 — roughly a four-year gap, with 11 uncodified ordinances adopted since then that could not be enumerated. The Code Comparative Table shows nothing amending Chapter 62 since Ord. 15-117 of 2015, but confirm with the city arborist before relying on it.
— Whether the Historic Preservation Commission requires a certificate of appropriateness for tree removal in an Albany historic district. The ordinance text is genuinely ambiguous on this point and no answer should be assumed in either direction.
— The Georgia state waters buffer width that applies alongside the city rules. A buffer exists — the state EPD runs a buffer variance programme — but neither the width nor the O.C.G.A. citation could be retrieved from a primary source, so neither is stated here.
— Whether a single-family lot that is currently under new construction keeps the residential exemption, or is pulled back in as a land alteration activity.
— The name of the current city arborist. The office is confirmed and staffed but the officeholder as of 2026 was not verified.
— Application fee amounts for a tree permit on non-exempt property. The ordinance refers to application fees feeding the dedicated tree account but does not price them.
— The city website blocks automated access intermittently, so the arborist page could not be read directly. The contact details above come from the city's own Engineering Department arborist listing.