Tree Removal Permits in St. Louis, MO

Verified against St. Louis city sources · last checked 2026-08-06

Do you need a permit?

No permit required for most private trees

The City of St. Louis regulates city trees, not yours. The Forestry Ordinance says "No person shall directly or indirectly perform maintenance, including but not limited to pruning or removal, on any city tree without first obtaining an approved permit," and a "city tree" is defined as "any tree located in the front easement or located on city property, excluding the back easement." A tree standing in your yard is not a city tree, so there is no permit, no application and no fee, and no trunk diameter changes that. The trap is the strip in front of your house: the tree between the curb and the sidewalk is a city tree even though you mow around it. Note also that St. Louis City is an independent city and is not part of St. Louis County, whose municipalities have entirely separate rules.

Size threshold

None. No trunk-diameter threshold triggers a permit for a private-yard tree. Diameter is used only to price the reforestation fee after a city tree has been approved for removal. The current ordinance defines a tree as "a woody perennial usually having one dominant trunk and a mature height typically greater than five (5) meters or sixteen (16) feet"; the repealed 2010 version used "a mature height of greater than 12 feet and/or a trunk diameter measuring no less than 1.5 inches measured at diameter breast height."

What's protected in St. Louis

Front-easement and tree-lawn trees — "City tree shall mean any tree located in the front easement or located on city property, excluding the back easement." The city's own operational test, from its report-a-problem page, is trees "located between the curb and sidewalk, or typically within 10 feet of the curb."
Right-of-way trees — "Property located within and adjoining streets, roads, and alleys within the City, which is owned, controlled, or maintained by the City, including but not limited to areas commonly referred to as tree lawn between public sidewalks and public streets."
Park trees — "City park shall mean any park land owned by the city and used or held out for public use as a park, including Tower Grove Park."
City trees are also protected from topping: "The practice of tree topping ... is prohibited on all city trees. The Commissioner's determination on whether a tree has been topped or not shall be final."
Back-easement trees are expressly NOT city trees — "The property owner is responsible for any trees in the back easement of a property that were not planted by the Forestry Division."

How to apply in St. Louis

1
For a tree in your own yard there is no application. Hire a tree service and proceed.
2
These steps are for a city tree in the front easement, the tree lawn or a park.
3
Pick the permit type: planting, removal, pruning, or ash treatment.
4
Apply online through the Citizens Service Bureau or call 314-622-4800. "The application can be submitted by the property owner, or the contractor, but it must contain all requested information or the permit may be denied."
5
Give the exact tree location. "For corner lots indicate if the tree is in front or on the side."
6
Supply a current ISA Certified Arborist number for whoever will prescribe and perform the work, plus the company name, address and email.
7
For a removal, state species and diameter, marking UNK if unknown, and pay the reforestation fee: "The reforestation fee must be paid in full to the Forestry Division before a Permit to Maintain will be issued."
8
A city forester inspects within five to seven business days and you get approval or denial by email or mail. Approval for removal "will be granted for trees that are considered high risk, or for other reasons as determined by the Commissioner of Forestry."
9
Permits expire 60 days after issuance, and you must report the completion date back. "Failure to respond with the completion date may result in denial of future permit applications by the applicant at this or any address within the City."
10
A denial can be appealed in writing to the Director within ten days, "whose decision shall be final."

Fees, penalties, and the ordinance

Fee: Nothing for a private-yard tree, because there is no permit. For a city tree, "There shall be no fee for a Permit to Plant, or for a Permit to Maintain, which does not involve the removal of a city tree." Removing a city tree triggers a reforestation fee defined as "the actual cost to plant per tree, including the acquisition, equipment, and labor costs," scaled so that "For trees less than four (4) inches in diameter at breast height, the fee shall be the reforestation fee for a single tree. For trees that exceed four (4) inches ... the reforestation fee shall be for a single tree for the first four (4) inches plus the reforestation fee for each additional two (2) inches." The Commissioner "may waive such fee for good cause." No dollar figure is published anywhere on the city website.
Penalties: None of the tree penalties reach a tree removed from private property. Removing a city tree without a permit draws "a Five Hundred Dollar ($500) fine for acting without a required permit, and an additional fee of the appraised replacement value of the tree or reforestation fee prescribed in Section Nine, whichever is higher and when applicable also triple damages under Rs.Mo 537.340." The general penalty is "a fine of Five Hundred Dollars ($500) for each offense. All such violations that are of a continuing nature shall constitute a separate offense for each day the violation continues." Where the code does reach private property is hazard abatement: failing to abate a nuisance tree within thirty days carries "a fine of five hundred dollars ($500) each day until it is abated," plus the abatement cost and "an administrative fine of five hundred dollars ($500)," collectible as a special tax bill or lien under Sections 67.389 and 71.780 RSMo.
Ordinance: Ordinance 72132, the Forestry Ordinance (Board Bill No. 156, Alderman Michael Browning), passed third reading March 13, 2026, approved by the Mayor March 23, 2026 and effective April 23, 2026. Section One repeals the prior law outright: "Ordinance Number 68607 codified in Chapter 22.48 of the Revised Code of the City of St. Louis is hereby repealed in its entirety." The repealed ordinance was the City of St. Louis Forestry Ordinance of 2010, Ord. 68607, approved March 16, 2010 and codified as Revised Code Title 22, Chapter 22.48, Sections 22.48.010 through 22.48.260. The Revised Code as published is "Codified through Ordinance No. 72042, enacted October 30, 2025 (Supp. No. 11)," so Municode still displays the repealed text.

Worth knowing

What the city does regulate on private land is condition, not removal. A private tree that is "dead, defective, diseased, infested, or decayed and threaten[s] real property or users thereof" is "declared a public nuisance," and the city can order abatement, do the work after thirty days, bill you and lien the property. That is a duty to remove, never a permit to remove.
The law changed in April 2026 and the city website has not caught up. Ordinance 72132 took effect April 23, 2026, but the Tree Permit page and the Forestry Documents page still cite the repealed Ord. 68607, and Municode still shows the old Chapter 22.48. The consumer answer is the same under both, but every fee, penalty and definition differs.
There is no arborist or tree-trimmer license in St. Louis. Title 8 of the Revised Code licenses plumbers, embalmers, tattoo parlors and towel supply companies but has no chapter for tree services. Tree work falls under the general contractor business license at Chapter 8.12A, whose covered list includes "landscaping contractors; land clearing contractors."
It is not unlawful to hire an unlicensed tree service here. The only code hook runs against the worker and only when a permit is in play: "Any person performing work under a permit shall have in their possession and produce upon request to the Forestry Division all licenses to operate within the City required by law." The ISA arborist requirement is likewise a permit condition for city-tree work, not a general licensing law.
You have maintenance duties on the street tree you do not own: keep the sidewalk clear of "seed, leaf, twig, and any other debris," water a newly planted street tree for its first three years, and "keep private trees trimmed so that the branches thereof shall not be lower than eight (8) feet from the surface of such street or sidewalk." That last one is the single clearance duty that reaches a private tree.
Forestry can come onto your property. It "shall have authority to enter upon private property at reasonable hours for the purposes of inspecting trees thereon" on reasonable cause of hazard, disease or pest, and in imminent-danger cases "may, in its discretion enter onto any lot or parcel of land in the City and abate" without notice.
If a city tree wrecked your sewer line, the burden is now yours. New Section Eleven(B): "The property owner must prove with satisfactory evidence to the Forestry Division that the city tree caused the damage ... The presence of roots inside a pipe are not a direct indication that the tree initially caused the damage." The old rule accepted paid bills or receipts.
St. Louis zoning imposes no tree obligations at all. Title 26 has no landscape ordinance, no tree-planting mandate, no canopy requirement and no buffer-yard rule, so there is no single-family exemption to point at because the requirement itself does not exist.
The 2026 rewrite dropped the old emergency provision that let you act first and file within 72 hours. Whether Forestry still honors that in practice is not published.
Missouri law punishes cutting a tree that is not yours. RSMo 537.340 awards treble damages for cutting down, injuring or destroying "any tree placed or growing for use, shade or ornament" on another person's land, and "Any person filing a claim for damages pursuant to this section need not prove negligence or intent."

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 dollar value of the reforestation fee. Ordinance 72132 defines it as "actual cost to plant per tree" and requires publication in an annual Forestry Memo; no memo, schedule or dollar figure is posted anywhere on stlouis-mo.gov. Call 314-613-7200.
— The term "front easement" is the hinge of the whole ordinance and is never defined. Section Three defines back easement, right-of-way, tree lawn and street, but not front easement. The practical boundary comes from city practice, not text. On a deep-setback or unusual lot, confirm with Forestry before cutting anything near the street.
— A live contradiction, reported both ways rather than reconciled: Municode's codified Chapter 22.48 and the city's own Forestry pages still present Ord. 68607 as operative, while the Board of Aldermen record shows Ord. 72132 repealed it effective April 23, 2026. Ordinance 72132 has the higher authority, but Forestry staff may still be working from the old text.
— Whether the regulations required by Section Eighteen have been issued. They must be filed with the Division, the City Register and posted on the city website; none were found.
— Whether the City Tree Inventory Map and Permitting Page required by Section Five(B)(j) exists yet. It was not found; a street tree inventory RFP was in selection-committee stage as of December 2025.
— A historic-district edge case, flagged rather than asserted. Title 24 defines "exterior architectural feature" to include "the site topography, landscaping," and Section 24.20.010 bars altering one within a historic district without a permit. No historic district standard regulating tree removal was found, but an owner in a Local Historic District doing major site work should call the Cultural Resources Office.
— No email address for the Forestry Division. The site's "Contact the Division of Forestry" link resolves to the division index page rather than a mailto.
— St. Louis County rules. The county is a separate jurisdiction with its own code, and mail addressed "St. Louis, MO" is frequently in the county rather than the city.

Sources

Who to contact in St. Louis

Division of Forestry, Department of Parks, Recreation and Forestry (Alan Jankowski, Commissioner of Forestry)

(314) 613-7200 (Forestry direct); (314) 613-7205 (Commissioner); (314) 622-4800 (Citizens Service Bureau, which is the intake line the permit page routes you to) Official page

1415 N. 13th St., St. Louis, MO 63106

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Size threshold

What's protected in St. Louis

Front-easement and tree-lawn trees — "City tree shall mean any tree located in the front easement or located on city property, excluding the back easement." The city's own operational test, from its report-a-problem page, is trees "located between the curb and sidewalk, or typically within 10 feet of the curb."

Right-of-way trees — "Property located within and adjoining streets, roads, and alleys within the City, which is owned, controlled, or maintained by the City, including but not limited to areas commonly referred to as tree lawn between public sidewalks and public streets."

Park trees — "City park shall mean any park land owned by the city and used or held out for public use as a park, including Tower Grove Park."

City trees are also protected from topping: "The practice of tree topping ... is prohibited on all city trees. The Commissioner's determination on whether a tree has been topped or not shall be final."

Back-easement trees are expressly NOT city trees — "The property owner is responsible for any trees in the back easement of a property that were not planted by the Forestry Division."

How to apply in St. Louis

1
For a tree in your own yard there is no application. Hire a tree service and proceed.
2
These steps are for a city tree in the front easement, the tree lawn or a park.
3
Pick the permit type: planting, removal, pruning, or ash treatment.
4
Apply online through the Citizens Service Bureau or call 314-622-4800. "The application can be submitted by the property owner, or the contractor, but it must contain all requested information or the permit may be denied."
5
Give the exact tree location. "For corner lots indicate if the tree is in front or on the side."
6
Supply a current ISA Certified Arborist number for whoever will prescribe and perform the work, plus the company name, address and email.
7
For a removal, state species and diameter, marking UNK if unknown, and pay the reforestation fee: "The reforestation fee must be paid in full to the Forestry Division before a Permit to Maintain will be issued."
8
A city forester inspects within five to seven business days and you get approval or denial by email or mail. Approval for removal "will be granted for trees that are considered high risk, or for other reasons as determined by the Commissioner of Forestry."
9
Permits expire 60 days after issuance, and you must report the completion date back. "Failure to respond with the completion date may result in denial of future permit applications by the applicant at this or any address within the City."
10
A denial can be appealed in writing to the Director within ten days, "whose decision shall be final."

Fees, penalties, and the ordinance

Fee

Nothing for a private-yard tree, because there is no permit. For a city tree, "There shall be no fee for a Permit to Plant, or for a Permit to Maintain, which does not involve the removal of a city tree." Removing a city tree triggers a reforestation fee defined as "the actual cost to plant per tree, including the acquisition, equipment, and labor costs," scaled so that "For trees less than four (4) inches in diameter at breast height, the fee shall be the reforestation fee for a single tree. For trees that exceed four (4) inches ... the reforestation fee shall be for a single tree for the first four (4) inches plus the reforestation fee for each additional two (2) inches." The Commissioner "may waive such fee for good cause." No dollar figure is published anywhere on the city website.

Penalties

None of the tree penalties reach a tree removed from private property. Removing a city tree without a permit draws "a Five Hundred Dollar ($500) fine for acting without a required permit, and an additional fee of the appraised replacement value of the tree or reforestation fee prescribed in Section Nine, whichever is higher and when applicable also triple damages under Rs.Mo 537.340." The general penalty is "a fine of Five Hundred Dollars ($500) for each offense. All such violations that are of a continuing nature shall constitute a separate offense for each day the violation continues." Where the code does reach private property is hazard abatement: failing to abate a nuisance tree within thirty days carries "a fine of five hundred dollars ($500) each day until it is abated," plus the abatement cost and "an administrative fine of five hundred dollars ($500)," collectible as a special tax bill or lien under Sections 67.389 and 71.780 RSMo.

Ordinance

Ordinance 72132, the Forestry Ordinance (Board Bill No. 156, Alderman Michael Browning), passed third reading March 13, 2026, approved by the Mayor March 23, 2026 and effective April 23, 2026. Section One repeals the prior law outright: "Ordinance Number 68607 codified in Chapter 22.48 of the Revised Code of the City of St. Louis is hereby repealed in its entirety." The repealed ordinance was the City of St. Louis Forestry Ordinance of 2010, Ord. 68607, approved March 16, 2010 and codified as Revised Code Title 22, Chapter 22.48, Sections 22.48.010 through 22.48.260. The Revised Code as published is "Codified through Ordinance No. 72042, enacted October 30, 2025 (Supp. No. 11)," so Municode still displays the repealed text.

Worth knowing

What the city does regulate on private land is condition, not removal. A private tree that is "dead, defective, diseased, infested, or decayed and threaten[s] real property or users thereof" is "declared a public nuisance," and the city can order abatement, do the work after thirty days, bill you and lien the property. That is a duty to remove, never a permit to remove.
The law changed in April 2026 and the city website has not caught up. Ordinance 72132 took effect April 23, 2026, but the Tree Permit page and the Forestry Documents page still cite the repealed Ord. 68607, and Municode still shows the old Chapter 22.48. The consumer answer is the same under both, but every fee, penalty and definition differs.
There is no arborist or tree-trimmer license in St. Louis. Title 8 of the Revised Code licenses plumbers, embalmers, tattoo parlors and towel supply companies but has no chapter for tree services. Tree work falls under the general contractor business license at Chapter 8.12A, whose covered list includes "landscaping contractors; land clearing contractors."
It is not unlawful to hire an unlicensed tree service here. The only code hook runs against the worker and only when a permit is in play: "Any person performing work under a permit shall have in their possession and produce upon request to the Forestry Division all licenses to operate within the City required by law." The ISA arborist requirement is likewise a permit condition for city-tree work, not a general licensing law.
You have maintenance duties on the street tree you do not own: keep the sidewalk clear of "seed, leaf, twig, and any other debris," water a newly planted street tree for its first three years, and "keep private trees trimmed so that the branches thereof shall not be lower than eight (8) feet from the surface of such street or sidewalk." That last one is the single clearance duty that reaches a private tree.
Forestry can come onto your property. It "shall have authority to enter upon private property at reasonable hours for the purposes of inspecting trees thereon" on reasonable cause of hazard, disease or pest, and in imminent-danger cases "may, in its discretion enter onto any lot or parcel of land in the City and abate" without notice.
If a city tree wrecked your sewer line, the burden is now yours. New Section Eleven(B): "The property owner must prove with satisfactory evidence to the Forestry Division that the city tree caused the damage ... The presence of roots inside a pipe are not a direct indication that the tree initially caused the damage." The old rule accepted paid bills or receipts.
St. Louis zoning imposes no tree obligations at all. Title 26 has no landscape ordinance, no tree-planting mandate, no canopy requirement and no buffer-yard rule, so there is no single-family exemption to point at because the requirement itself does not exist.
The 2026 rewrite dropped the old emergency provision that let you act first and file within 72 hours. Whether Forestry still honors that in practice is not published.
Missouri law punishes cutting a tree that is not yours. RSMo 537.340 awards treble damages for cutting down, injuring or destroying "any tree placed or growing for use, shade or ornament" on another person's land, and "Any person filing a claim for damages pursuant to this section need not prove negligence or intent."

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 dollar value of the reforestation fee. Ordinance 72132 defines it as "actual cost to plant per tree" and requires publication in an annual Forestry Memo; no memo, schedule or dollar figure is posted anywhere on stlouis-mo.gov. Call 314-613-7200.
— The term "front easement" is the hinge of the whole ordinance and is never defined. Section Three defines back easement, right-of-way, tree lawn and street, but not front easement. The practical boundary comes from city practice, not text. On a deep-setback or unusual lot, confirm with Forestry before cutting anything near the street.
— A live contradiction, reported both ways rather than reconciled: Municode's codified Chapter 22.48 and the city's own Forestry pages still present Ord. 68607 as operative, while the Board of Aldermen record shows Ord. 72132 repealed it effective April 23, 2026. Ordinance 72132 has the higher authority, but Forestry staff may still be working from the old text.
— Whether the regulations required by Section Eighteen have been issued. They must be filed with the Division, the City Register and posted on the city website; none were found.
— Whether the City Tree Inventory Map and Permitting Page required by Section Five(B)(j) exists yet. It was not found; a street tree inventory RFP was in selection-committee stage as of December 2025.
— A historic-district edge case, flagged rather than asserted. Title 24 defines "exterior architectural feature" to include "the site topography, landscaping," and Section 24.20.010 bars altering one within a historic district without a permit. No historic district standard regulating tree removal was found, but an owner in a Local Historic District doing major site work should call the Cultural Resources Office.
— No email address for the Forestry Division. The site's "Contact the Division of Forestry" link resolves to the division index page rather than a mailto.
— St. Louis County rules. The county is a separate jurisdiction with its own code, and mail addressed "St. Louis, MO" is frequently in the county rather than the city.