Do you need a permit?
It depends on the tree
If your home is a single-family detached house, Tallahassee lets you remove non-patriarch trees up to 36 inches DBH without a permit — far more generous than most Florida cities. A permit is required above 36 inches, for any state-recognised patriarch tree, for any tree in a wetland, and for any tree within a canopy road protection zone. The permit costs $273 and covers up to 10 trees.
Size threshold
Sec. 5-83(c)(3) exempts, for single-family detached residential dwelling units, "The removal of non-patriarch trees up to 36 inches in diameter at breast height." Removals that DO need a permit: state-recognised patriarch trees; 36" DBH or greater (single family detached); wetland trees of any size; and on non-single-family sites, trees over 4" DBH in the lot perimeter zone, dogwood 4" DBH or greater, hardwood or long leaf pine 12" DBH or greater, and other trees 18" DBH or greater.
What's protected in Tallahassee
- Patriarch trees — designated patriarch or state champion by the state division of forestry
- Any tree in a wetland, at any size
- Any tree in a canopy road tree protection zone — within 100 feet of the centreline of Meridian Road, Magnolia Drive-Centerville Road-Moccasin Gap Road, Miccosukee Road, Old St. Augustine Road and Old Bainbridge Road
- Exceptional specimen trees identified by the city urban forester, a certified arborist or the city environmental biologist
- Any tree planted to meet replanting, reforestation or landscaping requirements
How to apply in Tallahassee
- 1
Confirm whether your project needs an environmental management permit. If it does, tree removal is handled as a component of that rather than a standalone permit.
- 2
Complete the Tree Removal Permit Application with project type, removal type, quantity (must not exceed 10), and a description, diameter and reason for each tree.
- 3
Choose a compensation type: fee-in-lieu, tree replanting, or trees preserved on site. If replanting, show size, quantity, species and location on the site map.
- 4
Assemble the package: application, notarised Owner's Affidavit, location map with major cross streets, site plan showing tree location, species and size, mitigation narrative, and an arborist letter if applicable.
- 5
Submit through the city permit portal and pay the $273 fee.
Fees, penalties, and the ordinance
- Fee
- $273 application fee, not to exceed 10 trees (Growth Management fee schedule, Resolution No. 22-R-42, effective 1 October 2025).
- Ordinance
- Tallahassee Land Development Code Chapter 5, Sec. 5-83 — Tree protection and removal standards
Worth knowing
- Tallahassee writes the Florida statute directly into its code. Sec. 5-83(b): "The following requirements shall apply to all new development and redevelopment in the city except as provided in F.S. § 163.045..."
- Safety removals not connected to development need no permit and accrue no debits. Sec. 5-83(e)(1): "When a tree is removed for safety reasons not associated with development activity, an environmental permit shall not be required and debits shall not accrue."
- Also exempt: nursery trees; removal during or after an emergency where permitting would hamper restoration; diseased or pest-infested trees removed to stop spread; and noxious invasive trees verified by the urban forester — Chinese Tallow, Mimosa, Tung Oil, Chinese Umbrella Tree, China Berry, and anything on the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council Class I and II lists.
- Removal is compensated through tree credits and debits: credits for trees preserved or planted, debits for trees removed. Debits cannot exceed credits.
- For canopy road removal within 100 feet of the centreline, contact a Growth Management Environmental Inspector at 891-7001, Option 3.
- A tree's critical protection zone is a circle of one foot radius per inch of DBH. Impacting it counts as removing the tree.
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.
- — Penalty amounts. Secs. 5-141 and 5-142 provide for notices of violation, a seven-day remedial window, stop work orders and code enforcement referral, but no dollar figure is published.
- — Whether the 36-inch single-family exemption also covers trees in the lot perimeter zone — Sec. 5-83(d)(2)(d) protects those at 4" DBH "except for sites being developed for detached single-family dwellings." Confirm for your lot.