Do you need a permit?
Yes — a permit is required
Vancouver requires a permit to remove a private tree. The city states it directly: under VMC 20.770, a permit is required for removing private trees. Which permit depends on your property type and why you are removing the tree — on a developed single-family lot it is a Level I permit for site disturbance or building work, or a Level III permit for a nuisance or hazard tree.
Fees, penalties, and the ordinance
- Ordinance
- Vancouver Municipal Code 20.770 — Tree, Vegetation and Soil Conservation. VMC 20.740 applies in critical areas.
Worth knowing
- Developed single-family residential: Level I permit for site disturbance or building, or Level III for nuisance or hazard trees.
- Commercial, industrial or multifamily: a permit is required even for nuisance and hazard trees — Level II for building additions or site disturbance, Level III for nuisance and hazard trees not tied to development.
- Undeveloped property: Level III, VI or VII depending on the activity proposed.
- Urban Forestry answers 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays. Community Development is (360) 487-7800.
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.
- — Permit fees, and whether any level is issued at no charge.
- — Any diameter or species threshold below which a private tree is unregulated — the city does not publish one.
- — Replacement-planting requirements after an approved removal.
- — Penalties for removing a private tree without a permit.