When you need a permit to cut or injure a tree, what it costs, replacement rules, City trees and Halton Region woodlands.
Summary
Inside Burlington's urban boundary, the Private Tree By-law (040-2022) requires a permit to injure or remove a private tree 20 cm in diameter or more measured 1.37 m above the ground, and any heritage tree or endangered species. Every tree on public property, of any size, is protected city-wide by the Public Tree By-law (098-2025). Apply online through the City's tree permit portal, or through your pre-building or pool application if you have one.
Administered by the City of Burlington's Forestry staff, with Halton Region for woodlands. Every answer below was checked against its source on October 7, 2026; the source is linked under each one.
Trees on private property
Do I need a permit to cut down a tree in Burlington?
If you live within the City's Urban Planning Area Boundary, you need a permit under the Private Tree By-law (040-2022) to injure or destroy (remove) a tree 20 cm (8 inches) in diameter or greater, measured at 1.37 m from the ground. Designated heritage trees and endangered, threatened or at-risk species of any size are also protected and may need additional approvals.
The Private Tree By-law applies only within the urban boundary; check your address on the City's interactive map. Work inside a tree's protection zone, such as digging for a pool or patio, counts as injury.
No permit is needed to injure or remove a private tree under 20 cm in diameter, for private tree maintenance (pruning no more than a third of the live crown within good arboricultural practice), for trees in a nursery or orchard, or for emergency tree work, provided supporting documents affirming the emergency are supplied to the City.
A tree that is 100% dead, has a terminal condition or is high-risk still needs a permit, but the fees and compensation are waived.
How do I measure a tree's diameter for the by-law?
Measure 1.37 m (4 feet 6 inches) up from where the trunk emerges from the ground, measure the trunk's circumference there and divide by 3.14. That is the Diameter at Breast Height (DBH). For a tree with several stems, square each stem's diameter, add them up and take the square root of the total.
What else does the by-law exempt, and what if I remove a tree in an emergency?
The by-law also does not apply to trees classified as invasive, work by the municipality, electricity transmitters and distributors maintaining their systems, removals required by a Property Standards order, or trees owned or cared for by the Royal Botanical Gardens or Conservation Halton. After emergency tree work, the owner must notify the City's Manager in writing within 72 hours and provide documentation the Manager requests, such as an arborist report or photographs.
The Private Tree By-law does not apply to woodlands governed by Halton Region's Tree By-law 121-05.
Use the online tree permit application, which needs a login. At minimum, upload the size and species of each tree, a sketch showing where it is on the property and at least one photo of each tree. Depending on the request you may also need an owner authorization form, an arborist report and tree protection plan, a consent letter for a boundary tree or one you do not own, or a replacement plan. Pay the processing fee online by credit card.
If your work needs a building permit or is a pool or swim spa, do not use this form: the tree review is part of the Pre-Building Approval or pool application. A completed application is not a permit.
You pay a $54.00 + HST application processing fee up front, then a permit fee set by the number of trees removed or injured, and a refundable security deposit if you will replant. The processing fee is not required for a dead tree, a tree with a terminal condition or a high-risk tree verified by a qualified tree professional.
Yes. Removed private trees must be replaced by replanting, cash-in-lieu or a combination: two trees for each tree 20 to 35 cm in diameter, three for 36 to 74 cm and four for 75 cm or more. Replacements must be planted within a year of the permit (or as the permit says), reach at least 4.5 m at maturity, and be at least 30 mm caliper if deciduous or 125 cm tall if coniferous. One must be a similar species to the tree removed, for example deciduous for deciduous.
There is no replanting requirement for a tree injury permit. The replacement security deposit is refunded once staff verify the trees are planted.
What are the fines for removing a tree without a permit?
On conviction, a person other than a corporation faces a fine of $500 to $100,000 for a first offence and $1,000 to $100,000 for a subsequent offence, for every day the offence occurs or continues. Corporations face $1,000 to $100,000, then $5,000 to $100,000. Continuing offences can add up to $5,000 a day, and a court can impose a special fine, which may exceed $100,000, to eliminate or reduce any economic advantage.
Contraventions can also bring administrative monetary penalties under the City's Administrative Monetary Penalties By-law.
Can I remove or prune a City tree in front of my house?
No, not without a permit. The Public Tree By-law (098-2025) requires a permit to injure or destroy any tree of any size on public property, anywhere in the city, urban or rural. The City generally does not support removing public trees, so contact Service Burlington before applying. Public tree maintenance such as pruning must be done by the City and can be requested by emailing Service Burlington.
Public tree removal, 1st tree (no pre-permit site visit)
Who do I contact about a City tree that worries me?
Place a service request to Forestry Operations through Service Burlington at city@burlington.ca or 905-335-7777. Requests to remove a public tree that are unrelated to a project will not be approved; a public tree permit for a project needs City authorization, which staff give after a consultation.
City trees are pruned at least every seven years, and street trees are visually inspected for health, structure and risk, with mature trees inspected more often. Only City staff or contractors working for the City may maintain City-owned trees; if you think a tree needs work, contact the Roads, Parks and Forestry Department to request an inspection.
When emailing city@burlington.ca about a tree, put your address in the subject line.
You cannot attach anything to a public tree, such as birdhouses, hammocks, pet leashes, slack lines, signs or swings; build landscaping or raised planters with rocks or masonry around its trunk; prune or remove any part of it; put any substance other than water on or near it; or volcano-mulch it. Dumping garden debris or grass clippings near trees is considered illegal dumping.
Construction near a City tree may need special permission. Contact the City if you are not sure whether a tree is on public property.
Yes. Halton Tree By-law 121-05 applies to properties containing all or part of a woodland larger than 0.5 hectares (1.1 acres) and to properties partly or entirely within the Regional Greenlands, now the Natural Heritage System. You may harvest up to 24 cubic metres of wood a year for your own use following Good Forestry Practices; harvesting more, or without an approved Forest Management Plan, needs a permit.
A Special Council Permit, for harvesting that does not follow Good Forestry Practices, costs $500 and needs Regional Council approval. Removing dead or diseased trees is exempt.