# Do you need a permit to remove a tree in Palm Coast?

> When Palm Coast requires a tree removal permit: the 6-inch trunk rule, Urban Forestry inspections, replacement trees, tree bank fees and the arborist exemption.

URL: https://sunwardpalmcoastlandclearing.com/guide/palm-coast-tree-removal-permit/

Learn

The trunk size that triggers a permit, who issues it, what replacement costs and the one route around it.

Last Updated: November 8, 2026 · Written by Sunward Palm Coast Land Clearing

Yes, for any tree with a trunk 6 inches or more across, measured 4.5 feet above the ground, or 4 inches and up if the tree is surveyed for credit. Palm Coast’s Urban Forestry office issues the permit, replacement trees may be required, and a documented hazard tree on a lot with a home can come out without one. [Sunward Palm Coast Land Clearing](https://sunwardpalmcoastlandclearing.com/) plans the tree list before any clearing, because the permit sets the order of the work.

**In short**

- Threshold: 6 inches diameter at 4.5 feet (DBH), or 4 inches if surveyed for credit.
- Who issues it: the city’s Urban Forestry office, to the owner or a written agent.
- Replacement: planted, or paid into the tree bank at $220 to $580 per tree, $275 for a sabal palm.
- Exception: a tree an ISA certified arborist or Florida licensed landscape architect documents as an unacceptable risk, on a lot with a home.

## What the rule covers

Chapter 11 of Palm Coast’s Land Development Code requires a tree removal permit to cut down, remove, damage or destroy by pruning any tree with a trunk caliper of 6 inches or more at diameter breast height, which the code places at 4.5 feet above grade. A tree surveyed for credit counts from 4 inches. The rule applies whether the tree comes down for a new house, a pool, a driveway or because the owner simply doesn’t want it.

Measuring is simple: wrap a tape around the trunk at 4.5 feet and divide by about 3.14, or ask a surveyor to note diameters on the survey. A tree that forks below 4.5 feet is a judgment call best left to Urban Forestry. On a lot being built on, the trees close to the footprint are the ones most often removed, as the [lot clearing page](https://sunwardpalmcoastlandclearing.com/lot-clearing/) explains.

We list every tree of permit size in our clearing scope with its trunk size, so your permit request matches what we’ll cut.

## Who issues it and how

Permits run through the city’s Urban Forestry office, reachable at 386-986-3758. The same office’s inspection request form covers tree removal, hazard tree identification and wildfire hazard identification, and inspectors aim to call within a week. Permits are issued only to the property owner or to an agent the owner has authorized in writing, which matters when a contractor or builder is applying for you.

On a new home lot the tree list is part of the lot clearing permit: the survey or site plan shows every tree of 6 inches and over as kept or removed. The clearing permit can’t be issued until the house permit is, as the [guide to clearing a lot to build](https://sunwardpalmcoastlandclearing.com/guide/clearing-a-palm-coast-lot-to-build/) explains.

## Replacement trees and the tree bank

Removing permitted trees can carry a replacement requirement. Replacements are planted on the lot, or paid into the city’s tree bank instead. The city’s fee schedule lists $220 for a 2-inch caliper shade tree or a 1.5-inch understory tree, $275 for a sabal palm and $580 for a 3.5-inch shade tree.

New single-family homes also have a landscape requirement on the permit checklist of one tree for every 2,500 square feet of lot. Keeping healthy trees set back from the house is often simpler than planting replacements later, which is the case for [selective clearing](https://sunwardpalmcoastlandclearing.com/selective-clearing/). Removing a tree without a permit can bring the replacement requirement anyway, and clearing a lot before its permit is issued carries a penalty of $1,000 or double the permit fee, whichever is higher. The [cost guide](https://sunwardpalmcoastlandclearing.com/guide/land-clearing-cost-palm-coast/) puts these fees alongside clearing prices.

## The hazard tree route

Florida Statute 163.045 limits what a city can require for one kind of tree. On residential property, meaning a single-family detached home on a lot actively used as one, a local government may not require a notice, application, permit, fee or mitigation to prune, trim or remove a tree when the owner has documentation from an ISA certified arborist or a Florida licensed landscape architect that the tree poses an unacceptable risk to persons or property.

That covers the leaning pine over the bedroom or the hollow oak over the driveway. It doesn’t cover a vacant lot being cleared to build, and it depends on the written documentation, which is worth keeping.

## Outside Palm Coast

Other governments in the area set different thresholds. Bunnell counts index trees such as oaks, maples and cypress per 2,500 square feet and leaves pines off its list. Unincorporated Flagler County requires a tree survey less than 24 months old with the building or development permit and protects specimen trees from 18 inches. Ormond Beach issues residential tree permits through its Neighborhood Improvement Division. Each [service area page](https://sunwardpalmcoastlandclearing.com/service-areas/bunnell/) covers its own rules.

## After the permit

Once a tree is down, the stump is pulled with its roots under a slab or driveway, or ground below grade elsewhere, as the [stump grinding or removal guide](https://sunwardpalmcoastlandclearing.com/guide/stump-grinding-vs-stump-removal/) explains. A replacement tree goes in a few feet away from a ground stump, not in the grindings.

Planning which trees come down?

Send the address and photos of the trees in question. The scope lists each one with its trunk size for the permit.

## Three more questions

### Does pruning a tree need a Palm Coast permit?

Ordinary pruning doesn't, but the city's rule covers damaging or destroying a tree by pruning, so cutting a tree back so hard that it dies is treated like removing it.

### Do palms count as trees for the permit?

Palms are part of the city's tree program; a sabal palm has its own tree bank fee of $275. Check with Urban Forestry before removing a palm of permit size.

### How long does a tree removal permit take?

Palm Coast's Urban Forestry inspectors aim to call within a week of an inspection request. Allow for that before booking clearing on a date.

Planning which trees come down?

Call, or send the address or parcel number, what you plan to build or keep, and whether the building permit has been applied for.

[(386) 465-4658](tel:+13864654658)

- **Mon-Fri**: 8am-6pm
- **Sat-Sun**: 9am-2pm

Outside these hours, emergency calls only.

Further reading

## More guides on clearing a lot

- [LearnClearing a Palm Coast lot to build a house](https://sunwardpalmcoastlandclearing.com/guide/clearing-a-palm-coast-lot-to-build/)
- [LearnOvergrown lots and the Palm Coast fire hazard rule](https://sunwardpalmcoastlandclearing.com/guide/palm-coast-wildfire-hazard-lots/)
- [Cost GuideWhat land clearing costs in Palm Coast](https://sunwardpalmcoastlandclearing.com/guide/land-clearing-cost-palm-coast/)
- [Decision GuideStump grinding or stump removal?](https://sunwardpalmcoastlandclearing.com/guide/stump-grinding-vs-stump-removal/)

## Contact Sunward Palm Coast Land Clearing

- Phone: [(386) 465-4658](tel:+13864654658)
- Email: [office@sunwardpalmcoastlandclearing.com](mailto:office@sunwardpalmcoastlandclearing.com)
- Address: 18 Market Ave, Palm Coast, FL 32164
- Hours: Monday to Friday 8am-6pm, Saturday and Sunday 9am-2pm (America/New_York). Outside these hours, emergency calls only.
- Request an estimate: https://sunwardpalmcoastlandclearing.com/contact/#estimate