Tree Removal Permit in Houston, TX
Permit Summary
Do You Need a Tree Removal Permit?
Exemptions
Chapter 33 Section 33-105 does not apply to a non-designated tree on a tract or parcel devoted to single-family residential use, although separate Article VI rules still apply to trees in streets or rights-of-way. Chapter 33 also provides defenses for qualifying immediate-hazard removals and certain public-utility or governmental removals; these are limited defenses to the normal notice requirements and do not create a general exemption for street trees.
Protected Trees & Removal Eligibility
Protected Tree Rules
Chapter 33 Article V defines protected trees as corridor trees, designated trees, green corridor trees, and parkway trees. A designated tree is a specific tree designated by City Council for particular historical or arboricultural significance. Section 33-105 generally requires advance notice and replacement for removal of a protected tree, but excludes a non-designated tree on single-family residential property from that section. Street and right-of-way trees remain subject to the separate protections in Article VI.
When Removal Is Allowed
For a protected tree governed by Section 33-105, removal may proceed only after the required notice and replacement obligation are addressed. For an Article VI tree, written permission is obtained through the Parks and Recreation director; the director considers the tree's age and condition and, for work involving utilities, driveways, alleys, streets, sidewalks, or visibility, whether the requested action is reasonably required after considering alternatives. Additional restrictions apply to protected canopy along designated walkable-place and transit-oriented-development streets.
Replacement Requirements
Replacement Rules
Protected trees subject to Section 33-105 and street trees subject to Section 33-160 generally require replacement at one caliper inch planted for each caliper inch removed, a contribution to the city tree fund at the applicable current fee-schedule rate, or a permitted combination. Development projects may also use qualifying preservation credits. Replacement trees generally must be planted within 30 days after removal, or within six months when a documented assurance is provided. Development-related replacement requirements do not apply to specified removals reasonably necessary for utilities, access drives, streets, sidewalks, visibility, emergency utility repairs, or trees in poor condition, but separate Article VI permission may still apply.
Public Notice Requirements
Notice Rules
The Houston Permitting Center states that an issued Tree Removal/Tree Trimming Permit must be kept on the premises and publicly posted for 20 days before removal or trimming. Separately, Chapter 33 requires written notice to the city at least 20 days before regulated protected-tree or street-tree removal, with a map and replacement information. These notice requirements do not apply to every ordinary private-tree removal.
Emergency Tree Removal
Chapter 33 provides an affirmative defense when a regulated protected or street tree is damaged by fire, wind storm, accident, or another qualifying cause and becomes an immediate threat to persons or property, provided the owner documents the circumstances and files written notice of the removal with the city within 10 days after removal. The code also provides a defense for certain public-utility or governmental removals without advance notice when reasonably required for maintaining or installing public facilities or utility systems.
Development & Special Areas
Development-Related Rules
Chapter 33 Division 2 applies tree and landscape requirements to new nonresidential or multifamily construction requiring a building permit, nonresidential or multifamily enlargements exceeding 1,000 square feet, new or expanded parking lots, and certain city-funded street projects. The landscape plan must identify protected trees and whether they will be preserved or removed and must address replacement. A building permit cannot issue until the landscape plan is approved, and a protected tree shown for removal may not be removed until the twentieth day after the landscape plan is filed. New single-family construction is governed separately by Section 33-110 tree planting or preservation requirements.
Special Zone Rules
Green corridors receive enhanced tree protection under Chapter 33: qualifying street-tree-list species at 15 caliper inches or more in the building setback area are green corridor trees, although the green-corridor designation does not impose its requirements on single-family property. Section 33-161 also protects the canopy of trees 10 caliper inches or more along designated walkable-place and transit-oriented-development streets within the right-of-way and specified distances from it; exceptions include immediate hazardous dead, damaged, or diseased canopy, authorized maintenance or pruning, and an approved variance.
What You Need Before Applying
Requirements
Determine whether the tree is on city property, in a street/right-of-way or setback, or is otherwise a protected tree under Chapter 33. For regulated removal, file the required written notice or application before work, identify the tree and its location, obtain Parks and Recreation written permission where Article VI applies, and satisfy any required replacement planting or tree-fund contribution. Development projects must also comply with applicable landscape-plan and tree-protection requirements.
Required Documents
For regulated removal, the city requires a written notice of intent or written application and a map that unmistakably identifies the tree to be removed. Where replacement is required, the submittal must show how replacement will be provided, including the location, species, and caliper of replacement trees or the applicable tree-fund contribution. Development-related reviews require a landscape plan showing relevant existing and proposed site features, protected trees to be preserved or removed, and a plant schedule.