Tree Removal Permit in San Antonio, TX
Permit Summary
Do You Need a Tree Removal Permit?
Exemptions
San Antonio's tree-preservation division does not apply to significant or heritage trees or regulated canopy on property where construction of a single-family, two-family, or three-family dwelling has been completed. It also exempts trees the City Arborist determines are diseased, overly mature, dying, dead, or hazardous because of a natural event and requiring immediate removal; certain limited survey clearing; conservation subdivisions; clear-vision-area trees; and trees preventing reasonable and necessary vehicular lanes in a street or alley. Listed non-native invasive species are not protected under the tree survey rules. Separate right-of-way, public-property, historic-preservation, or other rules may still apply.
Protected Trees & Removal Eligibility
Protected Tree Rules
Significant and heritage trees are protected under UDC Section 35-523 when the tree-preservation standards apply. Heritage trees generally have a 100% preservation baseline in development review, while significant-tree preservation percentages depend on development type and location. Non-native invasive species excluded from protection and tree surveys include Chinese pistache, chinaberry, Chinese tallow, tree of heaven, salt cedar, Japanese ligustrum, nandina, and paper mulberry. Historic trees receive separate review when removal is proposed.
When Removal Is Allowed
The City Arborist issues a tree removal permit when the proposed work, plans, and other data comply with the tree-preservation standards and required fees are paid. Outside stricter special areas, significant or heritage trees may be removed beyond minimum preservation requirements when the removal is properly mitigated under the UDC. Trees in rights-of-way and easements require prior City Arborist approval, and trees on public property may not be removed without specific City authorization.
Replacement Requirements
Replacement Rules
When mitigation is required, the UDC generally uses a 1:1 ratio for significant trees and a 3:1 ratio for heritage trees, measured through the code's mitigation framework. Ash species, hackberry, huisache, Ashe juniper, mesquite, and heritage-size small-tree species are mitigated at 1:1. Replacement trees must be at least 1.5 inches caliper, and no more than 25% of mitigation replacement trees may be the same species. Payment to the tree mitigation fund or tree canopy fund may be used where the UDC allows payment in lieu. Floodplain and environmentally sensitive area rules are stricter.
Arborist & Professional Requirements
Professional Requirements
A person or firm engaged in the business or occupation of pruning, treating, or removing trees must hold a valid City of San Antonio Tree Maintenance License. Current DSD licensing guidance requires identification, continuing-education documentation, and at least $300,000 in general liability insurance; the City offers one-year and three-year license terms. A homeowner may perform tree work on the homeowner's own completed residential property, but a hired contractor must be properly licensed. When transplanting a significant or heritage tree is proposed as a preservation method, the UDC requires a feasibility report prepared by a certified arborist or landscape architect.
Public Notice Requirements
Notice Rules
An ordinary tree permit is processed ministerially and does not require a public hearing. Special historic-tree review can involve the Historic and Design Review Commission. For HDRC hearings, the City posts the agenda at least 72 hours before the hearing and places a yard sign on the site as public notice. Other variance or appeal procedures may have separate hearing requirements.
Emergency Tree Removal
The tree-preservation division exempts a significant or heritage tree or regulated canopy when the City Arborist determines it is dangerous or hazardous because of a tornado, storm, flood, or other natural event and immediate removal is required for public health, welfare, or safety. Public trees that are unsafe, dead, dying, damaged, or diseased should be reported to the City's Urban Forestry program through 311 for investigation and City action.
Development & Special Areas
Development-Related Rules
Tree-preservation rules apply to regulated development and activities that may remove or damage significant or heritage trees or regulated canopy, including new construction and additions increasing total floor area by more than 2,500 square feet, new or expanded parking areas over 2,500 square feet, grading, filling, clearing, protected-tree removal, potentially lethal chemical or biological treatment, and trenching or excavation. The baseline tree-survey preservation standard is 35% of significant trees for single-family development and 40% for multifamily and nonresidential development, with a 100% heritage-tree baseline; mitigation pathways apply under the UDC. Tree review may be integrated with plats, master development plans, building permits, and other development approvals.
Special Zone Rules
Within 100-year floodplains and environmentally sensitive areas, significant trees must be preserved at 80% and heritage trees at 100%; mitigation is prohibited there unless the Planning Commission grants a variance. This special subsection does not apply to properties located entirely within RIO-2 or RIO-3, although the other tree-preservation rules still apply. Proposed removal of a historic tree is deferred to the Historic Preservation Officer, who seeks advice from the Historic and Design Review Commission. Properties in historic, River Improvement Overlay, and other Office of Historic Preservation review areas may also require a Certificate of Appropriateness before exterior work begins.
What You Need Before Applying
Requirements
Before regulated site work, determine whether the project affects significant or heritage trees or regulated tree canopy and submit the required tree application to the City Arborist. Development that removes trees or disturbs vegetation generally requires a Tree Preservation Plan; a qualifying notarized tree affidavit may be used when no protected trees or regulated canopy will be damaged or removed. Before activities requiring a tree permit begin, the applicant must request a pre-construction conference with the City Arborist and comply with tree-protection, preservation, mitigation, and permit conditions.
Required Documents
For the Tree Preservation Plan path, the current UDC requires a tree preservation permit application and a plan containing a tree survey, tree inventory and preservation calculations, reasons for proposed removals, tree planting information, and tree-protection notes/details; a Habitat Compliance Form is required when applicable. The tree-affidavit path requires a notarized tree affidavit with required fees and site information verifying that no protected trees or regulated canopy will be damaged or removed, plus aerial/site information and a Habitat Compliance Form when applicable. Project-specific submittals may also require a tree stand delineation plan, mitigation information, or historic/floodplain documentation.