How do I find out if a tree on my property is protected?

Start with your local council, because in most of Australia council rules decide it. The fastest checks are: run your address through a tree permit checker, look up your council's tree or vegetation controls (often in a Development Control Plan, local law or planning scheme), and check whether your property carries a planning overlay or the tree is on a significant-tree or heritage register. If it is still unclear, call the council's planning or tree team and ask directly before you touch the tree.

Are all large trees protected in Australia?

No. There is no single national rule. Only the ACT and South Australia have statewide laws that protect trees on private land by size. Everywhere else, protection is set locally: your council decides which trees are covered, usually by height, trunk size, species or location, and the thresholds differ from council to council. A tree that is protected in one suburb may not be in the next.

What size does a tree have to be before I need approval to remove it?

It depends entirely on where you live. Some councils protect trees above a set height (for example around 3 to 5 metres), some use trunk circumference or diameter measured at a set height, some use both, and a few protect particular species at any size. The ACT and SA set their thresholds by state law. Because there is no universal number, check your own council's rule, or run your address through the permit checker, rather than assuming a figure.

Does a Tree Preservation Order still apply to a dead or dangerous tree?

Most councils have an exemption for a genuinely dead, dying or dangerous tree, but the protection does not simply vanish because you believe the tree is a risk. Councils usually want evidence, most often a report from a qualified arborist, and the exemption commonly falls away for heritage-listed or registered trees. Get the risk documented in writing first, and check the exemption with your council before removing a protected tree.

Can I be fined for removing a protected tree without approval?

Yes. Removing or substantially damaging a protected tree without the required approval can lead to significant penalties, and some councils also require replacement planting. The exact penalties are set by your state and council, so we do not quote a figure here. The safe move is to confirm the tree's status and get any approval before work starts, and to keep the paperwork.

Is my tree protected? How to check before you remove it

Before you remove or heavily prune a tree in Australia, the first question is whether it is protected. Get it wrong and you can face a fine and an order to replant. There is no single national rule, so this guide shows you the ways a tree becomes protected and the quickest ways to check your own before any work starts.

General information only, not legal advice. Tree rules are set by your state and local council and change over time. Always confirm your tree's status with your council before removing or pruning it.

There is no national rule, so start local

Australia has no single law that says which trees are protected. Only two places, the ACT and South Australia, have statewide laws that protect trees on private land by size. Everywhere else the decision is handed to your local council, which sets its own rules for which trees are covered and what you need approval to do. That is why a tree can be protected in one suburb and not in the next, and why the only reliable answer comes from checking your own address, not a generic figure online.

The quickest way to get a location-specific answer is to run your address through the permit checker, then confirm anything unclear with the council directly.

The six ways a tree becomes protected

A tree can be caught by more than one of these at the same time. It only takes one to mean you need approval.

Council tree or vegetation controls. This is the most common one. In NSW it usually sits in a council's Development Control Plan (read alongside the state vegetation planning policy); in Victoria and other states it comes through the planning scheme or a local law. These rules protect trees above a set height and/or trunk size, and sometimes particular species, across the whole council area.
Planning overlays on your property. Victorian planning schemes use overlays such as the Vegetation Protection Overlay, Significant Landscape Overlay and Environmental Significance Overlay; SA has a Regulated and Significant Tree overlay in its Planning and Design Code. If your land carries one, trees on it can be protected regardless of the general size rule.
Statewide size thresholds (ACT and SA). The ACT protects “regulated” trees on many urban blocks by size, and South Australia protects regulated and significant trees by trunk circumference. These are state laws, so they apply on top of, not instead of, any local rule.
Significant-tree registers. Many councils keep a register of significant or notable trees, nominated for their size, age, rarity, habitat or historical value. A listed tree is protected specifically, and often the usual exemptions do not apply to it.
Heritage listings. A tree in a heritage conservation area, on a heritage-listed property, or on a state heritage register is generally protected, and the size and distance-from-house exemptions usually fall away.
Native vegetation and threatened-species law. Separate state native-vegetation rules and threatened-species protections, and the federal EPBC Act, can apply to bushland, remnant native trees and habitat, especially on larger or semi-rural blocks. These sit above council rules.

How to actually check your tree, step by step

Run your address through the permit checker. Our permit checker gives you a location-specific starting point for whether approval is likely to be needed.
Read your state page. Our state tree-removal law pages explain how each state and territory frames protection, the common exemptions and the governing legislation.
Check the council's own tree rules. Search the council website for its tree, vegetation or “significant tree” page, its Development Control Plan or local law, and any online planning-overlay map for your address.
Look for overlays and listings on your land. A planning certificate (in NSW, a section 10.7 certificate) or the state planning portal will show overlays, heritage status and zoning that affect your property.
Call the council and ask. A two-minute call to the planning or tree team, with your address ready, will usually confirm the tree's status. Ask them to point you to the specific rule so you have it in writing.
Get an arborist's report if you plan to rely on an exemption. For a dead, dying or dangerous tree, a qualified arborist's report is what most councils accept as evidence. See our guide to removing a dead or dangerous tree.

Common signs a tree is likely protected

None of these is a substitute for checking, but if any apply, treat the tree as protected until the council tells you otherwise:

It is a large, established tree well above head height with a thick trunk.
Your property is in a heritage conservation area or is heritage-listed.
The council's online map shows a vegetation, landscape or environmental overlay on your block.
It is a locally native or remnant bushland tree, or provides obvious habitat (hollows, nesting).
You live in the ACT or South Australia and the trunk is large.
A neighbour was told they needed approval for a similar tree.

What happens if you remove a protected tree anyway

Removing or substantially damaging a protected tree without the approval you needed can lead to significant penalties, and many councils will also require you to replant. The exact penalty is set by your state and council, so we will not quote a number, but it is routinely far more than the cost of doing it properly. If a contractor offers to remove a tree “no permit needed” without checking, that is a red flag: the liability lands on the property owner. Confirm the status, get any approval, and keep the paperwork before work starts.

Quick reference

No national rule: protection is set by your state and, mostly, your council.
Statewide by size: only the ACT and South Australia.
Six triggers: council controls, planning overlays, statewide thresholds, significant-tree registers, heritage listings, native-vegetation law.
Fastest check: permit checker, then your council's tree page or a quick call.
Dead or dangerous: usually exempt, but get an arborist's report and confirm first.
Get it wrong: fines and replanting orders, on the property owner.

Not sure if your tree is protected?

Local arborists deal with council tree rules every day and can assess whether your tree is likely protected, prepare the report a council needs, and handle the removal properly if it is approved. Tell us about the job and we'll connect you with licensed local arborists for free, no-obligation quotes.

Frequently asked questions

How do I find out if a tree on my property is protected?: Start with your local council, because in most of Australia council rules decide it. The fastest checks are: run your address through a tree permit checker, look up your council's tree or vegetation controls (often in a Development Control Plan, local law or planning scheme), and check whether your property carries a planning overlay or the tree is on a significant-tree or heritage register. If it is still unclear, call the council's planning or tree team and ask directly before you touch the tree.
Are all large trees protected in Australia?: No. There is no single national rule. Only the ACT and South Australia have statewide laws that protect trees on private land by size. Everywhere else, protection is set locally: your council decides which trees are covered, usually by height, trunk size, species or location, and the thresholds differ from council to council. A tree that is protected in one suburb may not be in the next.
What size does a tree have to be before I need approval to remove it?: It depends entirely on where you live. Some councils protect trees above a set height (for example around 3 to 5 metres), some use trunk circumference or diameter measured at a set height, some use both, and a few protect particular species at any size. The ACT and SA set their thresholds by state law. Because there is no universal number, check your own council's rule, or run your address through the permit checker, rather than assuming a figure.
Does a Tree Preservation Order still apply to a dead or dangerous tree?: Most councils have an exemption for a genuinely dead, dying or dangerous tree, but the protection does not simply vanish because you believe the tree is a risk. Councils usually want evidence, most often a report from a qualified arborist, and the exemption commonly falls away for heritage-listed or registered trees. Get the risk documented in writing first, and check the exemption with your council before removing a protected tree.
Can I be fined for removing a protected tree without approval?: Yes. Removing or substantially damaging a protected tree without the required approval can lead to significant penalties, and some councils also require replacement planting. The exact penalties are set by your state and council, so we do not quote a figure here. The safe move is to confirm the tree's status and get any approval before work starts, and to keep the paperwork.