Bushfire clearing rules in New South Wales: the 10/50 vegetation clearing scheme and its Code of Practice

This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. It describes the NSW Rural Fire Service page on 10/50 vegetation clearing and the 10/50 Vegetation Clearing Code of Practice dated September 4, 2015, both read on October 10, 2026, plus two NSW Government pages on the general rules for native vegetation and for trees in towns. It covers New South Wales, Australia only. The rules for power line operators are a different set, in the guide to wildfire plans and tree clearing in New South Wales.

What the scheme is

The Rural Fire Service page says the 10/50 Vegetation Clearing Scheme lets people in a designated area clear trees on their property within 10 metres of a home, and clear other vegetation such as shrubs, but not trees, within 50 metres of a home, without seeking approval. It dates the scheme to August 1, 2014, after the 2013 fires in which more than 200 homes were destroyed in the Blue Mountains. The Code says it is prepared under section 100Q of the Rural Fires Act 1997 and that the Commissioner may review it at any time.

The Code words the legal effect in two lines. Clearing done in line with the Code is "authorised clearing under NSW legislation". It also says the Code is not an approval: a person is not guilty of an offence for clearing in accordance with it. The page adds that clearing outside the Code may be an offence under another Act, that dumping cleared vegetation is illegal, and that the Code is not an exemption from, or approval for, burning.

The review and the 2015 changes

The page says a review was announced on October 1, 2014 because some landholders were clearing for other purposes. Submissions closed on November 14, 2014 and the review made 30 recommendations. Legislative changes took effect on August 28, 2015 and an amended Code on September 4, 2015. The page lists these changes: a multi-stem tree counts as one tree for the 30 centimetre circumference test; a tree can be removed only if part of a trunk over 30 centimetres around, measured 1.3 metres above the ground, lies within 10 metres of an external wall; relying on a neighbour's building needs the written consent of each adjoining owner with such a building; farm sheds became covered buildings; and the area was cut back to land within 100 metres of higher-risk vegetation, which the page says covers 85 percent of the properties historically destroyed by bush fire.

Where it applies and whose land

The Code says the scheme applies only to lots mapped as entitlement land, and that the land must be mapped on the day of clearing. The page describes an online tool on the Rural Fire Service site for the check, says a copy of the result is to be kept, and says the map can change, so an earlier result does not cover a later day. Clearing is on the owner's own land with the owner's consent. The page says tenants need the landowner's written consent and that a tree whose trunk crosses two or more properties needs every owner's consent. A neighbour's tree cannot be cleared under the scheme.

Which buildings and how distance is measured

The Code covers external walls of buildings with habitable rooms that are residential accommodation or a high-risk facility such as a childcare centre, school or hospital, and farm sheds. The rooms need lawful authority for their use, such as an occupation certificate where one applies. External walls include attached decks, verandahs, pergolas and garages but not paved or concreted areas. A farm shed in the Code is a building over 50 square metres in a rural zone, used by a primary producer wholly or substantially for cultivation, bee keeping, aquaculture, or livestock rearing or grazing.

Item	What the Code of Practice says	Source section
Trees	Removal, or destruction by means other than fire, of any vegetation including trees within 10 metres of an external wall. A tree may be removed only where part of its trunk at 1.3 metres above ground is within 10 metres	Section 7.1
Other vegetation	Removal or destruction of vegetation, except trees, within 50 metres of an external wall	Section 7.1
Pruning	Allowed within 50 metres, but not trees more than 10 metres from the residence; branches within 10 metres may be pruned wherever the trunk stands; pruning follows the Australian pruning standard AS 4373-2007	Section 7.3
Slopes over 18 degrees	No tree removal except under a geotechnical engineer assessment report; pruning only with at least 75 percent of the original canopy kept, same exception	Section 7.5
Lakes and rivers	No clearing within 10 metres of a lake, or of a river 2 metres or more wide between the highest opposite banks	Section 7.6
Herbicides	Only products registered by the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority, used to the label	Section 7.4

On pruning beyond 10 metres the two documents differ. The Code says that if the tree needs pruning past 10 metres to meet AS 4373-2007, the pruning may not be undertaken. The web page says to confirm with the council whether approval is needed before starting. Both are what the sources print on October 10, 2026.

Land the scheme excludes

The page and the Code list land where the scheme does not apply: mapped coastal and other wetlands, littoral rainforest, mapped koala habitat in comprehensive koala plans of management, Ramsar wetlands, land within 100 metres of the coastline or estuaries, Lord Howe Island, critical habitat, records of critically endangered plants, eight listed critically endangered ecological communities in the Sydney Basin, Aboriginal Places, Aboriginal scarred trees, and State and local heritage listings. Land reserved under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974 and World Heritage land are mapped too, and the Code lets an owner show a lot does not actually hold the protection. Mangroves and coastal saltmarsh are not mapped but may not be cleared, according to two NSW Department of Primary Industries Primefacts the page cites.

The Code also says clearing cannot be inconsistent with conservation agreements, property vegetation plans, biobanking agreements, development consent conditions that require vegetation to be kept, section 88B instruments under the Conveyancing Act 1919, court orders, stop work orders or remediation directions. It does not approve soil disturbance: the page lists no graders, ploughs or bulldozers, no removal below the soil surface and topsoil staying in place, and says landowners are not exempt from liability for erosion or landslip. On animals it says a duty of care applies and that the scheme does not exempt an owner from prosecution for harm to protected fauna.

Councils, power lines and contractors

The page says the Code overrides Tree Preservation Orders, so the council need not be told. It says the scheme is not an approval under the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 and does not provide for clearing around power lines, where the Electricity Supply Act 1995 requires owners to keep trees a safe distance and the network provider is the office named. For work outside the scheme, NSW Planning says Chapter 2 of the Biodiversity and Conservation SEPP 2021 sets the clearing rules for land zoned for urban and environmental purposes, that councils can require a permit for vegetation they declare in a development control plan, and that a refused applicant can appeal to the Land and Environment Court. The NSW Environment and Heritage page says rural native vegetation clearing falls under the Local Land Services Act 2013, run by Local Land Services. On contractors, the Rural Fire Service page says tree removal needs no trade licence in Australia and lists qualifications, insurance and an ABN among the things it suggests checking.

Who to call

NSW Rural Fire Service: the 10/50 online tool, the Code of Practice and questions about the scheme, per its 10/50 page
Your local council: permits for vegetation it declares in its development control plan, and whether approval is needed for work outside the scheme
Local Land Services: rural native vegetation clearing under the Local Land Services Act 2013, as the NSW Environment and Heritage page describes it