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Cranes in tree work: operator licences and lifting rules by country

What regulators and official pages say about cranes used for tree removal, who must hold an operator licence or certificate, and who may sling the load, country by country.

Checked against the sources at the bottom of this page on October 8, 2026. Rules, fees and pay change: the source has the last word.

This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. It does not describe how to rig, sling or operate a crane. Where a source names who must hold a licence or certificate, the page says so and names the source. The crane maker's manual, the lift plan and the employer's own rules are outside what this page covers. For bucket trucks and other platforms, read bucket trucks and EWPs, which this page does not repeat.

United States

Subpart CC leaves tree work out

OSHA's construction crane standard, 29 CFR 1926 Subpart CC, applies to power-operated equipment, when used in construction, that can hoist, lower and horizontally move a suspended load. Its scope section, 1926.1400(c), lists activities the standard does not cover. Item (13) is "Tree trimming and tree removal work." See OSHA 1926.1400 on scope.

That matters for operator cards. The operator certification rule, 1926.1427, says the employer must ensure each operator is trained, certified or licensed, and evaluated before operating equipment covered under Subpart CC. It lists exceptions, among them equipment with a maximum manufacturer-rated lifting capacity of 2,000 pounds or less. Where a state or local government issues operator licences, the rule says a licence is valid for the period the licensing office sets, but no longer than 5 years. The section took effect on December 10, 2018, with the evaluation and documentation parts effective on February 7, 2019. See OSHA 1926.1427 on operator certification. Because tree work sits in the scope list as an exclusion, this rule is not the one OSHA points tree crews to.

What OSHA points to instead

OSHA's inspection guidance memo on tree care, dated June 24, 2021, tells inspectors to look at whether truck-mounted cranes are operated and maintained under the general industry crane standard, 29 CFR 1910.180. The memo says OSHA cancelled its 2008 tree care citation directive on June 24, 2021. See OSHA's tree care inspection guidance.

The standard itself applies to crawler cranes, locomotive cranes, and wheel-mounted cranes of both truck and self-propelled type. It has no operator card rule. Paragraph (b)(3) says only designated personnel shall be permitted to operate a crane covered by the section. Among its operating rules, as the standard words them:

  • No hoisting, lowering, swinging or traveling shall be done while anyone is on the load or hook.
  • The standard says the operator should avoid carrying loads over people.
  • The standard says no person should be permitted to stand or pass under a load on the hook.

See OSHA 1910.180 on crawler, locomotive and truck cranes.

Lifting a person with a crane

The OSHA memo says the 1910.180 ban on hoisting a person on the load or hook, also called riding the hook, applies even though ANSI Z133-2017, section 5.7.11, allows the hoisting of personnel into position with a crane. It says an employer's reliance on the ANSI standard is not a defense to a violation. An employer may argue that compliance is impossible or infeasible, or creates a greater hazard, but the memo says the employer carries the burden of proving it. The memo also says personnel platforms that meet 1926.1431 and are used under it will be treated as de minimis violations of the riding-the-hook rule. A de minimis violation is one OSHA does not cite.

State rules

Washington runs its own crane rules. Its construction crane scope section, WAC 296-155-52900, also lists "Tree trimming and tree removal work" among the work it does not cover. For cranes it does cover, WAC 296-155-53300 says the employer must ensure the operator has a valid crane operator certificate issued by an organization accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency, with the exceptions the rule lists. Washington Labor and Industries names the people involved on a covered crane job as the lift director, rigger, signal person and operator, and says covered cranes are inspected and proof load tested annually by an accredited crane certifier. See WAC 296-155-52900, WAC 296-155-53300 and the Labor and Industries crane page.

Other states have their own plans or licence laws, and each state labor department publishes who it applies to.

Canada

Crane certification is provincial and runs through the skilled trades systems. Each page below states who it covers.

  • Ontario. Skilled Trades Ontario lists Hoisting Engineer, Mobile Crane Operator 1 as a compulsory trade. Its page says that to practise it legally a person must hold a registered training agreement, a provisional certificate of qualification or a certificate of qualification, and appear on the public register. The certificate must be renewed, and the trade is part of the Red Seal program under the title Mobile Crane Operator. See Skilled Trades Ontario on Mobile Crane Operator 1.
  • Ontario Ministry of Labour. Its compliance page says section 150 of the construction regulation, O. Reg. 213/91, prohibits operating a mobile crane able to raise, lower or move material weighing more than 16,000 pounds unless the operator holds a Skilled Trades Ontario certificate of qualification, a provisional certificate, or is a registered apprentice; for cranes below that weight, subsection 150(2) asks for written proof of training. It says loaders and excavators are not considered cranes or similar hoisting devices, so that requirement does not apply to them, and that digger derricks are types of mobile cranes. It also says tree removal done as land clearing tied to a construction project falls under the logging sections, 103 to 119, of the industrial regulation, O. Reg. 851, as well as the construction regulation. See the ministry's cranes, hoisting and rigging page.
  • British Columbia. OHS Regulation section 14.34.1 says a mobile crane, tower crane or boom truck must be operated only by a person with a valid operator's certificate issued by a person acceptable to the Board, and under any conditions stated on the certificate. Section 14.34 adds that any crane or hoist must be operated only by a qualified person who has been instructed to operate it. Part 14 also applies to other equipment with a different primary design function when it is used in a hoisting or lifting application, and it does not apply to a front end loader, excavator or other earth moving equipment used for its primary design purpose. See WorkSafeBC Part 14 on cranes and hoists.
  • Alberta. Crane and Hoisting Equipment Operator is a designated trade, with separate profiles for boom truck, mobile crane, tower crane and wellhead boom truck. The mobile crane profile says restricted activities may only be performed by a registered trainee in the trade, a certified tradesperson or a holder of a recognized trade certificate. It lists a trades qualifier route of 54 months and 7,560 hours of verifiable mobile crane work, a theory exam and a practical exam. See Alberta Trade Secrets on the mobile crane trade.
  • Quebec. The construction industry commission, the CCQ, describes crane operator as a construction trade. It calls the diploma of vocational studies the favoured route, and describes an on-the-job route that includes a 120-hour course and an integration exam. See CCQ on becoming a crane operator.

BC Crane Safety, the body that certifies operators there, tells employers to check operators' credentials, and says an employer must hold a written supervision plan for any operator with a provisional certificate. See BC Crane Safety on checking operator credentials.

United Kingdom

HSE says the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER) require every lifting operation involving lifting equipment to be properly planned by a competent person, appropriately supervised and carried out in a safe manner. It says the Approved Code of Practice is not law but was produced under section 16 of the Health and Safety at Work Act and has a special status. See HSE's LOLER overview.

HSE on cranes in tree work

HSE's tree work page on lifting equipment lists cranes, mobile elevating work platforms and tree spades as lifting equipment, and says the term load includes a person. It lists positioning and installation points, among them that cranes and platforms used for tree work are set up so the counterweight does not swing into the way of pedestrians or road traffic. It says lifting equipment used to lift loads needs a thorough examination by a competent person. See HSE on lifting equipment in arboriculture.

Planning, examination and slingers

  • Planning. HSE says planning of routine lifts may be the responsibility of those who carry them out, for example a slinger or crane operator. For much more complex lifts, such as a tandem lift using several cranes, it says a written plan should come from a person with significant and specific competencies. Its list of factors includes working under suspended loads, overturning, proximity hazards, derating and lifting people. See HSE on planning lifting operations.
  • Examination. Unless an examination scheme sets other intervals, HSE gives 6 months for lifting equipment and accessories used to lift people, 6 months for all lifting accessories, and 12 months for all other lifting equipment. It says the term competent person is not defined in law. See HSE on thorough examination.
  • Slinger or banksman. HSE's page on lifting machinery lists having a responsible slinger or banksman and a recognised signalling system among the points to cover. See HSE on lifting equipment.

HSE's lifting pages speak of competence, training and planning. They do not name a licence or an industry card scheme for crane operators or slingers.

Australia

WorkSafe WA says a licence is needed to carry out high risk work including operating cranes and rigging, that a licence is recognised in all states and territories, and that the requirement does not apply to someone training for a licence under the direct supervision of a licence holder. Applicants must be at least 18. WorkSafe Victoria also lists operating cranes and rigging as high risk work needing a licence. See WorkSafe WA on high risk work and WorkSafe Victoria on licences.

The classes, as SafeWork NSW describes them

ClassCodeCovers
Non-slewing mobile craneCNOver 3 t capacity, boom or jib cannot slew
Slewing mobile craneC2, C6, C1, C0Up to 20 t, 60 t, 100 t, over 100 t
Vehicle loading craneCV10 mt or more, mounted on a vehicle
DoggingDGSlinging a load, or directing the operator when the load is out of view
RiggingRB, RI, RABasic, intermediate, advanced; basic includes dogging
Boom-type EWPWPBoom length 11 m or more

SafeWork NSW says there are 12 crane classes and one reach stacker class, that you must hold the dogging class before the rigging classes, and that a licence lasts 5 years. It also says a slewing telehandler fitted with a boom or jib with a hoist rope or hook block needs a slewing class. See SafeWork NSW on crane licences, on dogging and rigging licences and on high risk work licences.

NSW Code of Practice on tree works

The NSW tree works code of practice commenced on March 27, 2026 and replaced the 1998 Amenity Tree Industry Code of practice. On cranes it says:

  • Cranes are used in tree work to help lower trunk sections and branches, and as a method of access to a tree.
  • Tree work with cranes is considered high risk because of the likelihood of overturning or boom failure, with the causes given as the unknown mass of the material being cut, the unknown direction it will fall and shock loading of the crane.
  • Mobile cranes should not be used for tree removal or pruning unless a list of conditions can be ensured, including that the crane operator or other workers hold appropriate high risk work licences if the class of work requires it.
  • Operators of non-slewing mobile cranes over three tonnes, slewing mobile cranes and boom-type EWPs with a boom able to extend 11 metres or more must hold the appropriate licence. A dogging licence is needed by a person slinging a load or directing an operator when the load is out of the operator's view.
  • Mobile cranes with a rated capacity over 10 tonnes also need item registration, renewed annually.
  • For the crane access method, where a person is lifted into the tree, a risk assessment is required, and the method must not be chosen unless it would not create greater risk than climbing or using plant designed to access the tree. The person lifted must hold a dogging licence if directing the operator while out of the operator's view, and so must any observer who directs the operator.

The code names AS 2550.1:2011 for further information on safe crane use. See the NSW Tree works Code of Practice. SafeWork NSW's safety alert on tree work incidents says that if a crane or EWP is used, only a person with the right licence and qualifications is allowed to operate it. See the SafeWork NSW safety alert. Other states publish their own codes and guidance.

New Zealand

WorkSafe New Zealand keeps a cranes page. It describes the Approved Code of Practice for cranes as guidance on the design, manufacture, supply, safe operation, maintenance and inspection of cranes. The copy on the page is the third edition revised in November 2009, from the Department of Labour. The code's Part 4 says all persons operating or working with a crane must hold the listed unit standards as a minimum and preferably the relevant National Certificate in Crane Operation.

WorkSafe adds a clarification. It says the code is not a legislative instrument, so it is not mandatory to hold a unit standard or national certificate, and that holding one is only one way of showing competency. It says that until the law changes, for example by making cranes prescribed high-risk plant, only the general training provisions of the Health and Safety at Work Act apply. The page says the guidance has not been updated for that Act and will be progressively reviewed and either updated, replaced or revoked, and it shows Last updated June 12, 2019. See WorkSafe on cranes and the Approved Code of Practice for cranes.

At a glance

PlaceOperator rule as statedTree work
US, OSHASubpart CC: certified or licensed; 1910.180: designated personnelSubpart CC excludes it; memo points to 1910.180
CanadaCertificate or trade ticket, by provinceCheck each province
UKCompetent person plans the lift; no card namedHSE lists cranes under LOLER
AustraliaHigh risk work licence by classNSW code names licences
New ZealandNot mandatory to hold unit standardsNo tree-specific page
New MexicoState licence, Class I, II or III, for construction, demolition or excavation workPages do not mention tree work
HawaiiState certification board repealed July 1, 2026; federal OSHA rules enforcedNot stated
West VirginiaCertification according to 29 CFR 1926.1427; bucket trucks and derrick trucks outside the crane definitionNot stated
ManitobaAuthorized crane and hoist operator for mobile cranes and boom truck hoists of 7,300 kg or more, and tower cranesNot stated
Nova ScotiaCertificate of Competency and Crane Operator Licence, Classes 1 to 4 plus tower and overheadNot stated
New BrunswickJob Bank: mobile crane operator certification compulsory, hoist operator certification voluntaryNot stated
SaskatchewanJob Bank: mobile crane and hoist operator certification voluntaryNot stated

The New Brunswick and Saskatchewan rows come from the Job Bank requirements pages for crane operators in New Brunswick and crane operators in Saskatchewan, which do not state the provincial rule in the province's own words. The place-by-place pages below the table give the sources for the other added rows.

For the wider rules on the job, read safety rules by country. For licences outside the crane world, read licensing outside the US.

Crane operator rules, place by place

Sources