Tree rules in Tampa: permits, protected trees and fees

This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. It describes the City of Tampa, Florida, Code of Ordinances as published on the Municode site and read on October 9, 2026: section 27-43 (definitions), sections 27-284.1, 27-284.1.2, 27-284.2, 27-284.2.1, 27-284.2.3 to 27-284.2.7, 27-284.4.1 and 27-287.25 of the Tree, Landscape, and Natural Resources Code (division 4 of chapter 27, adopted by Ordinance 2019-54). The wider list of cities is on the guide to tree permits in the largest US cities. The Code names the natural resources coordinator as the official who receives applications, issues permits and enforces the division.

Which trees are covered

Section 27-43 defines a protected tree as any mitigation tree, any mangrove, any cypress, and any non-exempt species that measures 5 inches or more in diameter at breast height (DBH). A specimen tree is a listed species of at least 24 inches DBH, and a protected tree. A grand tree is a listed species of at least 32 inches DBH with a condition rating of A, B or C, and any tree the State of Florida has designated a Challenger or Champion tree is a grand tree. Section 27-284.1.2 lists the grand species, among them southern live oak, laurel oak, southern magnolia, slash, longleaf and loblolly pine, baldcypress, pondcypress, sweetgum, American sycamore, American elm and pecan.

Exempt trees need no removal permit. They include the Category I species on the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council 2017 list, which section 27-284.1.2 requires to be removed alongside any site work permit and leaves out of mitigation credit, and Category II species, which may stay or be planted but earn no credit. Camphor is the stated exception: the section deems it protected for mitigation, bars credit for camphor within 50 feet of rivers, lakes, bays, wetlands or upland habitat, and allows its removal without public notice or redesign, subject to its own mitigation rules.

Permits

Permit	What the Code says
Site clearing, 27-284.2.1	Needed before site clearing, demolition or a building permit on a parcel with protected or grand trees, wetlands or sensitive areas within 30 feet of the proposed development. Applicants may be the owner of a single or two-family dwelling, an arborist, or one of several licensed contractor types, among them a licensed tree service
Pruning, 27-284.2.3	No pruning of any limb of a grand tree, or of a specimen tree or protected tree limb 4 inches or more across (measured 12 inches from the base) on a public right of way or, for specimen trees, private property, until the Planning and Development Department issues a permit. Work follows ANSI A300 and is supervised or done by a properly certified or licensed company or person
Protected tree removal, 27-284.2.4	No one cuts down, removes, relocates, damages or destroys a protected tree until a permit issues. Removal without one is called an irreparable or irreversible violation. Criteria include a tree in the footprint of a building or utility line that cannot be redesigned around, a tree irreparably diseased or injured, or a visibility conflict that pruning cannot fix
Grand tree removal, 27-284.2.5	Unlawful until a permit issues. Grounds include a tree rated hazardous by the coordinator, structural damage to an existing building, or construction impacts that need board or commission approval after the applicant shows no reasonable reconfiguration exists

Pruning applications come from an arborist or a person licensed or authorised by the city to prune trees. Where someone other than the owner prunes, the application carries an affidavit guaranteeing that the work follows ANSI standards. Building permits are not issued without the tree pruning or removal permits that apply, and applications carry a tree survey with species and DBH for protected and grand trees on the parcel and within 20 feet of its boundary. The grand tree table says a demolition permit applied for within two years of a removal permit for structural damage creates a rebuttable presumption that the removal permit was obtained fraudulently.

Section 27-284.2.7 allows a non-exempt tree that poses an immediate and present risk to life or property to be pruned or removed before a permit issues, with the permit obtained no later than three working days afterward. Section 27-284.1 says fees are set by city council resolution for items such as permit applications and plan review, tree condition and risk inspections, re-inspections and mitigation trees. The Code does not state the amounts.

Mitigation and enforcement

Section 27-284.4.1 sets removal debits by tree type and trunk size, and requires replacement from the same tree type group in the City Tree Matrix, with at least 60 percent native trees among replacements. Grand trees are calculated by crown footprint, using a 2.5 inch caliper tree as the unit.

Section 27-287.25 gives the natural resources coordinator the power and duty to enforce the division. The coordinator may suspend or revoke a permit on stated grounds, such as a permit issued by mistake or on false information, and may issue a written stop work order. For a protected tree affected by work in violation of the division, the coordinator may assess a triple permit fee for each tree. Where the work irreparably damages a protected tree, tree mitigation under section 27-284.4.1 is added. For a protected shade or conifer species the coordinator may also send the violator to a code enforcement special magistrate, who can impose mitigation, replacement on the property with one 3-inch caliper tree per affected tree, and a fine up to the maximum state law allows for each tree. The magistrate weighs the gravity of the violation, any actions taken to correct it and previous violations.

For a grand tree the same section provides a triple permit fee where the damage is not irreparable. Where it is irreparable, the magistrate process can impose mitigation paid to the planning district tree trust fund, replacement with three 3-inch caliper trees per affected tree, and a fine up to the state-law maximum for each tree. Where only a stump remains, the section points the coordinator to a USDA Forest Service publication on stump diameter and height to work out the DBH. Section 27-284.2 separately says the triple permit fee does not replace prosecution and does not apply to emergency work under section 27-284.2.7.

Tree rules in Tampa: permits, protected trees and fees

Which trees are covered

Permits

Mitigation and enforcement

Sources