What size tree is regulated in the City of Miami?

Section 17-2 provides that a tree regulated under Chapter 17 must have a minimum size of 12 feet overall height with a DBH of two inches or larger, so both tests apply. On a multi-stemmed tree the DBH is the sum of the DBH of each trunk measured at four and one half feet above ground level.

Do I need a permit to prune a tree in the City of Miami?

Section 17-4 requires a tree permit for pruning of more than 25 percent of the canopy, crown or living foliage of a tree, and for other pruning not in accordance with the ANSI A-300 Standards, which is allowed upon presentation of a letter to the city, to be validated by a certified arborist, with justification as to why the ANSI A-300 Standards are not applicable. Root pruning carries its own trigger: removal of roots one inch in diameter or greater, or removal of more than ten percent of a tree root system, requires a tree pruning permit.

What does tree removal cost in the City of Miami?

Replacement under Section 17-6 is set by a published chart that works on the sum of the inches at DBH of all trees to be removed, rounded up to the nearest inch. Two to three inches is one replacement tree or $1,000.00, seven to twelve inches is four trees or $4,000.00, twenty-five to thirty inches is ten trees or $10,000.00, and forty-nine to sixty inches is twenty trees or $20,000.00. On non-homestead property the tree trust fund contribution is $1,000.00 for each two-inch DBH tree the chart requires.

What is the penalty for removing a tree without a permit in the City of Miami?

Chapter 17 carries penalties in two places. Section 17-10, in Article I, imposes a fine of $1,000.00 per tree on non-homestead property for every tree that has been the subject of tree activity without a tree permit or the subject of tree abuse, with replacement required in addition to the fine, and a property fined under the article within the past five years is referred to the code enforcement board and subject to enhanced penalties of $5,000.00 per day per violation under Florida Statutes Section 162.09. Section 17-45, in Article II, sets a fine of up to $1,000.00 per violation per day for a first violation and up to $5,000.00 per tree for every repeat violation. Both sections reach any person, or agent thereof.

Tree Removal Permits in the City of Miami

In the City of Miami a tree permit is required for all tree activity, on public and private property alike. What decides a budget is the replacement chart, which works on the summed diameter of every tree in the application, so two large trees on one job can reach a five figure contribution to the tree trust fund. TWQ Landscaping prepares and files these applications, and our ISA Certified Arborist (NY-6948A) produces the supporting report where one is required.

Does This Apply to Your Property?

Section 17-3 applies the article to all public or private property in the city unless expressly exempted by law, and requires a tree permit for all tree activity as defined in the chapter. A commercial site, an association common area, a condominium parcel, a hotel or an institutional campus sits inside that. Section 17-2 sets the size at twelve feet overall height with a DBH of two inches or larger, and both tests apply.

Three layers stack on the city rule. Environmental preservation districts fall under Article II of Chapter 17, natural forest communities under Miami-Dade County Code Chapter 24, Article 3, and mangroves and trees on wetlands under Chapter 24, Article 2. Removal on a public right of way or on city property runs through the resilience and public works department, whose permit Section 17-72 also requires to trim or prune on city land.

What Needs a Permit

Pruning is regulated by proportion. Section 17-4 requires a tree permit for pruning more than 25 percent of the canopy, crown or living foliage, and for pruning not in accordance with the ANSI A-300 Standards, which is allowed on presentation of a letter to the city, validated by a certified arborist, justifying why those standards are not applicable. Canopy is defined as an average, measured across the canopy in at least two directions.

Root pruning carries its own trigger. Removal of roots one inch in diameter or greater, or of more than ten percent of a root system, requires a tree pruning permit, and no root pruning beyond those limits is allowed anywhere in the city without one. Section 17-4 also holds the building department back: a permit for work with the potential to affect trees, including pools, decks, driveways, parking lots and demolition, issues once the zoning department has determined compliance.

What It Costs

The replacement obligation at Section 17-6 decides the budget, not the permit. A published chart converts the total diameter of the trees to be removed, as the sum of the inches at DBH and rounded up, into replacement trees or a contribution to the tree trust fund. Two to three inches is one tree or $1,000.00; seven to twelve inches, four trees or $4,000.00; twenty-five to thirty inches, ten trees or $10,000.00; forty-nine to sixty inches, twenty trees or $20,000.00. Above sixty, further inches are added cumulatively from the top down.

The contribution is reached where planting is not possible. On-site planting comes first, then off-site planting by written agreement with the city on public property within the same commission district, and elsewhere in the city where the department confirms capacity issues. An applicant may do both, part planting and part contribution. On non-homestead property the contribution is $1,000.00 for each two-inch DBH tree the chart requires.

Each replacement tree is a minimum of two inches DBH, a six foot canopy spread and twelve feet in height. A palm is replaced by two palms at sixteen feet overall height with a six-inch DBH, or one tree at twelve feet with a two-inch DBH, and palms may account for up to 30 percent of the trees required. Diversity scales with the count: 11 to 20 trees require 2 species, 21 to 50 require 4, and 51 or more require 6.

Replacement trees must meet or exceed the Florida Number One standard, and the process must be completed before a certificate of occupancy issues. Relocated and replacement trees must be maintained in a healthy growing condition and guaranteed for at least one year unless the department authorizes otherwise in writing. Section 17-8 prices an appeal at $315.00 to the historic and environmental preservation board within 10 calendar days, or $157.50 for a homeowners association with a member within 500 feet.

What Happens If It Is Done Without a Permit

Chapter 17 carries penalties in two places, and they are different provisions for different articles. Section 17-10, in Article I, imposes $1,000.00 per tree on non-homestead property for every tree that has been the subject of tree activity without a permit or of tree abuse, and replacement is required in addition to the fine. Section 17-45, in Article II, sets up to $1,000.00 per violation per day for a first violation and up to $5,000.00 per tree for a repeat.

Establish which article applies before quoting a number. Under Section 17-45 each tree removed is a separate and distinct violation with its own fine and its own replacement, and the section reaches any person, or agent thereof, which puts the contractor in the fine's path alongside the property owner. A property fined under Article I within the past five years is referred to the code enforcement board and subject to enhanced penalties of $5,000.00 per day per violation under Florida Statutes Section 162.09. Section 17-48 separately withholds new building permits related to the removal until the violation is corrected.

What to Check With Your Contractor

Section 17-7 is written about crew conduct. Protective barriers go around the perimeter of each tree protection zone before and during demolition, development or construction, including the installation of irrigation systems and other underground work, and stay in place until approved landscape operations begin. Inside the zone the code prohibits parking, vehicle maintenance, storage of materials or debris, and the cleaning of equipment. In a preservation district Section 17-35 fixes the barrier radius at ten feet, changed only by a certified arborist determination in writing.

What to Do Next

Three things are worth settling before work is scheduled in the City of Miami. What the chart produces for the summed diameter of everything in scope, because that is the budget. Whether a tree in scope is a Lofty Fig (Ficus altissima) or a Banyan (Ficus benghalensis), which Section 17-6 carves back in from the Miami-Dade County Prohibited Species List and treats as a regulated tree. And whether an appeal is pending, since a timely appeal prohibits removal of any tree it could affect until final disposition.

We settle those before quoting. We inspect the trees, record species and condition, prepare the arborist report the department may require before it decides, provide monitoring during root pruning, relocation and construction, file the application, and handle replacement planting or the contribution. TWQ Landscaping handles tree permitting for the properties we maintain across Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade: community associations and condominiums, cooperative and master associations, commercial and industrial sites, medical and senior living campuses, schools, religious campuses, hotels, multifamily rental, self-storage, marinas, mobile home and RV parks, municipal grounds and mixed-use. Call (954) 583-4752 or request a proposal.

The information presented on this page was accurate as of 27 August 2026.

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