Do You Need Council Approval to Remove a Tree on the Gold Coast?

Checked against the City of Gold Coast website on 27 October 2026. Main source: Tree and vegetation removal on private land, City of Gold Coast. Other sources are linked in the section they support. Rules change, so check the council page before you act, and ring the council on 07 5582 8708 if your situation is not clearly covered.

Which trees are protected on the Gold Coast?

The City of Gold Coast says you may need approval before removing or pruning trees and vegetation on your property. Vegetation is assessable, the council’s word for “you need to check before you touch it”, in two separate circumstances.

By size. Vegetation is assessable if it is:

• more than 4 metres in height, or
• its trunk is more than 40 centimetres in circumference, measured 1.3 metres above the ground.

Note that it is or, not and. A squat tree with a thick trunk is caught even if it is well under 4 m. Note also that 40 cm is circumference, not diameter, so that is a trunk roughly 13 cm across, which is a smaller tree than most people picture.

By mapping. Separately, and regardless of size, vegetation is assessable if it is:

• remnant vegetation or native understorey, or
• disturbed or regrowth vegetation, or wetland vegetation or its understorey,

as shown on the council’s Vegetation Management Overlay Map. This is the part that catches people clearing what looks like scrub. Low regrowth on a mapped lot can be fully protected.

One more thing worth knowing up front: the council’s exemption guidelines do not apply to trees on land managed by a body corporate, or within a community management scheme. If you are in a unit block, townhouse complex or gated community, the exemptions below are not available to you, and the body corporate controls the decision in any case.

How do I check if my property has a vegetation overlay?

The maps are here:

• Vegetation Management Overlay Map
• Bushfire Hazard Map

If the mapping is ambiguous for your lot, that is a good reason to ring the council rather than interpret it yourself.

What are the exemptions?

The council lists vegetation work that is accepted development, meaning it does not need an application. In summary:

• Vegetation along an existing boundary fence, and where a new boundary fence is being built. The distances vary by lot size.
• Vegetation close to an existing approved building, such as a house, shed or garage. These distances also vary by lot size.
• Vegetation within 1.5 metres of an existing pool fence.
• Native undergrowth: native herbs, grasses and small trees, meaning trees under 4 m in height or 40 cm in circumference measured 1.4 m above ground level, under the canopy of taller trees, on a lot under 1000 m². The code itself (RO9) says only that damage to native understorey can occur on lots under 1,000 m² and gives no measuring height. The council’s tree page says 1.4 m in this exemption and 1.3 m in its assessable-vegetation definition, so so measure conservatively, at 1.3 m, where a trunk is wider and so less likely to qualify, and check with the council on 07 5582 8708 before relying on this exemption.
• Pest species, as identified by a Level 3 Arborist.
• Potential bushfire hazard around an approved dwelling, where the vegetation falls within the Bushfire Hazard Map and there is no approved bushfire management plan.
• Vegetation that is actually or potentially dangerous, as determined by a Council Level 5 Arborist.

The distances. The council page above says only that they vary by lot size. The figures are in Table 9.4.14-1 of the Vegetation management code (Part 9.4.14) in the online City Plan (as of 27 October 2026, when Version 14 was the current version, commenced 29 September 2026):

• Boundary fence (RO1): within 1.5 m on lots under 4,000 m²; within 3 m on lots of 4,000 to 7,999 m²; within 6 m on lots of 8,000 m² or more. The distance is measured from the centre of the trunk at ground level to the nearest edge of the fence foundations, and a proposed fence must be built within 21 days of the work.
• Boundary survey (RO2): work that is essential to achieve a survey of an existing boundary by a licensed cadastral surveyor.
• Approved building (RO3): within 3 m on lots under 8,000 m²; within 10 m on lots of 8,000 m² or more, measured from the centre of the trunk at ground level to the nearest edge of the building’s foundations.
• Pool fence (RO4): within 1.5 m.

These match the figures in the council’s earlier guideline, Vegetation management on private land (published 2016). The code also says these exemptions do not apply to vegetation under a vegetation protection order, or planted under an approved landscape plan or as a condition of approval.

Two of these are commonly misread. “Pest species” needs a Level 3 Arborist to make the identification. It is not a judgement you make yourself from a plant list. And “dangerous” needs a Council Level 5 Arborist to determine it, which means the council’s own arborist, not the one quoting to remove the tree.

Do I need approval to remove a dead tree?

Do not assume so. The council page lists an exemption for vegetation that is actually or potentially dangerous, determined by a Council Level 5 Arborist, but it does not list “dead” as an exemption in its own right.

The current Vegetation management code (Part 9.4.14) in the online City Plan (as of 27 October 2026) sets out how dead trees fit in. Its outcome RO6 allows the work only where a Council authorised AQF Level 5 Arborist has determined that the vegetation is actually or potentially dangerous because it is dead, dying, diseased, structurally unsound or has a hazardous growth form or habitat, or is a threat to the safety of people, property or the environmental integrity of the site, or poses a threat to the dwelling. (The council’s 2016 guideline called this outcome SO6.) So being dead is a reason the arborist can give. It is not an exemption you can apply yourself.

The honest answer is: check first, and get the Level 5 determination before work starts.

How do I apply for approval, and how long does it take?

The council describes four application types: standard tree works not related to a building or development approval; tree works related to a building approval and approved secondary dwelling; tree works related to a development approval; and tree works related to a vehicular crossing (driveway). Pick the one that matches what you are doing.

To apply online, prepare the State Government DA Form 1 and a site plan for tree works, then submit through the Operational Works (OPW) or combined OPW/OPV online forms. In person, you prepare those two documents plus the Application for Operational Works, and lodge and pay at a customer service centre, Monday to Friday, 8.15am to 4.30pm.

The council’s Private Tree Removal Request (DA Form 1) Guideline (as of 27 October 2026) has you lodge tree removal as Operational Work, for a development permit, at code assessment.

What are the council fees?

Each application type has its own fee. These are the tree works fees in the council’s 2026-27 register:

City of Gold Coast tree works application fees, 2026-27

Application	Council fee	Source
Tree works not linked to a development application, 1 to 3 treesFee code 12481	$210	City of Gold Coast Register of Fees & Charges 2026-27as of 27 October 2026
Tree works not linked to a development application, 4 to 15 treesFee code 12072	$397	City of Gold Coast Register of Fees & Charges 2026-27as of 27 October 2026
Tree works not linked to a development application, 16 trees or moreFee code 12379	$791	City of Gold Coast Register of Fees & Charges 2026-27as of 27 October 2026
Tree works linked to a building approval, approved dual occupancy or secondary dwellingFee code 12073	$427	City of Gold Coast Register of Fees & Charges 2026-27as of 27 October 2026
Tree works for a vehicular crossing (driveway)Fee code 12075	$404	City of Gold Coast Register of Fees & Charges 2026-27as of 27 October 2026
Tree works linked to a development application, 1 to 15 treesFee code 12071	$818	City of Gold Coast Register of Fees & Charges 2026-27as of 27 October 2026
Tree works linked to a development application, 16 to 500 treesFee code 12573	$1,311	City of Gold Coast Register of Fees & Charges 2026-27as of 27 October 2026
Tree works linked to a development application, more than 500 treesFee code 12574	$1,677	City of Gold Coast Register of Fees & Charges 2026-27as of 27 October 2026
Tree works reinspection, per additional inspectionFee code 12602	$297	City of Gold Coast Register of Fees & Charges 2026-27as of 27 October 2026

How long does assessment take? Contact the City of Gold Coast and ask about timeframes when you lodge, particularly if you are working to a build schedule.

What happens if I remove a protected tree without approval?

Clearing assessable vegetation is Operational Work that needs a development permit. Under section 163 of the Planning Act 2016 (current as at 3 September 2026, read 27 October 2026), carrying out assessable development without the permits it needs is an offence. The maximum penalty is 4,500 penalty units, or 17,000 penalty units on a Queensland or local heritage place.

A penalty unit is $172.70 from 1 July 2026, under the Penalties and Sentences (Penalty Unit Value) Amendment Regulation 2026 (as of 27 October 2026). At that value the maximums work out to $777,150 and $2,935,900. They are the most a court can impose, not the usual outcome.

Beyond a fine, the Planning Act lets the enforcement authority act in other ways (sections 168 and 176, as of 27 October 2026):

• An enforcement notice. If the authority reasonably believes someone has committed a development offence, it can give a notice requiring them to stop and to remedy the effect, including to restore the premises “as far as practicable” to the condition they were in before the work, or to apply for a development permit. The notice can go to the person who did the work and to the owner of the land. For an offence about clearing vegetation, the Act says a show cause notice is not required first (section 167).
• A court order. After offence proceedings, a Magistrates Court can make an enforcement order to stop, remove, restore or apply for a permit, on top of any penalty. It attaches to the land and binds later owners, and if it is not obeyed the authority can do the work and recover the cost as a debt. The court can also order compensation for loss or damage (section 177).
• A time limit. Court proceedings for a Planning Act offence must start within 1 year after the offence is committed, or within 1 year after it comes to the complainant’s knowledge (section 173A).

How the City of Gold Coast finds unapproved clearing is only partly stated in official sources. Its Report a problem: trees, plants and vegetation page (as of 27 October 2026) invites the public to report unapproved tree removal. The Planning Act lets an appointed inspector enter a place with the occupier’s consent or under a warrant (section 186). No official page checked says that the council uses aerial or satellite imagery, so none is claimed here. The council’s tree page also gives no on-the-spot fine amount for removing a protected tree, so none is claimed either. What the council would require in a particular case, including any replanting, is not stated on its page, so ask on 07 5582 8708 before you act, not after.

What can be said without qualification is that it is not a risk worth taking. The tree cannot be put back, and a contractor who removes a protected tree on your instruction does not carry the consequence for you.

If a contractor tells you a protected tree can be removed without approval, ask them to point at the exemption they are relying on.

What about a street or park tree?

Trees on the footpath, in parks or on other council land are the council’s, not yours. On its Report a problem: trees, plants and vegetation page (as of 27 October 2026), the council says:

• Report a problem online or through the City App, and do not do the work yourself.
• If a tree is a risk to public safety, phone 07 5667 5974 (City of Gold Coast, Report a problem: trees, plants and vegetation).
• To ask for a council tree to be removed, use the council’s tree removal from public land application. Removal for a building, development or driveway goes through an operational works application.
• The council will not act for solar panel shading, gutters, or leaf, branch or seed drop. Overhanging branches are assessed for pruning, not removal.
• Trees within 3 m of power lines are Energex’s job (13 12 53, the general enquiries line Energex lists), and trees within 3 m of phone lines are Telstra’s (13 22 55).
• The council does not mediate tree disputes between neighbours.

How is this different from Brisbane or Sunshine Coast rules?

Every Queensland council runs its own vegetation rules under its own planning scheme, and the thresholds genuinely differ between them. The 4 m height and 40 cm circumference tests on this page are City of Gold Coast rules, and they apply to property inside the Gold Coast local government area.

This matters more than it sounds. Search for tree removal approval rules and you will readily land on another council’s page. A neighbouring council’s guidance ranks well for these searches, and the advice on it will not be right for a Gold Coast property. Check the local government area your address sits in, and then read that council’s rules.

If your property is near the border, around Ormeau and Yatala in the north or the hinterland in the south, confirm which council you are actually in before you rely on anything.

When in doubt, ask before you cut

The cost of asking is a phone call. The cost of being wrong is a tree you cannot replace and a penalty you cannot appeal on the basis that you did not know.

A qualified local arborist can usually tell you quickly whether a tree is likely to be assessable, whether an exemption is realistic, and whether an arborist report would help an application. That conversation is part of a normal quote.