Do I need a permit to prune or remove a tree in Glen Eira?

What is protected in Glen Eira

Glen Eira's Canopy Tree Protection Local Law is recent, made in August 2024, and it brought most established trees on private land under a permit system for the first time. A canopy tree is a tree taller than 5 m with a trunk circumference of 140 cm or more measured 140 cm along the trunk from the ground (trunks added together where there are several), a tree with a stump circumference of 140 cm or more at ground level, or a palm taller than 8 m. A permit is required to prune or remove a canopy tree or to carry out works within its tree protection zone.

Council also keeps a Classified Tree Register for individual trees of particular value. Classified trees are protected regardless of size, and works within their protection zone need a permit as well.

Where a planning overlay or a planning scheme control also applies to the tree, the planning permit process takes precedence over the Local Law permit. Since September 2025 the Victorian planning scheme requires a planning permit in residential zones to remove a canopy tree (over 5 m tall, trunk circumference over 0.5 m at 1.4 m, canopy at least 4 m across) within 6 m of the front boundary or 4.5 m of the rear boundary, and Glen Eira's trees page sets out both definitions side by side.

Rules change, and this law is new enough that Council is still refining how it is applied. Check Glen Eira's current page before relying on anything here.

What you can do without a permit

Minor pruning does not need a permit: once a year, no more than 10 per cent of the canopy can be removed, and only branches under 10 cm in circumference at the point of attachment. Trees below the canopy tree thresholds, and not on the Classified Tree Register, are outside the Local Law.

Emergency work to control an immediate danger to life or property, such as a limb damaged in a storm, can go ahead without a permit. Council must be notified within five working days so an officer can inspect the tree, and Council recommends keeping evidence such as photographs and a statement from a qualified arborist.

What an application needs

There is no permit fee. Applications go through Glen Eira's online form or the tree works permit application, and anyone can apply, with the owner's consent attached if the applicant is not the tree owner. A neighbour can apply only to prune an overhanging canopy tree. The form asks for the address, the type of works proposed, a basic drawing showing the tree's location and any works within its protection zone, and the company carrying out the work.

Council arborists may request an arborist report or other supporting information before issuing a permit, and removal permits commonly carry a replacement planting condition. Council does not publish a fixed processing time, so allow a few weeks.

Where the council asks for an arborist report, LumberJord writes them: arborist reports for council permits.

What Jordan does about it

Jordan measures the tree's height and trunk circumference at 1.4 m during the quote and tells you whether it is a canopy tree under the new law. Pruning within the once-a-year minor pruning allowance is booked as usual; anything beyond it, and any removal, is lodged with Council first.

Where Council asks for an arborist report he prepares it, and the work is scheduled once the permit has been issued. If a planning overlay also applies, he flags that the planning process comes first.