A Tape Measure and Ten Seconds Stand Between You and a $100,000 Fine
In Toronto the tree in your own backyard may not be yours to cut down.
In short
Toronto’s Tree Protection By-law prohibits injuring or removing a tree on private property — your property, your tree — once the trunk reaches 30 centimetres in diameter, unless the City has issued a permit.
The penalty is not a parking ticket. A person convicted faces a minimum fine of $500 per tree and a maximum of $100,000 per tree, plus a special fine of up to $100,000 more where it is proven the offender profited from the removal.
And permits are granted only in rare cases. If one is approved, you pay the tree’s full appraised value plus replanting costs, and plant a replacement. Which means the honest first step is not “who cuts it down” — it is a tape measure.
How to tell whether your tree is protected
Do this before you phone anyone. It takes less time than reading this paragraph.
| Step | What to do |
|---|---|
| 1. Height | Measure 1.4 metres (about 4 ft 6 in) up from the ground at the base of the tree |
| 2. Wrap | Put the tape around the trunk at that height, at a right angle to the trunk — not on a slant |
| 3. Divide | Take the circumference in centimetres and divide by 3.14 |
| 4. Read | That is diameter at breast height. 30 cm or more → protected. A circumference of about 94 cm is the line |
Roughly speaking: if you cannot close your hands around the trunk, assume it is protected and check properly. Multi-stem trees and trees near a ravine boundary have their own treatment — when in doubt, ask the district Tree Protection office before, not after.
What removal actually costs — and what it costs to do it wrong
Market quotes from GTA arborists, autumn 2026. These are prices published by businesses that sell the work.
| Job | Typical market price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Small ornamental, clear access | $300–700 | Half a day, ground-level work |
| Medium tree, open yard | $800–1,800 | Rigging, chipper, two or three crew |
| Large mature tree near the house or wires | $2,500–6,000+ | Crane or spider lift, hydro coordination, sectional dismantling |
| Stump grinding | $150–600 | Usually quoted separately — ask |
| Arborist report for a permit | $400–900 | Required with the application |
| Removing a protected tree without a permit | $500 minimum to $100,000 per tree | Plus up to $100,000 more where financial benefit is proven |
That last row is not a scare tactic; it is the by-law. The additional fine exists precisely for the case where a mature tree is inconvenient to a build — which is why it is worth reading alongside when you need a building permit.
What applying actually involves
Submitting an application does not guarantee a permit, and the City says so in plain words. What it requires is:
Outside Toronto, the rules change at the city line
Every municipality in the GTA writes its own tree by-law: its own protected diameter, its own exemptions, its own permit process and its own fines. Mississauga, Brampton, Markham, Vaughan, Richmond Hill, Oakville and the rest do not share Toronto’s 30-centimetre threshold by default.
Two further layers can sit on top anywhere. A ravine or natural feature designation brings a separate by-law with its own permit, and a conservation authority may have its own permitting over regulated land. A property can easily need two approvals for one tree.
So the rule is simple: the by-law that governs your tree is the one for the municipality your address sits in, and it is the only one worth reading. Do not rely on what a neighbour did in another city, and do not rely on this page — it describes Toronto.
Red flags
What to do next
Take the tape measure out before you take a quote. Measure at 1.4 metres, divide the circumference by 3.14, and if the answer is 30 centimetres or more in Toronto, the next call is to your district Tree Protection office — not to a crew with a chainsaw.
For pruning, storm cleanup, stump grinding or yard work that does not need a permit, compare home services in Ontario on Ontario24 and contact businesses directly. Ontario24 is a classified directory — we help you find and compare, and we do not vet anyone. Also useful: how to choose a landscaper and leaf and yard waste collection.
Before you call anyone, it helps to know what this job should cost and what the next one will. What things cost in Ontario in 2026 puts 75 service prices in one table.
Frequently asked questions
Market quotes generally run from a few hundred dollars for a small ornamental tree to several thousand for a large mature tree close to a house or wires, with stump grinding and debris removal usually priced separately. Before any of that matters, find out whether the tree is protected, because on a protected tree the permit process decides whether the job can happen at all.
Yes, if the trunk measures 30 centimetres in diameter or more. Under the City’s Tree Protection By-law, injuring or removing a tree of that size on private property is prohibited without a permit, and the rule applies to your own tree on your own land.
Measure 1.4 metres up from the ground, wrap the tape around the trunk at a right angle to it, and divide the circumference in centimetres by 3.14. That gives diameter at breast height. At 30 centimetres or more, the tree is protected and you need a permit before anyone touches it.
A person convicted under the Tree Protection By-law faces a minimum fine of $500 per tree and a maximum of $100,000 per tree, plus a special fine of up to $100,000 where it is proven the offender benefited financially. Removing a mature tree to make a lot easier to develop is exactly the case that additional fine exists for.
Permits are granted only in rare cases. If one is approved, the applicant pays the tree’s full appraised value plus replanting costs, and a replacement tree must be planted unless Urban Forestry decides otherwise. Submitting an application does not guarantee a permit.
An arborist report covering the tree’s location, species, size, condition, structural integrity, disease, infestations and health, submitted with the application to the Tree Protection and Plan Review office for your district. Incomplete applications are not processed.
No. Each municipality writes its own tree by-law, with its own protected size and its own process, and a ravine or natural feature designation adds a second set of rules on top. The 30-centimetre threshold described here is Toronto’s. Check your own municipality before booking anyone.
Sources and how current this is
Checked 18 September 2026. The 30-centimetre threshold, the measuring method, the arborist report requirement and the statement that permits are granted only in rare cases with full appraised value and replanting costs payable come from the City of Toronto’s pages on when to apply for a tree or ravine permit and how to apply. The fines — a minimum of $500 per tree, a maximum of $100,000 per tree and a special fine of $100,000 where financial benefit is proven — are stated on the City’s page on reporting a tree or ravine contravention. The new Ravine and Natural Feature Protection application fees effective 1 September 2026, and the ongoing update of Chapter 813 (Trees) and Chapter 658 (Ravine and Natural Feature Protection), are described on the City’s Tree Bylaw Review page. This page describes Toronto only — every GTA municipality has its own by-law and its own threshold. Removal prices are market quotes published by businesses that sell the work, not an independent survey. This is not legal advice. Ontario24 is a classified directory and does not issue permits or remove trees.