Tree Removal on the Central Coast — questions and answers
Short answers to what people ask before booking tree work on the Central Coast: when Council's permit applies, what a neighbour's overhanging branches allow you to do, what the work costs, how fast anyone can come, and where an enquiry sent through this site goes.
Call (02) 4315 2380Cost
How much does tree removal cost on the Central Coast?
We don't set prices here; your provider quotes its own figure once it has seen the tree. What is set in advance is Council's: a permit of $245 for up to two trees in 2026-27, excluding GST, and $218.05 to apply to occupy the road where a job needs traffic control on a Council road. The costs page's Tree removal costs and rules check gives the Council's fee line with its source and the date it was read.
Why can two quotes for the same tree be so far apart?
They may not be quoting the same job. One might allow for a crane, traffic control and taking the wood away, while another assumes the tree can be dropped whole and left cut up on site, so ask each what it includes.
Tree removal on the Central Coast
How a tree comes down under Council's rules
The checks a removal on a Central Coast house block runs through, in the order they come, each with the rule behind it.
Check it counts as a tree
3 m · 75 mm
tall, or this wide at 1.4 m above the ground: Council counts it as a tree
Pruning away a substantial part of a tree counts as removing it, so heavy lopping is caught as well.
Source: Central Coast DCP 2022, Chapter 3.5, s 3.5.1 · read
See whether an exemption fits
6 months
the landowner keeps an arborist's record of an exempt removal
Dead trees, listed undesirable species and trees right beside an approved house can qualify. No exemption covers a threatened species or a habitat tree.
Source: Central Coast DCP 2022, Chapter 3.5, s 3.5.3.2 · read
Check the bushfire clearing rule
10 m
of a home, trees may be cleared without approval inside an entitlement area
Only the Rural Fire Service's online tool says whether your lot is in one, checked on the day you clear. Keep a copy of the result.
Source: NSW Rural Fire Service, 10/50 Vegetation Clearing · read
Put every tree on one application
5 trees
on one application; Council takes no new one within 12 months
Every owner of the tree signs, including the neighbour when it stands on the boundary.
Source: Central Coast Council, Private Tree Works Application page and form · read
Pay the permit fee
$245
for up to two trees in 2026/27, excluding GST
Each extra tree adds a further fee. Lodge online or at a Customer Service Centre.
Source: Central Coast Council, Fees and Charges 2026/27, fee 0543 · read
Wait for the decision
28 days
for Council to decide; after that the application is taken as refused
An officer usually inspects the tree first. Any consent is displayed at the front of the site while the work is done.
Source: SEPP (Biodiversity and Conservation) 2021, s 2.11; Council's application form · read
Each step names its source and the date it was read. Council sets its fees each year, so check them for your own application.
Process
Where does my enquiry go?
To one independent provider covering the Central Coast, who contacts you about the tree and quotes. We are paid for passing it on. If no one can take the job, you hear that from us.
Should I ask the provider about insurance and training?
Yes. SafeWork NSW suggests asking for a certificate of currency covering workers compensation and public liability, and says tree work contractors usually have someone holding Certificate II or III in Arboriculture. This site makes no claim about any provider's cover or training.
Timing
How quickly can someone get to me?
We don't promise a time. It depends on the independent provider and their bookings, and a job needing Council's permit waits for it: Council usually inspects within 10 working days and is to decide within 28 days.
Can I cut back my neighbour's overhanging branches?
Not on your own say. The Land and Environment Court and Legal Aid NSW both tell people to check with Council first, and Council says you can apply to prune the branches to your boundary. Branches directly over the roof of your approved house are the exception, and can be pruned to the pruning standard without approval.
Permits and approvals
When does a tree need Council's permit?
When it is 3 metres or taller, or has a trunk 75 millimetres across at 1.4 metres, and no exemption applies. The exemptions cover dead trees, species on Council's Undesirable Species List, trees within 3 metres of an approved building, light pruning and branches over a roof, and none of them applies to a threatened species or a habitat tree. On rural or waterway-zoned land Local Land Services decides instead, and on land shown on the State's Biodiversity Values Map a removal goes through the state biodiversity offsets scheme rather than Council.
Source: Central Coast Development Control Plan 2022, Chapter 3.5 (August 2026); State Environmental Planning Policy (Biodiversity and Conservation) 2021
Service area
Which suburbs do you cover?
Anywhere in Central Coast Council's area. Seven suburbs have a page, running north from Umina Beach and Woy Woy to Blue Haven and Lake Munmorah; Gosford, Terrigal and the rest are covered without one.
Do you do the tree work yourselves?
No. A marketing company runs this site and passes enquiries to an independent local provider, who quotes and does the work. We hold no tree-work training, insurance or equipment ourselves.
Thanks — we have your enquiry. Someone will be in touch shortly. Prefer to talk now? Call (02) 4315 2380.
Last reviewed · Updated · First published