City or County? Which Tree Removal Permit Rules Apply in Pinellas County
Updated: 3 days ago
Published September 26, 2026. Last reviewed September 28, 2026. Next review due March 26, 2027. By Forest, Property Intelligence Specialist, Ken's Tree Service.
Whether you need a permit to remove a tree depends first on which government your property sits under, and the answer can change completely at a city line. Pinellas County, Dunedin, Tarpon Springs, Clearwater and Safety Harbor each write their own tree rules, and they disagree on three practical questions: how big a tree has to be before it is protected, which palms need a permit, and whether a dead tree does. This guide explains how to tell which rules apply to your address, compares those jurisdictions on those three questions, and links to our full guide for each covered jurisdiction.
Key facts, verified September 26, 2026
County article reaches into cities: Pinellas County Code section 58-809: "This article shall apply to property, excluding county-maintained right-of-way, within the incorporated and unincorporated areas of the county."
Where a city's ordinance conflicts: "the municipal ordinance shall prevail" (section 58-809)
Dunedin: Exempts itself from Pinellas County Ordinance No. 76-16 (section 105-35.3)
Size threshold: 4 inches DBH in all five for most trees, except that on a qualifying homesteaded single-family lot in unincorporated Pinellas County protected trees "are those trees with a DBH greater than 24 inches" (58-813(a)(3)); Clearwater also protects "any accent tree two inches DBH or greater" (8-102), and palms follow their own rules in every jurisdiction
Palms: Five different rules in five jurisdictions
State route: Florida Statute 163.045, the same in every jurisdiction
Why the answer changes at the city line
Pinellas County's tree protection article does not stop at the county's unincorporated land. Section 58-809 of the Pinellas County Code reads in full: "This article shall apply to property, excluding county-maintained right-of-way, within the incorporated and unincorporated areas of the county. Where these provisions conflict with a municipal ordinance, the municipal ordinance shall prevail. No trees shall be removed from county-maintained right-of-way without an approved permit."
In short, the county article says it applies inside cities as well as on unincorporated land, a city's own tree ordinance prevails wherever the two conflict, and Dunedin exempts itself from the county's Ordinance No. 76-16. What the county section does not say is how the two fit together where they do not conflict, and each city handles the county differently:
Dunedin addresses it directly. Section 105-35.3 of the Dunedin Land Development Code says: "By the adoption of this section, the City specifically exempts the territory within the incorporated limits of the City from the provisions of the Pinellas County Code, Ordinance No. 76-16." The county's current section 58-809 carries Ordinance No. 26-3, dated January 20, 2026, in its history note. Neither code says whether an exemption from Ordinance No. 76-16 reaches the 2026 article, so that is a question for the City of Dunedin and Pinellas County.
Safety Harbor's code contains no provision exempting the city from, adopting, or yielding to the Pinellas County tree ordinance. The Safety Harbor permit itself is created by the city's own Land Development Code, section 153.05.
Tarpon Springs and Clearwater each run their own permit under their own code, set out in the city guides linked below.
None of this settles what a particular parcel needs. The first step is always to find out which government you are under.
How to tell whether your address is in a city or unincorporated
Pinellas County puts it simply: "Unincorporated refers to property not within city limits." If your property is unincorporated, the county's tree rules are the local rules.
The town in your mailing address is not the test. On its page for residents of unincorporated Pinellas, the county lists its North County area this way: "Areas include: East Lake, Palm Harbor, Highland Lakes, Crystal Beach, Ozona, Greenbriar". The county's own North County office is at "1190 Georgia Ave., Palm Harbor, 34683". A Palm Harbor mailing address can therefore sit on unincorporated county land.
Two tools settle it for a specific address:
The county's Address Lookup Tool, on that same unincorporated Pinellas page. In the county's words: "Use the tool below to learn if your address is in unincorporated Pinellas County or one of the municipalities and see a list of service providers and elected officials for your address."
The Property Appraiser's record. The Pinellas County Property Appraiser explains that "Pinellas County contains both municipal (city/town) and unincorporated tax districts" and that "Once located, the property detail displays the tax district of that property in the Property Summary section."
If the tax district is a city, read that city's guide below. If it is unincorporated, read our guide to the permit for unincorporated Pinellas County.
The same tree, five different answers
Each row below is quoted or summarised from that jurisdiction's own code, with the section named. Every one of these rules has conditions and exceptions that the linked guide covers in full.
Jurisdiction: Unincorporated Pinellas County. Protected at: Any tree 4 inches DBH or larger, measured at four and a half feet (58-813(a)(1)); on property with a homestead exemption from the Property Appraiser and an existing single-family detached residence actively used for single-family residential purposes, trees with a DBH greater than 24 inches (58-813(a)(3)). Palms: "All palms six feet in height or larger" (58-813(a)(2)), any species, measured by height; on a homesteaded lot meeting 58-813(a)(3), protected trees, palms included, "are those trees with a DBH greater than 24 inches". Dead trees: For trees outside wetlands and native vegetative communities, the rating table's grade 0 covers trees described as "Dead/dying", and for grade 0 it reads: "May be removed with approved permit. No replant trees required." (58-813(b)(2), Table 58-813(a))
Jurisdiction: Dunedin. Protected at: All trees 4 inches DBH or greater, except listed species (105-35.4). Palms: Exempt, except cabbage palm with 6 feet of clear trunk or greater (105-35.4). Dead trees: A permit is required "(including dead trees)" (105-35.9)
Jurisdiction: Tarpon Springs. Protected at: Any Protected Tree with a stem 4 inches or more at DBH (133.04(A)), except for exempt species or following a declared state of emergency in which trees become damaged in such a way that topping or excessive pruning by or at the direction of a governmental agency becomes necessary (133.04(A), 133.02(D)). Palms: Cabbage Palm and Sabal Palm "no matter what size" (133.04(A)), subject to the same declared state of emergency exception; other palms "may be removed from private property without a permit", with Palmetto and Royal Palm carved out of that exemption, although the same list also exempts "Palm, Roystonea spp." (133.03(D)). Dead trees: A permit is required for a tree "regardless of condition" at 4 inches DBH or more, subject to the same exempt species and declared state of emergency exceptions (133.02(D))
Jurisdiction: Clearwater. Protected at: Any shade tree 4 inches DBH or greater, any accent tree 2 inches DBH or greater, "and any tree or palm as part of an approved landscape plan, but excluding all hazardous and prohibited trees" (8-102). Palms: Stated two ways: "any protected tree or palm" (4-1201) and "any palm with a ten-foot clear and straight trunk" (3-1205(A)). Dead trees: The code conflicts: hazardous trees, which include dead trees, are excluded from the protected tree definition (8-102), but the removal criteria still weigh "disease, insect attack, danger of falling" (3-1205(B)(2)(a)); ask the city
Jurisdiction: Safety Harbor. Protected at: Listed living native shade trees 4 inches DBH or greater (153.01(U)). Palms: Sabal Palm/Cabbage Palm and Paurotis Palm only; whether the five foot clear trunk test applies to the sabal is unresolved (153.01(U)). Dead trees: The code conflicts: a Dead Tree is excluded from the definition (153.01(U)), but except for storm mitigation for exempt species or following a declared state of emergency in which trees become damaged in such a way that topping or excessive pruning by or at the direction of a governmental agency becomes necessary, destroying a protected tree "regardless of condition" needs a permit (153.02(C))
DBH means diameter at breast height. Pinellas County defines it as "the diameter, in inches, of a tree measured at four and a half feet above the substrate." To check your own tree, measure around the trunk in inches at four and a half feet and divide by 3.14. Each city guide covers that city's own measuring rules, and the Dunedin, Tarpon Springs and Safety Harbor guides also cover forked and multi-trunk trees.
Do only sabal palms need a permit?
That belief holds in some places and not others. In unincorporated Pinellas County the palm rule covers every palm species six feet in height or larger, except on a homesteaded property meeting section 58-813(a)(3), where protected trees, palms included, "are those trees with a DBH greater than 24 inches." In Clearwater the code's two statements of the trigger both reach palms generally, not only sabals. Tarpon Springs protects Cabbage Palm and Sabal Palm at any size, except following a declared state of emergency in which trees become damaged in such a way that topping or excessive pruning by or at the direction of a governmental agency becomes necessary (section 133.04(A)), and also carves Palmetto and Royal Palm out of its palm exemption, although the same list then exempts "Palm, Roystonea spp.", which is the Royal Palm genus. Safety Harbor names Paurotis Palm alongside the sabal. Dunedin comes closest to the belief: every palm species is exempt except a cabbage palm with 6 feet of clear trunk or greater.
Does a dead tree need a permit?
It depends on the jurisdiction. Dunedin requires a permit to remove a protected tree "(including dead trees)". Tarpon Springs requires one for a tree "regardless of condition" at 4 inches DBH or more, except for exempt species or following a declared state of emergency in which trees become damaged in such a way that topping or excessive pruning by or at the direction of a governmental agency becomes necessary. In unincorporated Pinellas County, a dead or dying protected tree outside wetlands and native vegetative communities goes through the permit process with no replanting owed; on a homesteaded property meeting section 58-813(a)(3), protected trees "are those trees with a DBH greater than 24 inches." Clearwater's code points both ways: section 8-102 excludes hazardous trees, including dead ones, from the protected tree definition, while section 3-1205(B)(2)(a) has the community development coordinator weigh "disease, insect attack, danger of falling" in deciding a removal permit, and the code does not say which governs. Safety Harbor's code says two different things. Before a dead tree comes down, ask the government you are under.
Florida Statute 163.045: the one rule that is the same everywhere
Above every local ordinance sits a state statute, and it reads the same in every jurisdiction in this guide. Florida Statute 163.045 subsection (2) says: "(2) A local government may not require a notice, application, approval, permit, fee, or mitigation for the pruning, trimming, or removal of a tree on a residential property if the property owner possesses documentation from an arborist certified by the ISA or a Florida licensed landscape architect that the tree poses an unacceptable risk to persons or property."
It applies only when every condition is met:
Residential property. "(b) "Residential property" means a single-family, detached building located on a lot that is actively used for single-family residential purposes and that is either a conforming use or a legally recognized nonconforming use in accordance with the local jurisdiction's applicable land development regulations."
Documentation. "(a) "Documentation" means an onsite assessment performed in accordance with the tree risk assessment procedures outlined in Best Management Practices - Tree Risk Assessment, Second Edition (2017) by an arborist certified by the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) or a Florida licensed landscape architect and signed by the certified arborist or licensed landscape architect."
Unacceptable risk. "A tree poses an unacceptable risk if removal is the only means of practically mitigating its risk below moderate, as determined by the tree risk assessment procedures outlined in Best Management Practices - Tree Risk Assessment, Second Edition (2017)."
The third condition is the test, and the onsite assessment decides it: a tree whose risk pruning or other work can bring below moderate does not qualify. Where every condition is met, subsection (3) adds: "(3) A local government may not require a property owner to replant a tree that was pruned, trimmed, or removed in accordance with this section."
The statute also has a scope limit. Subsection (4) reads: "(4) This section does not apply to the exercise of specifically delegated authority for mangrove protection pursuant to ss. 403.9321-403.9333." Where a government holds delegated mangrove protection authority, the state route does not reach the exercise of that authority.
When a homeowner qualifies for this route, the signed report is something we arrange as part of the job. We do not produce it in-house.
The jurisdiction guides
Each guide below is written from that jurisdiction's codified text, with every threshold quoted and linked.
Unincorporated Pinellas County, including communities such as East Lake, Palm Harbor, Crystal Beach and Ozona: the Pinellas County tree removal permit guide covers the county's 4 inch and six foot palm thresholds, the homestead carve-out above 24 inches and the rating table.
Dunedin: the Dunedin tree removal permit guide covers the exempt species list, the cabbage palm rule and the dead tree rule.
Tarpon Springs: the Tarpon Springs tree removal permit guide covers the Cabbage and Sabal Palm rule, the exempt species list and the dead tree rule.
Clearwater: the Clearwater tree removal permit guide covers the two statements of the palm trigger, shade and accent trees, and the dead tree question.
Safety Harbor: the Safety Harbor tree removal permit guide covers the listed native shade trees, the two named palms and the dead tree conflict.
Oldsmar: the Oldsmar tree removal permit guide covers specimen and resource trees, the protected tree definition and the development track.
Largo: the Largo tree removal permit guide covers whether a Largo address is inside the city, the caliper and clear trunk thresholds, the exemptions and the development track.
Oldsmar and Largo are not yet in the comparison above, and other cities in Pinellas County are not covered yet. The county's Address Lookup Tool above still tells you whether your address is in unincorporated Pinellas County or one of the municipalities.
Where this leaves your tree
Find out which government your address is under, with the county's Address Lookup Tool or the Property Appraiser's tax district.
Read that jurisdiction's guide, measure the tree, and check the palm and dead tree rules for that jurisdiction.
Where the code leaves a question open, ask that government before the tree comes down.
Ken's Tree Service has worked from Tarpon Springs since 1996, across north Pinellas County, west Pasco County and the northwest corner of Hillsborough County. A tree that concerns you may be a candidate for removal, or for pruning or other work that keeps it standing, and that is an on-site residential tree care assessment rather than a reading of the code. Start a conversation with our website agent and tell it where the property is and what the tree is doing. Our office line, 727-934-5804, is there if you would rather call.
Sources and scope
Primary sources, read September 26, 2026:
Pinellas County Code, section 58-809, section 58-807 and section 58-813, codified through Ordinance No. 26-13, enacted March 24, 2026 (Supp. No. 124).
Dunedin Land Development Code, sections 105-35.3, 105-35.4 and 105-35.9, codified through Ordinance No. 26-01, adopted March 19, 2026 (Supp. No. 48).
Tarpon Springs Code, sections 133.02, 133.03 and 133.04, codified through Ordinance No. 2025-19, enacted December 9, 2025 (Supp. No. 2026 S-61).
Clearwater Community Development Code, sections 3-1205, 4-1201 and 8-102, codified through Ordinance No. 9857-25, enacted December 4, 2025 (Supp. No. 55).
Safety Harbor Land Development Code, sections 153.00 through 153.17, codified through Ordinance No. 2025-06, enacted February 16, 2026 (Supp. No. 20).
Florida Statutes section 163.045.
County guidance, outranked by the codes where they differ: Pinellas County, For Residents of Unincorporated Pinellas, and the Pinellas County Property Appraiser, Find My Building Department.
Scope. This guide compares the codified text of five jurisdictions as read on the dates above and links to the guide for each jurisdiction we cover. It is not legal advice, makes no determination about any particular tree, property or address, and does not decide which authority governs a parcel. Confirm current requirements with the government your property is under.