If you’re budgeting for a tree removal in Vancouver this year, check the fee against the current by-law before you plan around last year’s number. The permit fee went up again on January 1, 2026. It has gone up every January since 2024.
The Fee Is $113 for the First Tree
By-law No. 14546 took effect January 1, 2026. It sets the tree removal permit fee at $113 for the first tree and $324 for each additional tree removed in the same 12-month period, and those are the amounts in force for an application filed today.
The fee schedule sits inside Protection of Trees By-law No. 9958 itself, at s.4.4(c)(i) for the first tree and (ii) for each tree after it in the same 12 months. Each amending by-law carries its own number. The fee itself always stays at s.4.4(c), so that’s the section to check if you’re reading the consolidated text yourself.
Four By-laws Set the Fee From 2023 to 2026
Each amending by-law after the first set a higher fee than the one before it.
- By-law No. 13550, effective January 1, 2023: $96 for the first tree, $276 for each additional tree.
- By-law No. 13846, effective January 1, 2024: $105 for the first tree, $301 for each additional tree.
- By-law No. 14198, effective January 1, 2025: $108 for the first tree, $310 for each additional tree.
- By-law No. 14546, effective January 1, 2026: $113 for the first tree, $324 for each additional tree.
Each amending by-law changed only the s.4.4(c) fees.
Multi-Stem Trees Get Counted Differently Here
Vancouver does not take a multi-stem tree’s diameter from a single trunk. DBH is measured at 1.4 m, and for a multi-stem tree it’s the combined diameter of the two or three largest stems. Don’t carry a neighbouring city’s measuring method over to a Vancouver tree.
Applications Go Through the City’s Online Portal
The application goes in online at plposweb.vancouver.ca.
Where This Sits Against the Rest of Metro Vancouver
Our Metro Vancouver tree bylaw comparison lines up permit triggers and fees across the region.
Getting Your Application Ready
If the removal ground is a hazardous or high-risk tree, ask us first. Some Metro Vancouver bylaws require a report author who also holds the ISA Tree Risk Assessment Qualification.
We prepare ISA Certified Arborist reports for tree permit applications in Metro Vancouver, including Vancouver. We confirm availability for your address before we quote. See our tree removal report service for what that covers, or contact us with your address.