Gardening and landscaping
Tree surgery and felling
Whether this needs a licence in Ireland
Licence required
Tree felling licence
Tree felling licence, issued or supervised by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. Ask for the registration number before the work starts and check it on the public register. Check the register: www.gov.ie
Wording approved by Talqero; not yet reviewed by a solicitor
Tree surgery and felling: what the job involves
Pruning, crown-reducing, thinning or felling a tree, and grinding the stump, by an arborist who climbs or uses a platform and lowers sections safely. Most garden trees near a house can be felled without a licence, but protected trees, nesting birds and bats change that.
Also asked for as: tree surgeon · tree felling · tree removal · tree cutting · stump grinding
How the job is usually done
- Survey the tree: species, size, health, lean, defects and what is under it — house, wires, drains, the neighbour’s garden.
- Check whether a licence, an exemption, a tree preservation order or a planning condition applies, and look for nests and bat roosts.
- Agree the work: deadwood, crown lift, reduction, thinning, or felling, and what happens to the timber.
- Set up an exclusion zone, rigging and climbing lines or a MEWP.
- Remove the canopy in sections, lowered on ropes where there is anything below.
- Fell or dismantle the stem, then grind or leave the stump as agreed.
- Chip the brash, stack or remove the timber, and clear the site.
Tree surgery and felling: what is included
Usually included
- The agreed pruning or felling, with sections lowered safely
- Chipping the brash and clearing the garden
Usually not included — agree it separately
- Stump grinding, unless quoted
- Taking timber and chippings away, unless quoted
- A felling licence application or an arboricultural report for planning
- Repairs to drains, walls or paving lifted by roots
Materials and who supplies them
- Chainsaws, climbing kit, rigging and chipper — the contractor’s own
- MEWP or stump grinder — often hired in by the contractor
How long it takes
A few hours for pruning one garden tree; a day or more to dismantle a large tree over a house or wires, plus time for stump grinding and waste.
When to book
Most pruning and felling is best done between autumn and late winter, outside the bird-nesting season and when broadleaf trees are bare; cherries and plums are pruned in summer to avoid silver leaf.
Tree surgery and felling: the rules in Ireland
What the official sources say, checked against them on the date shown. A summary, not legal advice — follow the link to read the rule itself.
Felling a tree generally needs a felling licence from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine before work starts. Trees in an urban area, and trees within 30 metres of a building (other than a wall or temporary structure) that was there before they were planted, are among the exemptions.
Applies to: the owner of the tree
Forestry Act 2014, sections 7 and 19; Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine · irishstatutebook.ie · Checked 9 October 2026
A felling licence is applied for online to the Department’s Forest Service; if it is not clear whether an exemption applies, the Department will say.
Applies to: the owner of the tree
Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine · gov.ie · Checked 9 October 2026
All Irish bat species are strictly protected: damaging or destroying a breeding site or resting place — which can be a hole or crack in an old tree — is an offence without a licence.
Applies to: the owner and the tree surgeon
European Communities (Birds and Natural Habitats) Regulations 2011 (S.I. 477/2011), regulation 51 · irishstatutebook.ie · Checked 9 October 2026
It is an offence to wilfully take, damage or destroy the nest or eggs of a protected wild bird, or to wilfully disturb a bird on or near a nest with eggs or young — at any time of year, not only in the closed season.
Applies to: anybody cutting hedges, shrubs or trees
Wildlife Act 1976, section 22 (as amended) · revisedacts.lawreform.ie · Checked 9 October 2026
The owner or occupier of land must take all reasonable steps to make sure a tree, shrub or hedge on it is not a hazard to people using a public road, and the council can serve a notice requiring it to be cut or felled.
Applies to: the owner or occupier of land beside a public road
Roads Act 1993, section 70 · revisedacts.lawreform.ie · Checked 9 October 2026
Work at height — on ladders, platforms, MEWPs or roped in a tree — must be planned, supervised and carried out safely by people with the training to do it, and the right equipment chosen for it.
Applies to: the contractor, including a self-employed one
Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (General Application) Regulations 2007, Part 4; Health and Safety Authority · hsa.ie · Checked 9 October 2026
Collecting waste for reward — grass clippings, hedge cuttings, soil, old slabs — needs a waste collection permit, and a householder may only hand waste to an authorised collector or bring it to an authorised facility.
Applies to: the gardener or landscaper who takes waste away, and the householder
Waste Management Act 1996, sections 32 and 34; National Waste Collection Permit Office · revisedacts.lawreform.ie · Checked 9 October 2026
What tree surgery and felling costs, and why
What jobs on Talqero came to
Not enough comparable jobs yet to publish a range here. Talqero shows a price range only once at least five comparable jobs, agreed prices or offers exist — a range from fewer would describe a handful of jobs, not the market. Post your job and compare the offers you get.
What affects the price
- Size of the tree and how much is coming off
- What is underneath: a house, conservatory, wires or road — rigging takes time
- Access for the chipper, MEWP and stump grinder
- Stump grinding and removal of timber and chippings
- Traffic management for a roadside tree
- VAT: building work on a home is charged at the reduced rate of 13.5% by a VAT-registered business — unless the materials come to more than two-thirds of the price, when Revenue’s two-thirds rule applies the goods rate to the whole job. Ask whether a quote includes VAT.
Paperwork to ask for at the end
- A written quote describing exactly what will be cut (for example, a 2 m crown reduction), not just “tidy the tree”
- The felling licence or the Department’s confirmation of exemption, where one was needed
- The waste collection permit number, if timber and chippings are taken away
Safety
- Stay well outside the exclusion zone; chainsaws and falling sections kill.
- Never let anybody work near overhead lines — ESB Networks must be contacted first.
- Move cars, garden furniture and pots out of the drop zone.
- A tree that is leaning, cracked or lifting at the roots after a storm is an emergency: keep people away and call a professional.
Tree surgery and felling: before you hire
Questions to ask a tradesperson
- Does this tree need a felling licence, or which exemption applies?
- What chainsaw and climbing qualifications does your team hold?
- What public liability insurance do you carry, and for how much?
- Is stump grinding and taking the waste away in the price?
What you can do yourself
Pruning small branches you can reach from the ground with a pruning saw is fine; anything needing a chainsaw, a ladder or ropes is not a householder job.
What to put in your task
- What do you want done?
- How tall is the tree, roughly?
- What is under or near the tree?
- Can a machine get to the tree?
- What should happen to the timber and chippings?
Photos that help
- The whole tree from far enough away to see the top
- What is under and around it — house, wires, road
- The base and any cracks, fungus or lifting roots
- The route a machine would take into the garden
Tree surgery and felling by county
Choose your county for tree surgery and felling close to home.
- Tree surgery and felling in Dublin
- Tree surgery and felling in Cork
- Tree surgery and felling in Galway
- Tree surgery and felling in Kildare
- Tree surgery and felling in Limerick
- Tree surgery and felling in Meath
- Tree surgery and felling in Tipperary
- Tree surgery and felling in Donegal
- Tree surgery and felling in Wexford
- Tree surgery and felling in Kerry
- Tree surgery and felling in Wicklow
- Tree surgery and felling in Mayo
- Tree surgery and felling in Louth
- Tree surgery and felling in Waterford
- Tree surgery and felling in Clare
- Tree surgery and felling in Kilkenny
- Tree surgery and felling in Westmeath
- Tree surgery and felling in Laois
- Tree surgery and felling in Cavan
- Tree surgery and felling in Offaly
- Tree surgery and felling in Sligo
- Tree surgery and felling in Roscommon
- Tree surgery and felling in Monaghan
- Tree surgery and felling in Carlow
- Tree surgery and felling in Longford
- Tree surgery and felling in Leitrim
Gardening and landscaping
Need tree surgery and felling? Describe the job.
Post it once, free. Professionals near you reply with their own price and when they could start. You choose, and pay them directly.
Questions about tree surgery and felling
Does tree surgery and felling need a licence in Ireland?
Yes. Tree felling licence, supervised by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. Source: www.gov.ie. Ask for the registration number and check it on the public register. Wording approved by Talqero; not yet reviewed by a solicitor.
Do I need permission to cut down a tree in my garden?
Usually not a felling licence: trees in urban areas and trees within 30 metres of a building that predates them are exempt. A tree preservation order, a planning condition, a protected structure, nesting birds or a bat roost can still stop it. When unsure, the Department of Agriculture can confirm whether an exemption applies.
What is the difference between topping and crown reduction?
Topping cuts the stems off at a height and leaves the tree weak and sprouting. A crown reduction shortens branches back to growing side branches, keeping the tree’s shape and health. Ask for reduction, with the amount in metres, in writing.
Can I cut my neighbour’s branches that overhang my garden?
You may usually cut overhanging branches back to the boundary, but not beyond it or in a way that kills the tree, and the cuttings belong to the owner. A protected tree, nesting birds or bats still apply. Agree it with your neighbour first.
Do I need to remove the stump?
Not always. Grinding takes the stump below ground so you can plant or lay turf over it; leaving it is cheaper but some species resprout. Roots can be left to rot.