Frisco Tree Care Home › Permits and HOAs
Do You Need a Permit to Remove a Tree in Frisco?
The city's answer for most homeowners is no. The fuller answer has three layers, and the city is only the first.
Layer One: The City's Tree Removal Permit
Frisco's zoning ordinance says a Tree Removal Permit is required to remove or transplant a protected tree, "except for a Protected Tree located on a single-family or two-family lot contained within a plat of record."
If your house sits on an ordinary platted lot, that exception is yours.
The same subsection lists other exceptions: a tree that a Certified Arborist determines to be diseased, dead or an imminent threat to people or property, trees removed by a utility company, and trees in certain rights-of-way.
Where the permit does apply, protected trees that are removed have to be made up for, by planting or by payment into a fund. The ordinance sets the rate by the size of the tree removed, measured four and a half feet above the ground:
It also states that each tree removed or transplanted without a permit is a separate offense.
City of Frisco Zoning Ordinance, Subsection 4.01, Tree Preservation Requirements, read October 2026 at ecode360.com.
Layer Two: Land That Is Not a Platted Home Lot
A different part of the city code, Article III on the removal of trees, covers real property that has no pending or approved final plat. On that land a grading permit or a letter of approval from the city is required before trees come out. The article exempts trees that are hazardous and trees damaged or killed by a tornado, ice or wind storm or flooding.
The penalty it sets is $300 per caliper inch of each tree, with a maximum fine of $2,000 per violation, and it reaches both the owner and the contractor who did the cutting.
This is the layer that catches people on the edges of the city: an inherited tract, a lot split off a larger parcel, land bought to build on. If you are not certain your property has a recorded final plat, the planning office can tell you. Ask before the work, since the contractor shares the exposure and a careful one will ask too.
City of Frisco Code of Ordinances, Article III, Removal of Trees, read October 2026 at ecode360.com.
Layer Three: The Required Trees on Your Lot
Being free of the permit is not the same as being free of the landscape rules. The zoning ordinance sets a minimum number of trees for each single-family lot, and the number varies by zoning district, and requires the landscape to be maintained as approved. One street tree can count toward the number.
In practice this means: if the tree you want removed is one of the lot's required trees, plan on replacing it. The ordinance calls for canopy shade trees of at least three-inch caliper for required lot trees, set at least six feet behind the curb and four feet from pavement and utility lines.
And Then the HOA
Most of Frisco was built as deed-restricted subdivisions. An association's rules are private contracts, separate from city code, and they can be stricter. Common provisions include approval before removing any tree visible from the street, a required species or size for replacements, and deadlines for replacing a dead tree.
This site has not read any individual association's documents and does not describe them. Yours are in your closing packet and usually on the association's portal. A two-line email to the manager, sent before you book a crew, is the cheapest step in the whole job.
A short order of operations
- Confirm the lot is platted single-family or two-family. Almost all subdivision lots are.
- Ask the HOA whether removal needs approval and what replacement it expects.
- If the tree is near a power line, call Oncor or CoServ before the tree service.
- Get the tree service's quote in writing, with its insurance certificate.
- Place the replacement where it will not repeat the problem.
Common Questions
Do I need a permit to cut down a tree on my property in Frisco?
If the property is a single-family or two-family lot within a plat of record, the city's Tree Removal Permit requirement does not apply to it. Other property, including unplatted land and commercial sites, is covered.
What is a protected tree in Frisco?
The zoning ordinance defines the term, and mitigation is calculated by trunk diameter measured four and a half feet above the ground. This site was not able to read the definition's size and species details, so confirm with the city's planning office before relying on any threshold.
What is the fine for removing a tree without approval?
For unplatted property, the Code of Ordinances sets $300 per caliper inch of each tree, with a maximum fine of $2,000 per violation. Under the zoning ordinance, each tree removed without a required permit is a separate offense.
Can my HOA stop me from removing a tree?
An HOA's recorded restrictions and design rules can require approval for removing or replacing trees, separately from anything the city requires. Read your association's documents or ask its manager.
Does a dead tree need approval?
On a platted home lot, not from the city. Elsewhere, the zoning ordinance excepts a tree that a Certified Arborist determines is dead, diseased or an imminent threat, and the code article on unplatted land asks for written city approval before a dead tree is removed.
What This Page Is
A plain-language summary of ordinance text read in October 2026, written by a referral site and not by a lawyer or the city. Ordinances are amended. For a decision that carries money or a fine, read the current text or call the City of Frisco's planning office.
Cleared It With the HOA?
Then the rest is a phone call. The request goes to an independent tree service that works in Frisco.
Call (469) 200-6710 Use the Form