Tweed Coast Tree Surgeons

NSW + QLD, one page

Do you need council approval to remove a tree?

The rules change at the border, and most operators only know one side. Here's both, in plain language, plus a free five-question tool that gives you a likely answer in under a minute.

Check my tree Call 0474 250 832

The border problem

A tree that's fine on one side can need a full application on the other.

Properties on the NSW side of the Tweed River sit under Tweed Shire Council. Properties from Coolangatta north are under City of Gold Coast. Different state laws, different size thresholds, different exemptions, different fees, different penalties. Most tree operators treat this as one market. It isn't, and getting it wrong can mean a fine that runs into the tens of thousands.

Before any chainsaw work, we tell you whether your job likely needs approval, which council it falls under, and what they'll want to see. We don't lodge the application for you (that stays the property owner's responsibility), but we make the scope match what council expects, so it goes through as cleanly as possible.

The border

Tree rules change at the border.

NSW
Tweed Shire
Free to apply

Local natives over 5m, very large trees, koala feed trees and threatened species are protected.

QLD
Gold Coast
Several common jobs exempt

Trees over 4m tall, or about 40cm around the trunk, need assessment. Cocos palm removal is exempt.

NSW / QLD border

Before any chainsaw work, we tell you which side's rules apply and point you to the right form.

Free tool

Check your tree in under a minute

Five questions, a likely answer, and we confirm it for free on a site visit. Your result can be emailed to you with a booking link.

  • Routes you to the right council automatically
  • Flags the cocos-palm exemption if it applies
  • Tells you if you'll need an arborist report

Free tool

Do I need council approval?

Five quick questions for a likely answer. We confirm it for free on a site visit.

1. What's your postcode?

This tells us whether you're under Tweed Shire (NSW) or City of Gold Coast (QLD) rules.

Question 1 of 5

Side by side

What each council protects

NSW

Tweed Shire Council

Protected "prescribed vegetation" includes:

  • Local native trees 5m or taller
  • Very large trees (0.8m trunk diameter at 1.4m)
  • Primary koala feed trees (swamp mahogany, forest red gum, tallowwood, grey gum)
  • Threatened species and heritage-listed trees

Good to know: applying to Tweed Shire is free, and council won't refuse a genuinely dead or dangerous tree backed by a report.

QLD

City of Gold Coast

Vegetation is "assessable" if it's:

  • Over 4 metres tall, or
  • 40cm or more around the trunk at 1.4m (about 12.7cm thick)
  • Mapped remnant or significant vegetation

But there are self-assessable exemptions: near boundaries and buildings, pool fencing, bushfire zones, pest species, and Council-authorised dangerous-tree determinations.

Heads up: a Gold Coast application starts from about $160, and dead trees still need approval if they meet the threshold.

Last council rules check: 24 May 2026. Rules change and exemptions have conditions, so always confirm the current requirements directly: Tweed Shire Council · City of Gold Coast.

QLD · Gold Coast only

The cocos palm shortcut.

Some pest species can come out without a council application, the same visit, when an AQF Level 3 arborist confirms them on site.

Protected palm
Cocos, umbrella tree, cadaghi and other listed pest species.
SO5
AQF L3 on-site ID
Casey confirms the species under self-assessable code SO5.
Removed, no form
Gone the same visit. No council application, no fee.

The NSW side has no pest-species exemption, so we always check which council your property falls under before any work.

Gold Coast only

Cocos palms can come out without an application

On the Gold Coast, cocos palm (along with umbrella tree, cadaghi, slash pine and coral tree) is a listed pest species under self-assessable outcome SO5. That means it can be removed without a council application, on one condition: an AQF Level 3 arborist has to identify and document it.

Casey holds AQF Level 3. So we do the identification, sign the written statement, and remove the palm in the one visit. No application, no waiting on council. It's one of the few genuine shortcuts in this whole system, and almost nobody packages it properly.

At a glance

The border, side by side

  • Height threshold

    QLD: Over 4m

    NSW: 5m+ for local natives

  • Trunk threshold

    QLD: 40cm girth at 1.4m (~12.7cm diameter)

    NSW: 0.8m diameter (very large trees)

  • Dead tree

    QLD: Approval if it meets the threshold

    NSW: Application accepted, won't be refused

  • Pest species (cocos etc.)

    QLD: Self-assessable with AQF L3 ID

    NSW: No exempt-species list

  • Dangerous tree

    QLD: Self-assessable with Council-authorised AQF L5 determination

    NSW: Application required, won't be refused with a report

  • Application fee

    QLD: From ~$160

    NSW: Free

  • Body corporate / strata

    QLD: Always needs an application

    NSW: Always needs an application

Rules can shift. We verify the current thresholds and fees with council before quoting anything that depends on them.

Honest scope

What we do, and what we don't

Casey is AQF Level 3, for the field work and the Gold Coast pest-species ID. For Council-authorised Level 5 consulting work we partner with an AQF Level 5 consulting arborist. One quote, one project, two specialists in the right lanes.

What Tweed Coast Tree Surgeons do, coordinate and don't do on council approval work. The same information is in the three cards below.
The three-column council-approval scope: We do (in-house, AQF Level 3); We coordinate (AQF Level 5 partner); We don't.

We do (in-house, AQF L3)

  • Tell you whether your job likely needs approval
  • Identify which council and which pathway applies
  • Document cocos / pest-species ID for Gold Coast SO5
  • Write a scope that matches what council expects
  • Point you to the right form and portal

We coordinate (AQF L5 partner)

  • Gold Coast dangerous-tree (SO6) determinations
  • Arborist reports for council applications
  • Tree protection plans for development (AS 4970)
  • All bundled into one quote with the removal

We don't

  • Lodge applications for you (that's the owner's legal role)
  • Guarantee a council outcome
  • Sign L5 determinations under Casey's name
  • Touch prescribed vegetation before approval is sighted

Watch

Casey on council, in plain language

Question 2 in our FAQ video is council: Tweed Shire vs Gold Coast, what actually needs approval, what's exempt, and how the cocos-palm pathway works on the QLD side. A few minutes here saves you a long phone call.

Straight answers

Council questions we get asked

Do I actually need council approval to remove a tree?

It depends on the tree and which council you're under. On the Gold Coast, vegetation over 4 metres tall, or with a trunk over 40cm around at 1.4 metres, is generally assessable unless a self-assessable exemption applies. In Tweed Shire, protected (prescribed) vegetation includes local native trees over 5 metres, very large trees (0.8m trunk diameter), koala feed trees and threatened species. Use our self-assessment tool for a quick read, then we confirm on site.

Do you lodge the council application for me?

No, and that's deliberate. The property owner is the legal applicant, so you lodge it. What we do is tell you whether you need approval, identify which pathway applies, write a scope of work that matches what council expects, and point you to the right form and portal. That keeps the legal responsibility where it belongs and makes your application as clean and fast as possible.

Tweed Shire charges no fee to apply. The Gold Coast charges from around $160. We can also coordinate an arborist report through our AQF Level 5 partner when one's needed.

What about a dangerous tree, can it just come down?

The pathway is different on each side of the border. On the Gold Coast, a Council-authorised AQF Level 5 arborist can sign an SO6 determination that a tree is dangerous, and then it can come down without a full application. We coordinate our L5 partner for that and do the removal, so it's one quote and one process.

In Tweed Shire you still lodge an application for a dangerous tree (it's free), but council won't refuse it if it's backed by an arborist's report. We sort the report and the removal together.

My neighbour's tree is dropping branches, what can I do?

Talk to your neighbour first. Nine times out of ten they don't know there's a problem. In NSW you can trim branches overhanging your boundary back to the property line, but you can't go onto their land or damage the tree's health, and the offcuts are technically theirs. Queensland has a similar process under its own neighbour-tree laws.

If it's a genuine hazard or they won't cooperate, document it with photos and dates and get an arborist assessment. We do those, and the report carries weight if it goes to the tribunal or council.

Not sure where your tree stands?

Run the tool above, or just call. We'll tell you straight whether you need approval and what council wants to see.

After hours or storm emergency? Same number. Leave a voicemail or send photos by SMS. Miss our call and you'll get an SMS back within 60 seconds.

Call 0474 250 832 Request a free site inspection