Do Tree Surgeons Need a Licence? Waste Carrier, Felling Licence, TPO and CSCS Rules (UK 2026)

Do Tree Surgeons Need a Licence?

No, there's no licence to work as a tree surgeon in the UK. But a few rules catch most tree businesses. Arisings you take away to get rid of are usually waste, so you need a waste carrier registration (usually free for your own arisings). Felling more than a small amount of timber outside gardens and similar places needs a felling licence. Protected trees need the council's consent, or 6 weeks' notice in a conservation area. HSE expects a chainsaw certificate for any chainsaw work on or in a tree. And most main contractors won't let you onto a construction site without a CSCS or LISS card, though it isn't a legal requirement.

Key facts (checked 11 October 2026):

• Waste carrier (England): register if your business transports waste, including your own. Registration is usually free if you only transport waste you produce yourself; otherwise it costs £191.02 and is renewed every 3 years. Not registering can mean an unlimited fine (GOV.UK).
• Felling licence (England): needed to fell more than 5 cubic metres of timber in a calendar quarter, of which you can sell up to 2. Licences are free from the Forestry Commission (GOV.UK).
• Chainsaw certificates: not a licence, but HSE says anyone using a chainsaw on or in a tree should hold a certificate of competence, unless they're training under supervision (HSE).
• Protected trees (England): work on a tree under a Tree Preservation Order needs the local planning authority's consent; in a conservation area you give the authority 6 weeks' notice first (GOV.UK).
• Site cards: the arborist site cards come from LISS, BALI's land-based scheme (called LISS/CSCS until July 2026) (BALI).

Waste Carrier Registration

You need to register if your business "transports waste" (GOV.UK). That includes businesses that carry their own waste: the government's code of practice names "builders and landscape gardeners" as examples, and says tradespeople working on a property "are responsible for the waste they produce including its transport and disposal" (GOV.UK: waste duty of care code of practice). For a tree surgeon, that means arisings you take away to get rid of, for example to a green waste site. Wood that's definitely going to be used is different: the Environment Agency says "virgin wood is not classed as waste" (GOV.UK), so firewood you sell, or chip a farmer has asked for and will use as bedding or mulch, isn't a waste transfer (how to check if something is waste). If you're not sure, register anyway: for your own arisings that's the lower tier, which is usually free and never needs renewing.

Lower tier or upper tier. Lower tier registrations are "primarily for organisations carrying their own waste"; an upper tier registration "allows a person or organisation to transport other people's waste" (code of practice, above). When you register, the service tells you which tier you need.

Figures from GOV.UK, checked 11 October 2026.

Paperwork every time waste changes hands. When you pass waste to someone else (a green waste site, or any tip site you use to get rid of arisings), a written description of the waste must be agreed and signed by you and them: names and addresses, the time and place, and the waste's quantity and nature. Keep a copy for 2 years for non-hazardous waste (code of practice).

Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own registration: SEPA (Scotland), Natural Resources Wales and DAERA (Northern Ireland).

Felling Licences

In England, the Forestry Commission's felling licence controls how much timber can be felled. You need one to fell more than 5 cubic metres in any calendar quarter, and you "can sell up to 2 of the 5 cubic metres" without one (GOV.UK). Licences are free.

When you don't need one (Forestry Commission licence service):

• trees in private gardens, orchards, churchyards and some public open spaces, and fruit trees;
• "common tree maintenance activities such as lopping, topping, pruning, or pollarding";
• trees with trunks under 8 cm in diameter at chest height (10 cm for thinning, 15 cm for coppice);
• trees that pose an immediate danger, or felling needed to meet a legal requirement;
• work for water, gas or electricity services, and trees that must be cut down for development work with full planning permission.

Everyone on the job is responsible. "All parties are responsible to check permissions before work starts," including contractors, and "everyone involved in tree felling can be prosecuted" if a licence was needed and not held (GOV.UK). If you rely on an exception, keep the records that prove it: photos, maps and permissions.

Elsewhere: Scottish Forestry, Natural Resources Wales and DAERA (Northern Ireland) run their own felling rules.

Tree Preservation Orders and Conservation Areas

A felling licence exemption doesn't cover protected trees. "Anyone wanting to cut down, top, lop or uproot trees subject to an Order must first apply to the local planning authority" for consent. For trees in a conservation area that aren't under an Order, you notify the authority with a "section 211 notice" 6 weeks before the work (GOV.UK). The Forestry Commission's licence service says the same: trees under an Order or in a conservation area need the local authority's approval (licence service).

Even a dead tree under an Order needs 5 working days' written notice to the council before you cut it down. If a protected tree is an immediate risk of serious harm, you can do the urgent work and tell the council in writing as soon as you can (GOV.UK).

This is England's guidance. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own versions of these rules, so check with the council there.

Before quoting for work on a tree, check with the council whether it's protected.

CSCS Cards for Tree Surgeons

A CSCS card isn't a legal requirement for tree work. CSCS says it's "not a legislative requirement": it's up to the principal contractor or client, and "most principal contractors and major house builders" ask for one (CSCS). So it's a condition of the job, not of the trade: you need one for a construction site, not for a garden.

The arborist cards are issued through LISS. BALI's LISS team issues them under licence from CSCS. The scheme was called LISS/CSCS until July 2026, and cards issued before then stay valid until they expire (BALI). BALI lists separate arborist cards by role, for example:

• Arborist Labourer (green): the ROLO health, safety and environmental awareness course and the CITB operative touch screen test;
• Arborist Supervisor (gold): the ROLO supervisor course, the CITB supervisor test and a Level 3 qualification in arboriculture with supervisory units.

Check the current requirements and fees on BALI's site before you apply.

What Else Tree Businesses Get Asked For

None of these is a licence, but clients, insurers and main contractors expect them:

• Chainsaw tickets: HSE expects them for tree work (see the key facts above): NPTC or Lantra certificates for the work you do. See NPTC chainsaw tickets explained.
• Insurance: most clients ask for public liability cover, and employers' liability insurance is a legal requirement once you employ staff (unless you only employ close family) (GOV.UK). See arborist business insurance.
• Safe equipment: inspections and records for your kit. See PUWER for arborist equipment.
• Red diesel and towing: see red diesel for tree surgeons and towing a wood chipper.