Do You Need a Permit to Remove a Tree in Amarillo? What We Could Confirm

The honest answer to the question in the title is that this page doesn’t have it yet, and it isn’t going to guess. Permit rules are the kind of thing where a confident wrong answer on a website costs a homeowner real money, and where the right answer is one phone call away. So rather than pretend, this page lays out what we checked, what it did and didn’t say, exactly who to call depending on where you live, and how to make that call count.

What we checked and what it said

The City of Amarillo’s Building Safety Division publishes a public list of work that doesn’t require a building permit. We read it looking for any mention of trees.

The list names the kinds of things you’d expect: storage sheds under a certain size, certain minor electrical work, fencing, roofing repairs, and decks below a certain height. It does not mention tree removal, tree trimming, stump grinding, or landscaping in either direction. Trees aren’t listed as exempt, and they aren’t listed as requiring a permit. They simply don’t appear.

We haven’t yet confirmed the answer directly with the Building Safety Division, and this page will be updated when we have.

What that does and doesn’t mean

It’s tempting to read the absence one of two ways. Either “trees aren’t listed as exempt, so they must need a permit,” or “building permits are about structures, and a tree isn’t a structure, so obviously no permit.” Both readings are guesses.

Building permit exemption lists exist to clarify the edges of the building code, and they tend to cover things people ask about that resemble construction. Tree work may not appear because it was never considered part of the building code in the first place, or it may be handled under a different city ordinance, a tree-preservation rule, a right-of-way rule, or a zoning overlay for a particular district that wouldn’t show up on a building-permit list at all. From the outside, you can’t tell which.

What the absence does mean is that a company telling you flatly “Amarillo doesn’t require a permit” or “you’ll need a permit and we’ll pull it for you” should be able to say where that comes from. If they can’t, the call below is how you find out for yourself.

Who to call, by address

The right office depends entirely on which jurisdiction your property is in, and in this area that isn’t always obvious from the mailing address. Amarillo spills across Potter County to the north and Randall County to the south, Canyon is its own city, and a lot of what feels like “Amarillo” out west and south is actually unincorporated county.

Inside Amarillo city limits

City of Amarillo Building Safety Division 806-378-3041 808 S Buchanan St, Suite 104, Amarillo Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

This covers Wolflin, Puckett, Sleepy Hollow, Bell Estates, Tradewind, The Colonies, the Soncy and Coulter corridor, and everything else inside the city line, in both Potter and Randall County.

Inside Canyon city limits

City of Canyon Planning and Development 806-655-5014 301 16th St, Canyon

Canyon is the Randall County seat, about fifteen miles south of Amarillo on I-27, and it has its own permitting office and its own rules. A Canyon answer isn’t an Amarillo answer and vice versa.

Bushland and unincorporated Potter or Randall County

There is no city office to call. Bushland is an unincorporated community in western Potter County along I-40, and Texas counties don’t run a general residential permit program, so there’s no county permit office for tree work either. For a property outside any city limit, the questions that remain are utility lines, which go to Xcel Energy, and any deed restrictions or HOA covenants on the property, which are private matters between you and the association.

If you’re not sure which side of a city line you’re on, Building Safety at 806-378-3041 can tell you from the address, and that’s a fine first question to ask.

How to get a straight answer in one call

City phone lines are busiest first thing Monday. Mid-morning, mid-week is usually easier. Have these ready before you dial so the person on the other end can actually answer you.

1. The address, and whether it’s inside Amarillo or Canyon city limits or in unincorporated county. The answer depends on it.
2. Where the tree stands. On your private property, in the parkway between the sidewalk and the street, or straddling a property line. These commonly get different answers.
3. Whether it’s near a utility line. An overhead electric line or a service drop near the canopy changes who’s responsible for part of the work.
4. The species and rough size. “A mature Siberian elm about as tall as the house” is enough. If any rule turns on size or type, this is what they’ll ask.
5. The specific question. “Does the City of Amarillo require a permit to remove a tree on private residential property at this address?” Then: “Is trimming treated differently?” Don’t ask “do I need a permit for yard work,” because the answer to that is easy and useless.
6. Ask about HOA rules separately. The city won’t know your covenants. Ask if there’s any overlay or district rule for your neighborhood, then check your own HOA or deed restrictions.
7. Write down the name and the date. Who you spoke to, when, and what they said. If a neighbor or a crew questions the removal later, that note is what you’ll want.

The parkway and the power line

Two situations get a different answer from “a tree in my backyard” often enough that they deserve their own section.

Trees between the sidewalk and the street

The strip of ground between the sidewalk and the curb is the parkway, and in most cities it’s public right-of-way even though the adjacent homeowner mows it. Trees growing there are commonly treated as the city’s trees, with the city deciding when they’re trimmed or removed, and homeowners commonly need permission before touching them. Whether that’s how Amarillo handles it is one of the specific things to ask Building Safety, and it’s worth saying “parkway tree” or “right-of-way tree” in the question rather than just “a tree in front of my house.”

Trees near a power line

If any part of the tree is in or near an overhead electric line, the line-clearance part of the work belongs to Xcel Energy, Amarillo’s electric utility. That’s not a permit question so much as a safety one: a homeowner shouldn’t have a private crew work within reach of an energized line, and a reputable tree service won’t. Call Xcel about the line before you call anyone about the tree. Once the line is cleared or de-energized, the rest of the tree is back to being a normal removal.

HOAs and deed restrictions

Whatever the city says, it doesn’t override your neighborhood’s covenants, and the covenants don’t override the city. They’re separate layers, and you can need both a clear answer from Building Safety and a sign-off from an architectural committee.

HOA rules on trees vary a lot. Some restrict removing trees over a certain size, some require replacement plantings, some care only about the front yard, and many say nothing at all. Newer subdivisions in Randall County and along the Soncy corridor are more likely to have active associations; older neighborhoods around Wolflin are more likely to have deed restrictions that may or may not still be enforced. Read your covenants or ask the association, and get the answer in writing.

What a “city license number” claim means

While you’re making calls, one piece of contractor talk to know about. Some tree services will tell you they hold an Amarillo city license number. The City of Amarillo doesn’t issue contractor identification numbers for tree work, and Texas has no state license for tree services at all. So there’s no such number to hold.

That doesn’t make the company a bad operator, but the claim is either a misunderstanding or a sales line, and either way it’s a red flag rather than a credential. The documents that actually tell you something are a certificate of general liability insurance and proof of workers’ compensation coverage, both of which you should ask to have sent to you directly. ISA Certified Arborist status is a voluntary credential worth asking about. The tree removal page covers what to ask before you hire anyone.

A note on this page

This page is incomplete on purpose. It was last reviewed on September 8, 2026, and at that point the direct answer to the permit question hadn’t been confirmed with the City of Amarillo Building Safety Division. When it is, this page will be updated to state the answer plainly, with the date it was confirmed and who confirmed it. Until then, treat everything above as a map to the answer rather than the answer itself, and make the call.

What removal costs, regardless

Whatever the permit answer turns out to be, the tree still has to come down, and that price doesn’t change with it. Tree removal in Amarillo runs $400–$2,000+ per tree, with small ornamental trees at $400–$600, mid-size trees at $600–$1,100, large trees in an open yard at $1,100–$1,600, and large trees next to a house, garage, or power line at $1,600–$2,000+. Stump grinding is usually a separate line, and any permit fee, if one applies, would be on top. The tree removal cost page walks through what moves the price and what a written quote should include, and the service area page covers which office handles which neighborhood in more detail.