Liquidambar styraciflua · Altingiaceae
Liquidambar is exempt in some councils and protected in others, and several exemptions carry a height limit. Check the table below against the council for your address before assuming a permit is not needed.
Star shaped five lobed leaves that colour brilliantly in red, orange and purple through autumn. Spiky ball shaped seed capsules litter the ground below. Corky ridges often form on younger branches.
Planted heavily as a street and garden tree from the 1960s onwards across the North Shore, Ku-ring-gai, Lane Cove, Ryde, Hunters Hill and the Inner West.
Very common removal, and the height caps matter. Ku-ring-gai exempts it under 12m, Lane Cove, Hunters Hill and City of Sydney under 10m, and the Northern Beaches at any size. Everywhere else it is protected. Root damage claims are usually the strongest part of an application where no exemption applies.
Status below is for a tree on private land that has passed the council's size threshold. Heritage items, heritage conservation areas, significant tree registers, biodiversity mapping and conditions of development consent override every exemption shown here.
| Council | Status | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Northern Beaches | No permit needed | On Council's exempt species list, so no permit is required for removal. Heritage items, heritage conservation areas and significant tree register listings still override the exemption. |
| Ku-ring-gai | Exempt under 12m | Exempt only below 12m in height. At or above that size a tree permit is required. Heritage listings override the exemption. |
| Hornsby Shire | Permit required | Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. |
| The Hills Shire | Confirm with Council | Council holds its species exemptions in a document rather than on its website, so confirm this species with Council before treating removal as exempt. Size thresholds apply in the meantime. |
| Blacktown City | Permit required | Council does not run a species exemption list. A permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold, and each tree is assessed on its own merits. |
| North Sydney | Permit required | Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. |
| Willoughby | Permit required | Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. |
| Lane Cove | Exempt under 10m | Exempt only below 10m in height. At or above that size a tree permit is required. Heritage listings override the exemption. |
| City of Ryde | Permit required | Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. |
| Hunters Hill | Exempt under 10m | Exempt only below 10m in height. At or above that size a tree permit is required. Heritage listings override the exemption. |
| City of Sydney | Exempt under 10m | Exempt only below 10m in height. At or above that size a tree permit is required. Heritage listings override the exemption. |
| Inner West | Permit required | Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. |
| Woollahra | Permit required | Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. |
| Waverley | Permit required | Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. |
| Randwick | Permit required | Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. |
| Bayside | Permit required | Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. |
| Georges River | Permit required | Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. |
| Strathfield | Permit required | Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. |
| Burwood | Confirm with Council | Council holds its species exemptions in a document rather than on its website, so confirm this species with Council before treating removal as exempt. Size thresholds apply in the meantime. |
| Canterbury-Bankstown | Permit required | Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. |
Yes, but only under 12m in height. Above that it needs a tree permit like any other protected tree.
It strengthens the case but does not guarantee it. Councils generally want evidence linking the damage to the tree, and several will not approve removal for minor root damage alone.
This encyclopedia is a practical guide for Sydney property owners, not legal advice. Council tree rules change, and exemptions are frequently overridden by heritage listings, heritage conservation areas, significant tree registers, biodiversity mapping, endangered ecological communities and conditions attached to development consent. Always confirm the current rules with your council for your specific address before any tree work begins, or ask us to check it for you.
Photo by Agnieszka KwiecieĊ, Nova via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Our arborists work across 20 Sydney councils every week. We will identify the species, check the rules for your address and handle the permit application if one is needed.
