Landscaping Permits and Rules in Tampa

Local rules

Building and tree permits in Tampa

The City of Tampa Construction Services Division issues building permits inside city limits. You apply online through the city's Accela Citizen Access portal. An address in unincorporated Hillsborough County goes to the county instead. Walls, patios, decks and pergolas fall under hardscaping work, and the city's fee schedule prices them as shown below.

The city's fee page still lists this schedule. On the May 31, 2020 version, the $177 fee also covers any miscellaneous project not listed elsewhere. Every Tampa permit adds the Florida building permit surcharge: 2.5% of the permit value, with a $4 minimum. The listed fees do not include it. Put the permit line in your budget next to the work. The landscaping cost guide shows the national price ranges for the rest of the job.

Walls need more paperwork than slabs

The city permits privacy and retaining walls as Residential Miscellaneous, category Walls, type Privacy/Retaining Wall. The wrong record type may delay the permit. The site plan must show property lines, elevations, the wall's location and size, easements and a wall cross section. It must also show every tree within 20 feet of the work, with barricades and a mitigation table. A Florida licensed architect or engineer must sign and seal the wall plans. Perimeter walls without columns or lintels are the exception.

The Florida Building Code, 8th Edition (2023), has been in effect since December 31, 2023. Tampa wall plans cite the current Florida Building Code Residential.

Tree rules

Tampa sets its own tree rules for yard work. The City of Tampa's tree permitting page measures every tree as DBH, the trunk diameter at breast height:

• Removing any tree 5 inches or more across needs a permit, except invasive species.
• Pruning a tree 24 inches or more across needs a permit first. Smaller trees need no pruning permit.
• A grand tree is 32 inches or more across. Removing a healthy one may need a Variance Review Board, City Council or other public decision.

Every tree removal must be replaced by new tree planting. If there is no room on site, the owner pays into the city tree fund. Natural Resources sets the mitigation value. When trees come out as part of a permitted project, they are marked as removals on the site plan. The building permit covers them, with no separate tree permit. If the building permit is already issued, a Building Plan Revision (REV) lists the extra trees.

Florida law adds one exception. A city may not require a permit, fee or replacement to prune or remove a tree at a home when the owner has written proof from an ISA certified arborist or a Florida licensed landscape architect that the tree is an unacceptable risk. Get that paper before the saw comes out, not after.

Check the current rule with the official source: tampa.gov

Local rules

Watering and fertilizer rules

Tampa water customers may water lawns once a week. The day depends on the last digit of the house number. Mixed and no-address properties water Friday.

Lawn watering is allowed only from midnight to 4 a.m. or 8 p.m. to 11:59 p.m., once on your day. It is never allowed between 4 a.m. and 8 p.m. Properties of one acre or more may use both windows on their day. These Modified Phase III restrictions took effect April 3, 2026. You can read them on the City of Tampa water use restrictions page. The regional one-day-a-week order runs until March 31, 2027. The district limits apply to everyone, including homes on private wells.

New sod still may not be watered between 4 a.m. and 8 p.m. The city points to the UF/IFAS 30-day establishment schedule, then normal days apply. Hand watering and micro-irrigation of plant beds is allowed any day, but not between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. Reclaimed water used for irrigation is generally not subject to the restrictions. Customers must still avoid wasteful use. Ask the Tampa Water Department whether reclaimed water reaches your street before planning a new sprinkler system. Breaking the watering rules can bring fines up to $500 and a mandatory court appearance. Citations can be issued on first observance.

Florida law also requires every automatic lawn sprinkler system to have working technology that stops it when there is enough moisture. A licensed contractor working on a system must test it and fix or add one.

Fertilizer, clippings and who may apply

In Tampa, fertilizer with nitrogen or phosphorus may not be applied to a lawn or landscape from June 1 to September 30. No fertilizer goes within 10 feet of water. That Hillsborough EPC rule applies in Tampa and also requires deflector shields on spreaders. Grass clippings, fertilizer and yard waste may not be blown or placed into the street.

Anyone who applies commercial fertilizer to a Florida yard for pay must hold a state certification. It is the limited urban landscape fertilizer certification. It needs GI-BMP training and expires after 4 years. Yard workers who use the homeowner's own fertilizer and equipment on individual homes are exempt.

Check the current rule with the official source: tampa.gov

Local rules

Licences, HOAs, 811 and nearby towns

Florida has no general state landscaping licence. For-hire fertilizing and pesticide work need their own state certificates. Ask who will apply any weed or pest treatment and which state licence they hold. Ask any sprinkler installer which licence they work under and check it before you sign. Our guide to choosing a landscaper lists more questions to ask before you sign a quote.

Contractors who pull permits in Tampa register their licence with the city. They keep a workers' compensation certificate or exemption on file. No liability certificate is asked for, and registration has no fee. Since July 1, 2021, Florida law (House Bill 735) has pre-empted local contractor licensing to the state.

HOA rules

A Florida HOA may not ban an owner from putting in Florida-friendly landscaping on their own land. Florida law defines it as quality landscapes that conserve water, protect the environment, suit local conditions and tolerate drought. A local ordinance may not ban it either. If you live in an HOA, get its written approval for artificial turf before work starts.

Call before you dig

Florida law requires a call to Sunshine 811 at least 2 full business days before digging. The locate ticket is good for 30 calendar days. Build those business days into the start date of any job that breaks ground.

Outside Tampa city limits, and nearby towns

Where the address sits decides who answers. In unincorporated Hillsborough County, a tree removal permit carries an $81.65 application fee. Homes inside Tampa, Temple Terrace or Plant City apply to their city instead. The county fertilizer ordinance uses the same June to September dates as Tampa. It also requires nitrogen fertilizer to be at least 50% slow-release. Phosphorus is barred without a soil test showing a need.

The towns around Tampa run their own permit offices:

• St. Petersburg: walls and columns at homes need a building permit from the city's Construction Services and Permitting.
• Clearwater: building permits, including fences and tree removal, are applied for online through the city's Accela portal. Tree removal is $15 for 1 to 5 trees, then $3 for each added tree.
• Dunedin: permits are submitted and approved in the city's Citizen Self Service portal. The building permit fee is 0.80% of the construction value, $60 minimum.
• Temple Terrace: permits start with the city's Building Department. A protected tree on residential land is one more than 10 inches across at breast height. A grand tree is 24 inches or more.

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