City of Monash
Tree controls in Monash
Monash is straightforward, because it decided against having a tree local law at all. A March 2024 council report concluded that a local law for canopy tree removal was not recommended, so the planning scheme is the whole of it.
Glen Waverley, Mount Waverley, Clayton, Oakleigh, Chadstone, Mulgrave, Notting Hill, Ashwood
At a glance
- Local law
- None for private trees. Council specifically decided against one in March 2024
- Vegetation Protection Overlay (VPO) trigger
- Vegetation higher than 10 m AND trunk circumference greater than 50 cm, measured at 120 cm above ground level
- Clause 52.37
- Applies as per the state provision. Over 5 m, circumference over 0.5 m, canopy 4 m or more
- Where 52.37 bites
- Anywhere on the site if vacant, otherwise within 6 m of the narrowest street frontage or 4.5 m of the rear boundary
- Significant Landscape Overlay
- Applies along Gardiners Creek. The schedule works by exemption: trees under the stated dimensions, and declared weed species, fall outside it
- 52.37 exemptions Council publishes
- Dead trees, immediate risk of injury or property damage, and pruning of no more than one third of foliage
- VPO application fees
- The fee exemption for VPO tree removal applications was discontinued from 1 July 2024
- Bonds
- No tree bond. A landscape bond was flagged for investigation in March 2024
- Canopy target
- 30% across Monash by 2040
Drawn from Council's published material as at August 2026. Councils update without notice, so confirm anything you are relying on for a lodgement.
The overlay measures lower down the trunk than Clause 52.37 does
The Monash VPO measures circumference at 120 cm above ground level. Clause 52.37 and AS 4970:2025 both measure at 140 cm. On a tree with any flare at the base those two heights give you different figures, and a tree can sit over the threshold on one and under it on the other. Merri-bek measures at 120 cm as well, so if you work across both councils the habit is at least consistent.
The VPO test is also conjunctive. A tree must be over 10 m tall and over 50 cm circumference at 1.2 m. Miss either limb and the VPO does not reach the tree, though Clause 52.37 still might.
The free advice service is worth using
Monash offers a free service for residents unsure whether a permit is required in a VPO area. For a straightforward single tree question that is the fastest answer available, and there is no reason to pay anybody for it.
What Monash does not publish
For removal on health or stability grounds Monash asks only for an assessment by "an arborist or other qualified person". No checklist, no minimum qualification, no mention of AS 4970. A report that states its method and works to the current standard clears that bar comfortably, but you get no credit for matching a Council template because there is not one.
A long running amendment worth checking
Monash lodged Amendment C165 with the Minister on 15 October 2019 seeking municipality wide tree controls. It was still undecided as at the 2024 report. Clause 52.37 has arrived in the meantime and may well have overtaken it, as happened to Whitehorse's SLO9. If you are planning around today's position on a long lead time project, check where C165 has landed.
What I do in Monash
Tree Removal Report
Council has asked for an arborist report before it will consider removing your tree. This is that report, and it is usually the whole job.
ResidentialArboricultural Impact Assessment
What councils ask for when your works reach into a tree's root zone. Each tree assessed, the zones calculated to AS 4970:2025, and the encroachment measured and justified.
DevelopmentClause 52.37 Canopy Tree Report
The provision that arrived in September 2025 and now catches trees nothing else reached. Which of yours are caught, whether you need a permit, and what replacement planting you owe.
Residential · PlanningOther councils
Yarra
Clifton Hill, Fitzroy, Collingwood, Richmond, Abbotsford, Carlton North
Darebin
Northcote, Thornbury, Preston, Reservoir, Fairfield, Alphington
Merri-bek
Brunswick, Coburg, Pascoe Vale, Fawkner, Glenroy, Brunswick East
Banyule
Ivanhoe, Heidelberg, Eaglemont, Rosanna, Viewbank, Montmorency
Boroondara
Camberwell, Hawthorn, Kew, Balwyn, Glen Iris, Canterbury
Stonnington
Malvern, Toorak, Prahran, Armadale, Glen Iris, South Yarra
Whitehorse
Box Hill, Blackburn, Nunawading, Mitcham, Surrey Hills
Bayside
Brighton, Sandringham, Hampton, Black Rock, Beaumaris
The provisions behind these controls
AS 4970:2025 explained
What changed, how the zones are calculated now, and what to do with a council checklist still written in 2009 language.
Clause 52.37 canopy trees
Which trees are caught, the boundary trap, what council may weigh, and how many canopy trees your site has to end up with.
Do you need an arborist report?
A short decision path. Some jobs need three consents and some need none.
Working on a site in Monash?
Send the address and whatever plans you have. I will tell you which controls apply, what reports the permit path needs, and what each one costs, within one business day.