Does anyone know of any similar regulations or laws that may exist in Hungary that could get me into trouble if I decided to have a tree removed on my newly purchased property without seeking permission from the relevant authorities.

My brother in Law is the Tree officer for Wakefield Council, I asked him to inspect all the fruit trees and complete any maintenance work required.

He advised me to research whether permission is required.

Can anybody advise me please.

Thanks.

Permission is required for the cutting out of any tree. If the property is internal then it is the council's notary who gives permission, if the property is external then in the case of a property in a National park then the Min. of the Environment, (which is what we had to do) if it is not in a NP then ask the council where to get permission.
The regs were brought about due to the large number of trees stolen for fire wood, one estimate gave 30% or firewood used was from stolen or illegally cut timber.

(If you didn't know internal = inside town / village boundaries, external = outside those boundaries. Internal and external properties have different regs regarding lots of things e.g. provision of infrastructure).

I think one to check with the municipality as, not wanting to contradict Peter, our experience has been that different villages have different regulations and they can vary depending on whether the tree is a fruit tree to the diameter of the tree, whether it poses a danger or is diseased.

I think I will be visiting the mayors office frequently in September regarding numerous issues for clarification. The tree I was concerned about was a large cherry on the drive up to the property with overhanging branches blocking the drive.

What I missed, but my partner Helen noticed was that the trunk was not a single one but multiple from almost ground level. These were strapped together with the type of straps used on articulated lorry loads. I'm guessing not very safe, so will need attention, possible removal.

Thanks for all comments and advice, will be posting more questions as the date of our return draws ever nearer.

Cut the strap and hopefully a good wind will take care of the problem for you!

Problem is next doors house is in its shadow. so that may not be a solution.

As far as I know the UK style TPOs don't happen here. We have taken out lots of trees from both forest and non-forest areas and it has always been necessary to ask permission but that has always been granted. This included a large poplar (1.2m dia trunk) that was the only specimen tree in our garden and a land-mark tree. I would have expected this to have been TPOed in the UK, but here I asked on the grounds of safety and this was granted without inspection. (my fears were well founded as there was rot up the middle).

I believe the requirement for permission is more to do with prevention theft than preservation of trees as in the UK. The paperwork that came with the permission states that I have to carry with me the documentation when transporting the resulting timber so that I can show its providence if stopped by the police who otherwise might suspect theft.

Talk to the council with regard to the trees removal and I would not expect a problem.

Peter, do you know the actual regulations? We were informed that all trees with less than 10cm diameter are exempt as are fruit trees, though not walnut trees and certain trees below 20cm diameter. Would love to be certain on this, especially the fruit trees as we regularly get asked about removing trees

Yes, a definitive answer would be useful to me too. In October I'm expecting a volunteer from UK. He is a tree surgeon and will be bringing his chainsaw, climbing gear etc. I have promised to ask the expat. community if anyone needs any tree surgery work done. He will be charging Hungarian rather than UK prices, as it is just to subsidise his trip.

Sounds promising. We are looking for a tree surgeon...but would need clarification on what we can or cannot do beforehand. We have 3 dead pine trees

I will email him to see if it is OK to give out his email address to people. I will send you a PM with his answer.

Much appreciated

Do they have death certificates certified by a government registered notary?

Here permission is required to cut out any tree that has a trunk diameter greater than 10 cm measured at some point above the ground. (sorry I can't remember the exact height but its around 1m or so) Any thing less than 10cm dia. can be cut without permission. The exception is fruit trees which can be cut without permission up to 20cm dia.

If the tree is on land internal to the village / town then the local council is the relevant authority and for external land then it is the environmental agency. The environmental agency make a charge for issuing the documentation the local council may or may not charge.

The above applies to NON forest areas (forest as a land classification in the land office) For forest there is another set of rules that require forest management plans drawn up in conjunction with a forester, annual updating, inspections and.......etceteras.

For forest areas trees can only be cut out in the non vegetative period - October 1st to March 31st, unless there are certain protected plants such as Hepatica nobilis (noble liverwort (a lovely name)) in the area, in which case the closing date is February 28th (guess how I know that one...) If the tree is in a dangerous condition it can be cut at other times with special permission. This cutting season applies to forest areas but I think it also applies to other areas as well.