California C-49 Tree and Palm Contractor License: Scope, Verification, and Workers' Comp

The C-49 classification covers tree and palm work: planting, maintaining, trimming and pruning, and removing trees and palms, including stump removal and the related cabling and bracing.

The C-27 landscaping classification can also perform some tree work as part of a landscape job, but a dedicated tree service performing removals should hold the C-49 (or the legacy D-49 described below).

C-49 'Tree and Palm' became its own classification on January 1, 2024. Before that, tree work was a C-61 limited specialty (D-49 'Tree Service'). CSLB stopped issuing D-49, but existing D-49 licenses stay valid and auto-convert — so a legitimate tree contractor may show either C-49 or D-49 today. Treat both as covering tree work.

An ISA Certified Arborist credential is a voluntary professional certification — useful, but it is not a CSLB contractor license and does not authorize contracting. Verify the CSLB license (C-49 or D-49) separately. City tree-removal permits are also separate, required by many municipalities regardless of who does the work.

Any project where combined labor and materials total $1,000 or more must be performed by a CSLB-licensed contractor — the threshold rose from $500 to $1,000 on January 1, 2025 under Assembly Bill 2622 (Business & Professions Code §7048). Below $1,000, a narrow minor-work exemption can apply only if the job isn't part of a larger project and the worker discloses, in advertising and bids, that they aren't licensed.

Many cities also require a permit to remove a protected or street-facing tree — a separate requirement from the contractor's license. For removals, look for an Active C-49 (or legacy D-49).

Tree work is high-risk, and the workers'-compensation no-exemption rule names D-49 — the legacy tree-service code — among the classifications whose contractors must carry coverage regardless of employees (alongside C-8 concrete, C-20 HVAC, C-22 asbestos abatement, and C-39 roofing). C-49 is the successor classification for that same work, so a C-49 tree contractor should be expected to carry workers' compensation regardless of employees.

Because the statute names D-49 specifically, confirm CSLB's current guidance that the no-exemption rule extends to C-49 before relying on it as settled fact. Senate Bill 1455 will extend that requirement to every CSLB licensee — regardless of employees — on January 1, 2028, with CSLB's exemption-verification process live by January 1, 2027. Either way, given the danger of tree work, confirm a tree service carries active workers' compensation before any climbing or removal begins.

Confirm the license is Active and the C-49 (or legacy D-49) classification is listed — on the CSLB "Check a License" tool or on the contractor's profile in this directory. Match the license to the business you're hiring. Check that the $25,000 contractor bond is on file (Business & Professions Code §7071.6) and that workers' compensation coverage — or a valid exemption — is shown.

For tree work especially, treat 'licensed and insured' as one check: a missing or lapsed workers'-comp record is a reason to pause. Browse California tree contractors and see each one's dated CSLB status before you hire.