How to Get a Maryland Licensed Tree Expert License

Last updated: August 24, 2026

Maryland licenses tree work, but not under the name you searched for. The credential is a Licensed Tree Expert, issued by the Department of Natural Resources, and the statute is blunt about it: a person may not engage in the work or business of a tree expert without a license issued by the Department. Qualifying means college plus a year, or three years in the trade, then a 140-question exam across ten domains — and the scoring rule is the part that catches people, because you need 70% in every domain, not just 70% overall.

What Maryland Actually Requires

• A Licensed Tree Expert (LTE) license from the Department of Natural Resources. Maryland issues no separate “arborist license”.
• Age 18 or over, plus one of two qualifying routes:
• Route one: two years of approved college education in forestry, arboriculture, horticulture, applied agricultural sciences or the equivalent, and a minimum of one year of experience with a licensed tree expert.
• Route two: for at least three years immediately preceding the application, continuous engagement in practice as a tree expert with a licensed tree expert in Maryland, or with an acceptable tree expert company in another state.
• The Department’s examination — 140 multiple-choice questions across ten domains, needing 70% in each domain and 70% overall.
• Proof of liability and property damage insurance, in the form and amount required by the Department at the time it issues the license, maintained for the whole period the license is in effect.
• 8 continuing education units over each two-year period before renewal.
• Nothing extra for your crew. Employees supervised by a Licensed Tree Expert are exempt from holding their own license.

What It Costs

Item	Cost	Notes
License fee	$30	Paid with the application to obtain the license
Exam retake	$20 per domain	Charged for each domain you have to sit again — ten domains means retakes can stack
Renewal fee	$20	Every two calendar years
Liability and property damage insurance	Required	In the form and amount the Department requires; must stay in force for the life of the license
Continuing education	Varies	8 CEUs per two-year cycle
Maryland LLC	$100	Articles of organization, domestic, filed with SDAT

Ten Domains, and You Have to Clear Every One

The Maryland exam is where this license is won or lost, and it is scored in a way most trade exams are not.

It is 140 multiple-choice questions across ten domains, and the pass standard is 70% in each domain as well as 70% overall. That second clause does the damage. A candidate who is strong on pruning, diagnosis and safety but weak on tree law can finish comfortably above 70% in aggregate and still fail, because one domain came in under the line. And the retake fee is charged per domain, at $20 each — so a scattered performance is not just a delay, it is a bill that scales with how many areas you were shaky in. Study to the domain list rather than to the total.

The insurance requirement is real but deliberately open-ended. The statute says every licensee shall carry and show proof of liability and property damage insurance, in the form and amount required by the Department at the time it issues the license, and that the licensee shall maintain the insurance protection for the period the license is in effect. Note what Maryland did not do: it did not write a dollar figure into the law the way New Jersey and Maine did. The Department sets the amount when it issues your license, which means the number can move and you should ask rather than assume. What is not negotiable is the continuity — the cover has to run for the whole license period, not just on the day you applied.

The crew exemption is worth money. Employees working under the supervision of a Licensed Tree Expert do not need their own licenses. That means one qualified person can carry a company, which is exactly how most small Maryland tree services are structured. It also means the licensed person is the bottleneck: if that is you and you step back from the field, the crew’s legal cover to work goes with you.

Two routes in, and the slower one is often the easier one. The college route needs two years of approved study in forestry, arboriculture, horticulture or applied agricultural sciences plus a year alongside a licensed tree expert. The experience route needs three continuous years in practice immediately before you apply — and Maryland will accept that time served with an acceptable tree expert company in another state, which matters if you are moving in. Neither route lets you skip the exam.

How to Get Licensed, In Order

1. Work out which qualifying route you are on — college plus a year, or three continuous years in the trade immediately before applying.
2. Get the domain list before you study. Ten domains, each individually scored, is a different revision plan from one 140-question paper.
3. Apply and pay the $30 fee to the Department of Natural Resources.
4. Sit the exam and clear 70% in every domain, not just overall.
5. Ask DNR what form and amount of liability and property damage cover it will require for your license — the statute leaves the figure to the Department.
6. Bind that cover and keep it continuous, because it must hold for the whole license period.
7. Register the business entity so the certificate of insurance and the contracts sit behind a company.
8. Track your 8 CEUs from day one of the two-year cycle rather than the last month of it.

Staying Licensed

A Maryland Licensed Tree Expert license runs two calendar years and renews biennially for $20. Renewal requires 8 continuing education units earned over the two-year period beforehand. The insurance obligation is continuous rather than annual — the statute requires you to maintain the insurance protection for the period the license is in effect, so a lapse mid-cycle is a breach of the licensing condition even though nobody is asking you for a certificate that month. If your company information changes between renewals, the Department’s application asks you to report it rather than wait.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Maryland require a license to do tree work?

Yes. Under the Natural Resources Article, a person may not engage in the work or business of a tree expert without a license issued by the Department of Natural Resources. Maryland calls it a Licensed Tree Expert, or LTE, rather than an arborist license. Employees working under the supervision of a Licensed Tree Expert are exempt, so a crew does not each need their own license.

How do I qualify for a Maryland Licensed Tree Expert license?

One of two routes, and you must be at least 18. Either two years of approved college education in forestry, arboriculture, horticulture, applied agricultural sciences or the equivalent, plus a minimum of one year of experience with a licensed tree expert; or for at least three years immediately preceding the application, continuous engagement in practice as a tree expert with a licensed tree expert in Maryland or an acceptable tree expert company in another state. Then you must pass the Department’s examination.

How much does the Maryland tree expert license cost?

$30 to obtain the license, and $20 to renew. Retaking the exam costs $20 per domain — not $20 for the whole exam. The license runs two calendar years and renews biennially.

What is on the Maryland Licensed Tree Expert exam?

140 multiple-choice questions spread across ten domains. You need 70% in each domain and 70% overall, so passing on aggregate is not enough — a weak domain fails you on its own, and you pay $20 for each domain you have to retake.

Tree work sits alongside our full guide to starting a landscaping business in Maryland, and the wider guide to starting a business in Maryland.

Sources

Source	What It Covers
Maryland DNR — Licensed Tree Expert	The license requirement, the two qualifying routes, the ten-domain 140-question exam scored at 70% per domain, the employee exemption, the two-year term and the 8 CEU requirement
Maryland DNR — Licensed Tree Expert application	Natural Resources Article §5-418 reproduced in full, the insurance condition, and the $30 license, $20 per-domain retake and $20 renewal fees
Maryland SDAT — fee schedule	The $100 filing fee for domestic articles of organization