How to Get a Mississippi Tree Surgery License

Last updated: October 2, 2026

Mississippi licenses tree work under the name “tree surgery”, through the Bureau of Plant Industry. The license covers care, pruning, cabling, bracing, topping, trimming, fertilizing, cavity work and removal of ornamental trees and shrubs — and consultation. It takes an exam. And it has an unusual pair of features: it is valid for an indefinite period with no renewal date, yet it becomes invalid the moment your $100,000 liability certificate lapses.

What Mississippi Actually Requires

• ★ A Tree Surgery License from the Bureau of Plant Industry for persons who advertise — in a phone book, newspaper, newsletter, bulletin, the internet or other prominently displayed sign — as a licensed or bonded or insured tree surgeon and who receive compensation for the work.
• Work covered: care, pruning, cabling, bracing, topping, trimming, fertilizing, cavity work and removal of ornamental trees and shrubs — and consultation relating to it.
• A Tree Surgery exam, taken and passed using the study guide the Bureau provides.
• ★ A Certificate of Liability Insurance of at least $100,000, required for the license to issue.
• ★ The license becomes invalid if the insurance lapses, until current coverage is provided.
• ★ Valid for an indefinite period unless suspended or revoked for cause — no renewal date.
• ID cards for license holders, employees and laborers engaged in soliciting business, obtained from the Bureau.
• A professional services license more broadly covers persons advertising or soliciting business to control pests or weeds, or to perform landscape gardening, tree surgery or soil classification.

What It Costs

Item	Cost	Notes
Tree Surgery License	See MDAC schedule	Indefinite duration unless suspended or revoked
Tree Surgery exam	See MDAC schedule	Study guide provided by the Bureau
Liability insurance	$100,000 minimum	Certificate required for issuance — license invalid if it lapses
ID cards	Per the Bureau	For license holders, employees and laborers soliciting business
Mississippi LLC	$50	Certificate of formation filed with the Secretary of State

A License That Never Expires — Until Your Insurance Does

Mississippi is one of the few states that licenses tree work by name rather than reaching it through pesticide law, and the way its license is structured is genuinely unusual.

First, the trigger is advertising a claim about yourself. The license is required of persons who advertise — in a local phone book, newspaper, newsletter, bulletin, the internet, or other prominently displayed sign — as a licensed or bonded or insured tree surgeon, and who receive compensation for the work. So the requirement attaches to how you present yourself to the public, in a list that explicitly includes the internet and a sign on your truck.

Second, the scope includes consultation. The license covers care, pruning, cabling, bracing, topping, trimming, fertilizing, cavity work and removal of ornamental trees and shrubs, and it reaches work or consultation. A consulting arborist who never climbs but charges for an opinion is inside it — the same treatment Virginia, Louisiana and Oklahoma give to pesticide recommendations.

Third, and most distinctive: the license has no expiry date. It is valid for an indefinite period unless suspended or revoked for cause. In a guide full of annual renewals, five-year cycles and calendar-year traps, Mississippi simply issues the license and leaves it in place. There is no renewal fee to miss and no date to diary.

But read the insurance clause next to it, because the two are joined. A Certificate of Liability Insurance of at least $100,000 is required for the license to issue — and if the insurance lapses, the license becomes invalid until current coverage is provided. So the permanence is conditional. Your license does not expire on a date; it expires when your policy does. That is the same mechanism Delaware uses for pesticide business licenses and Missouri uses for applicator licenses, and it means the renewal you actually have to manage is the one your broker controls.

Finally, the ID cards. License holders, employees and laborers engaged in soliciting business must carry an ID card obtained from the Bureau. If you send someone door to door, or have crew talking to homeowners about additional work, that person needs identification tied to your license. It is a small administrative step and an easy one to overlook when you take on seasonal help.

How to Get Licensed, In Order

1. Check how you advertise. Describing yourself online as a licensed, bonded or insured tree surgeon is part of what triggers the requirement.
2. Get the study guide and pass the Tree Surgery exam.
3. Bind liability cover of at least $100,000 and get the certificate — the license will not issue without it.
4. Apply to the Bureau of Plant Industry for the Tree Surgery License.
5. Get ID cards for yourself and for any employee or laborer who will solicit business.
6. Treat your insurance renewal as your license renewal, since a lapse invalidates the license.
7. Register the business entity — $50, among the lower filing fees.

Staying Licensed

There is no renewal date in Mississippi — the license is valid for an indefinite period unless suspended or revoked for cause. What you are actually maintaining is the insurance: the license becomes invalid if coverage lapses, and only becomes valid again when current coverage is provided. So a gap between carriers is a gap in your license, not merely in your cover, and it is worth confirming the new certificate reaches the Bureau rather than assuming continuity. Keep ID cards current for anyone soliciting business on your behalf, including seasonal crew. And if you add services beyond tree surgery — landscape gardening or pest control — those sit under the broader professional services licensing and may need their own credential.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Mississippi require a license for tree work?

Yes. The Bureau of Plant Industry issues a Tree Surgery License, required of persons who advertise in a phone book, newspaper, newsletter, bulletin, the internet or other prominently displayed sign as a licensed or bonded or insured tree surgeon and who receive compensation for work or consultation relating to ornamental trees and shrubs.

What work does the Mississippi Tree Surgery License cover?

Care, pruning, cabling, bracing, topping, trimming, fertilizing, cavity work and removal of ornamental trees and shrubs. Note that it covers consultation as well as the physical work, so advising for compensation is inside the license.

How long does a Mississippi tree surgery license last?

It is valid for an indefinite period unless suspended or revoked for cause — there is no renewal date to diary. But that permanence is conditional: a certificate of liability insurance of at least $100,000 is required for the license to issue, and if the insurance lapses the license becomes invalid until current coverage is provided.

Do employees need identification in Mississippi?

Yes. License holders, employees and laborers engaged in soliciting business must have an ID card obtained from the Bureau. So anyone knocking on doors or dealing with the public on your behalf carries identification tied to the license.

Tree work sits alongside our full guide to starting a landscaping business in Mississippi, and the wider guide to starting a business in Mississippi. Or see how every state handles tree work in our arborist license requirements by state guide.

Sources

Source	What It Covers
MDAC Bureau of Plant Industry — Tree Surgery Licensing	Who needs the license including the advertising trigger, the work and consultation covered, the exam, the $100,000 certificate of liability insurance, the indefinite duration, the invalidity on lapse, and the ID card requirement
MDAC — Regulation of Professional Services	That a professional services license covers persons advertising or soliciting business to control pests or weeds, or to perform landscape gardening, tree surgery or soil classification
Mississippi Secretary of State — fee schedule	The $50 LLC certificate of formation filing fee