How to Get a Maine Arborist License

Last updated: August 23, 2026

Maine genuinely licenses arborists, and it is one of the few states that writes your insurance limits into the license itself. The Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry runs it. You pick a class — First Class Landscape or First Class Utility — pass a written and oral exam, and carry general liability insurance of at least $150,000 per occurrence and $300,000 in the aggregate. The unusual part is how that last requirement is enforced: you sign an affidavit promising to carry it, and only a random sample of arborists is asked to prove it each year.

What Maine Actually Requires

• An arborist license before you take any paid tree work. Maine defines an arborist as a person who, for compensation, takes down or fells, diagnoses or evaluates the condition of shade or ornamental trees; solicits, recommends or supervises the treatment of those trees; or in any manner or for any purpose treats or cares for those trees.
• A class: First Class Landscape Arborist for shade and ornamental trees away from utility lines, or First Class Utility Arborist for work near electrical transmission and utility lines. You can test in either or both.
• Or a Master level above it — Master Landscape or Master Utility Arborist, which requires five years of documented experience and/or training and a pesticide applicator license.
• A written and oral examination demonstrating you can safely and professionally provide arborist services.
• Adequate insurance: general liability of at least $150,000 per occurrence and $300,000 general aggregate, plus a signed affidavit that you will not perform arboriculture work without it.
• Or an Arborist Apprentice Permit if you are starting out — no exam, but it is a training permit only and you must work under the direct supervision of a licensed arborist. It is not a license to practice independently.

What It Costs

Item	Cost	Notes
Annual license fee	Capped at $180	Statute says the fee for an original or renewal annual license may not exceed $180 — a cap amended in 2025. Confirm the current amount with DACF
Application and examination fees	Set by DACF	Charged separately from the license fee; confirm before applying
General liability insurance	$150,000 / $300,000	Per occurrence and general aggregate. Required, and you sign an affidavit to maintain it
Late renewal	$10	Added to the renewal fee if you renew within 90 days of expiry
Replacement of a lost license	$5	Application and fee filed with the Department
Apprentice permit	Set by DACF	No examination required; supervised training only
Maine LLC	$175	Certificate of formation, Form MLLC-6

The Insurance Is an Affidavit — and the Audit Is Random

Most states either ignore your insurance or demand a certificate every year. Maine does something in between, and it is worth understanding before you decide how seriously to take it.

Maine defines the number for you. Adequate insurance means general liability insurance that is at least $150,000 per occurrence and $300,000 general aggregate. You do not get to decide what adequate means, and you do not get to carry a homeowner-style policy and call it covered.

Then comes the mechanism. All licensed arborists are required to sign an affidavit stating they will not perform arboriculture work without adequate insurance — and each year only a random sampling of arborists is required to provide the Department with proof of insurance. Read those two sentences together and the shape becomes clear: the obligation is absolute, and the checking is occasional. That is a trap for the careless. Letting cover lapse while you are still working is not a missed renewal notice, it is working in contradiction of a sworn statement you signed, and the day the random sample lands on you is the day that becomes a problem. The state also tells homeowners directly to ask to see your certificate of liability before hiring, so your customers are being coached to check even when the Department is not.

The exemptions are broader than most people expect, and you should know which side of them you are on. The licensing subchapter does not apply to a person working on trees on their own premises or on their regular employer’s property; to anyone performing labor on a site where a licensed arborist is present; to state, county, municipal, quasi-municipal or public utility employees in their regular line of duty, or contractors engaged during emergencies causing public hardship; to scientific specialists such as plant pathologists, entomologists, botanists, foresters and horticulturists who are professionally qualified by academic training; or to owners of highways and general contractors removing interfering shade or ornamental trees in the conduct of their regular business. The second of those is the one that matters commercially: it is what lets you put an unlicensed crew on a job, provided a licensed arborist is actually there.

And the penalty is charged by the day. A person who violates the subchapter commits a civil violation for which a forfeiture of up to $500 a day, for each day the violation continues, may be adjudged. An unlicensed operator who works a season does not face one fine; they face a multiplier.

One last route worth knowing about. If you already hold an ISA certification, or a license from another state, you may be able to skip the examination entirely — DACF may waive it, and the statute expressly permits waiver for a nonresident holding a valid ISA certificate so long as the ISA testing process does not drop below Maine’s standards. The Department decides what you are lacking and what you must meet. That makes ISA certification worth more in Maine than it is in a state like California, where it carries no legal weight at all.

How to Get Licensed, In Order

1. Decide your class — First Class Landscape for shade and ornamental work, First Class Utility for line clearance, or both.
2. Check whether you can skip the exam. If you hold an ISA certification or an out-of-state arborist license, apply for a waiver before you book a test.
3. If you are new to the trade, start on an Arborist Apprentice Permit under the direct supervision of a licensed arborist. No exam is required for the permit.
4. Sit the written and oral examination for your class.
5. Bind general liability cover of at least $150,000 per occurrence and $300,000 aggregate before you sign the affidavit — not after.
6. Submit the application with the fee to DACF and pay the annual license fee once eligibility is confirmed.
7. Register the business entity so the certificate of liability, the contract and the bank account all sit behind one company.
8. If you are heading for Master level, start documenting your five years of experience and take the pesticide applicator license.

Staying Licensed

Maine arborist licenses are annual. The Department notifies every licensee of the expiry date, and a license becomes invalid on that date unless renewed. You can renew up to 90 days after expiry by paying a $10 late fee on top of the renewal fee; applications later than that are handled differently, so do not let it drift. A lost license is replaced for $5. The statutory ceiling on the annual fee is $180, amended in 2025, so confirm the current figure with DACF rather than assuming last year’s. And the affidavit does not expire with the license — adequate insurance of $150,000 per occurrence and $300,000 aggregate has to stay in force the whole time you are working, whether or not this is the year the random sample reaches you. Arborists called to active military service may renew without paying intervening renewal fees within a year of termination of that service, on filing an affidavit to that effect.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a license to cut down trees for money in Maine?

Yes, in almost every case. Maine law defines an arborist as a person who, for compensation, takes down or fells, diagnoses or evaluates the condition of shade or ornamental trees, solicits, recommends or supervises the treatment of those trees, or in any manner or for any purpose treats or cares for those trees. Anyone performing arborist services in Maine must first obtain an arborist license from the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry.

How much does a Maine arborist license cost?

The license is annual, and the fee for an original or renewal annual license may not exceed $180 by statute — a cap the Legislature amended in 2025. Confirm the current amount with DACF before applying. Renewing late costs an extra $10 within 90 days of expiration, and replacing a lost license costs $5.

What insurance does a Maine arborist have to carry?

Adequate insurance, which Maine defines as general liability insurance of at least $150,000 per occurrence and $300,000 general aggregate. Every licensed arborist signs an affidavit stating they will not perform arboriculture work without it. Each year only a random sampling of arborists is asked to provide the Department with actual proof of insurance.

Can I skip the Maine arborist exam if I am ISA certified?

Possibly. Out-of-state licensed arborists and ISA-certified arborists may apply for licensure without taking the examination, and the statute lets the Department waive examination for a nonresident holding a valid International Society of Arboriculture certificate, provided the ISA testing process does not fall below Maine’s standards. The Department decides what an applicant is lacking and what must be met for a waiver.

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

Sources

Source	What It Covers
Maine DACF — Arborist licensing	Who must be licensed, the First Class Landscape and Utility categories, the Master level with five years and a pesticide applicator license, the written and oral exam, the ISA and out-of-state waiver, and the apprentice permit
Maine DACF — hiring a licensed arborist	The definition of adequate insurance at $150,000 per occurrence and $300,000 general aggregate, the affidavit every licensee signs, and the random annual sampling for proof
7 M.R.S. Chapter 404 — Arborist Licensing	The statutory definition of an arborist, the exemptions in §2174, the $500-a-day penalty in §2175, renewal and the $10 late fee, the $5 replacement fee, and the $180 cap on the annual license fee
01-001 C.M.R. ch. 751 §3 — arborist testing and licensing	The licensing rule, including the five-year documentation requirement for Master examinations and the apprentice recommendation
Maine Secretary of State — Form MLLC-6	The $175 filing fee for a Maine LLC certificate of formation