Georgia Burn Permit: Do You Need One and When
Georgia stopped requiring a permit or a call for hand piled leaves and limbs in 2021, so most homeowners just follow the state's spacing, daylight and attendance rules, but 54 counties are shut down for the summer burn ban from May 1 through September 30, and anything bigger than a leaf pile still means a call to the Georgia Forestry Commission county office.
Do you need a burn permit in Georgia?
Not from the state
Georgia requires no state permit to burn yard debris, and the dates that close burning, May 1 to Sep 30, apply in named counties rather than statewide.
- Who issues it
- Georgia Forestry Commission
- Issued by
- no one for hand piled leaves and limbs, which need no permit and no notification since July 1, 2021; for agricultural, silvicultural, land clearing, storm debris and air curtain destructor burns, the Georgia Forestry Commission county office by phone
- How long it lasts
- the day it is issued
As of July 1, 2021, the Georgia outdoor burning requirements have changed. No permit is required for hand-piled natural vegetation/yard debris meaning leaf and limbs only.Burn Permits and Notifications, Georgia Forestry Commission, read September 23, 2026. Read it at the source
Where you get one
- Phone
Hand-piled leaves and limbs have needed no permit and no notification anywhere in Georgia since July 1, 2021. What the summer dates close is leaf burning in the 54 named counties.
No permit is not the same as no rules. Georgia still sets what may go on the pile, how far it has to be from a building, and the conditions it may be lit in, and a local ordinance can be stricter than the state on every one of those. All of it is below.
When you may burn in Georgia
Georgia is one of the states where a pair of dates on its own gives the wrong answer. What follows is the rule in the agency's own words, with the shape of the season named above it.
Some counties only
Most of Georgia has no state burning season and a homeowner may burn leaves and limbs any day of the year, but in the 54 counties named by the Environmental Protection Division the summer burn ban shuts leaf burning down from May 1 through September 30.
- Who sets it
- Georgia Environmental Protection Division
- Checked against
- Open Burning Rules for Georgia, Georgia Environmental Protection Division
The Summer Burn Ban reduces ozone by prohibiting certain open burning activities from May 1 through September 30 in specific counties.Open Burning Rules for Georgia, Georgia Environmental Protection Division, read September 23, 2026. Read it at the source
Most of Georgia has no state burning season and a homeowner may burn leaves and limbs any day of the year, but in the 54 counties named by the Environmental Protection Division the summer burn ban shuts leaf burning down from May 1 through September 30.
The hours are part of the rule and are the piece most often missed: Georgia allows burning sunrise to sunset.
What you may and may not burn in Georgia
What the state names as burnable
- hand-piled natural vegetation/yard debris
- leaf and limbs only
- grass and hedge clippings
- limbs
- leaves
- pine cones
- other naturally occurring debris on the premises which they occur
What it names as off the pile
- tires
- shingles
- plastics
- lumber
- household garbage
It is unlawful in Georgia to burn man made materials such as tires, shingles, plastics, lumber, or household garbage, even in a burn barrel.Open Burning Rules for Georgia, Georgia Environmental Protection Division, read September 23, 2026. Read it at the source
What Georgia asks of the weather and the site
Setbacks, wind limits and what has to be on hand. These are written into the rule rather than offered as advice.
- 25 or more feet between the fire and woodlands
- 50 or more feet between the fire and structures
- burn only between sunrise and sunset
- the person responsible stays on site until the fire is out
- a pressurized water source, a barrier such as bare soil or a burn barrel, and hand tools on site
- watch for red flag warnings, high fire danger days, low humidity and high wind
- debris may not be hauled somewhere else to burn
S – Space – 25+ feet between fire and woodlands S – Space – 50+ feet between fire and structures T – Time – sunrise to sunset A – Attendance – Person responsible on-site until the fire is extinguished R – Reasonable precautions – Tools/measures in place to prevent escaped fire.Burn Permits and Notifications, Georgia Forestry Commission, read September 23, 2026. Read it at the source
What to check before you light in Georgia
A permit or a season says you may burn in general. What says you may burn today is separate, it changes daily on a wind and humidity forecast, and it overrides a permit already in hand. In Georgia it is published here.
the state forestry commission's fire danger rating, fire weather forecast and public burn viewer, checked the morning of a burn
Always check the Fire Weather Forecast, Current Fire Danger Rating, and the GFC Public Viewer for your area before initiating any type of outdoor burn.Georgia Forestry Commission, read September 23, 2026. Read it at the source
What your town can add in Georgia
Cities, counties and municipalities may set their own open burning ordinances and the state tells burners to follow them where they exist.
Local ordinances (city/county/municipality) concerning open/debris burning must be followed where they exist.Burn Permits and Notifications, Georgia Forestry Commission, read September 23, 2026. Read it at the source
Georgia burn permit questions
Burn permits in other states
Georgia rules read September 23, 2026 from Burn Permits and Notifications, Georgia Forestry Commission. Rules change, a county or town may be stricter than the state, and a burn ban issued today overrides a season that is otherwise open. Every state is on the burn permit hub.