In Florida, most outdoor burning requires prior approval from the Florida Forest Service, and while people call it a Florida burn permit, the state officially issues it as a “burn authorization.” The FFS, part of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, reviews weather, fire danger, and smoke conditions before clearing you to light agricultural burns, silvicultural burns, land clearing, pile burns, or broadcast burns. Small residential yard waste fires and recreational fires are treated differently and can proceed without authorization if you stay inside the limits below.
When You Need Authorization
Authorization is required for agricultural burning, silvicultural burning, land clearing, pile burning, and broadcast burning across acreage. These fires are larger, harder to contain, and produce more smoke, so the FFS checks each request against current conditions before approving it.
You can only burn natural vegetative debris that came from the burn site itself. Hauling material in from another property is not allowed.
When You Don’t Need Authorization
Residential yard waste burning is allowed without FFS authorization if the pile stays under eight feet in diameter (or sits in a noncombustible container), the waste came from your own property, you ignite after 8:00 a.m. Central Time or 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time, and you extinguish at least one hour before sunset. Setback distances still apply.
Recreational fires such as campfires and cooking fires using untreated wood are also allowed without authorization, but someone has to stay with the fire until it is fully out. Once a yard waste pile passes eight feet across, it becomes pile burning, which requires authorization along with wider setbacks and on-site firefighting equipment.
How to Request a Burn Authorization
You can request authorization the day you plan to burn, or after 4:00 p.m. the day before. Most non-certified burners call their local FFS field office, where a Duty Officer takes the request. First-time callers need to set up a customer account and get a customer number before anything can be processed.
Have this ready when you call:
- Your customer number
- The exact burn site location (street address or coordinates)
- The type and size of material you plan to burn
The Duty Officer checks the forecast, wind, and smoke dispersion. If conditions look safe and air quality is acceptable, you receive your authorization.
Certified prescribed burn managers and certified pile burners can skip the phone call and submit requests through the FFS Web-Based Open Burn Authorization Request system, or WebOBA, using their customer number and password. Non-certified burners do not have WebOBA access.
Every authorized burn requires adequate firebreaks and enough people and equipment on site to keep the fire contained. The person named on the authorization, or a designee, must stay at the burn until it is complete. If the FFS cancels the authorization mid-burn because conditions have changed, you must stop igniting new material right away.
What You Can and Cannot Burn
Only natural vegetation and untreated wood may be burned outdoors. Florida’s Administrative Code prohibits burning tires, rubber, plastics, treated wood, asphalt, roofing material, tar, garbage, trash, hazardous waste, asbestos-containing materials, pharmaceuticals, and used oil.
The treated-versus-untreated distinction catches people out most often. Pressure-treated lumber, painted wood, and stained wood all count as treated. If construction debris is mixed into your vegetative pile, separate it out before lighting. Material violations can bring penalties from both the FFS and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
Setback Distances by Burn Type
Setbacks change depending on what you are burning, and getting them wrong is one of the quickest ways to lose your authorization or face a penalty.
Residential Yard Waste (No Authorization Required)
At least 150 feet from any occupied building other than your own, 50 feet from any paved public road, and 25 feet from any wildlands, brush, or combustible structure.
Agricultural and Silvicultural Pile Burning
At least 300 feet from any occupied building, 100 feet from any roadway, and 50 feet from any wildlands, brush, or combustible structure.
Residential Land Clearing
Same as agricultural pile burning: 300 feet from any occupied building, 100 feet from any roadway, and 50 feet from any wildlands, brush, or combustible structure.
Non-Residential Land Clearing
The strictest category. At least 1,000 feet from any occupied building, 100 feet from any paved public roadway, and 100 feet from any wildlands, brush, or combustible structure.
Allowed Burning Hours
Standard authorized burns can begin at 8:00 a.m. Central Time (9:00 a.m. Eastern) and must be finished by one hour before sunset. The same window applies to yard waste burning that doesn’t need authorization.
Certified prescribed burn managers get more room. A daytime authorization for a certified manager runs until two hours after sunset, and nighttime authorizations are available when dispersion conditions are favorable, covering the period from one hour before sunset to 8:00 a.m. Central Time the following morning.
Certification Options
Florida runs two voluntary certification programs through the FFS, and both give you more operational flexibility.
A Certified Prescribed Burn Manager completes the FFS certified prescribed burning program and holds a valid certification number. The big draw is liability: under Florida law, a certified prescribed burn conducted properly does not create liability for damage or injury unless the injured party proves gross negligence, defined as conduct showing conscious disregard for the safety of others. Without certification, ordinary negligence applies. Certified managers also get extended hours, access to nighttime authorizations, and WebOBA.
A Certified Pile Burner completes the FFS pile burning certification program. Certified pile burners can burn up to two hours longer per day than non-certified burners, receive multi-day authorizations instead of single-day, and get priority when conditions are dry and demand for authorizations is high.
Local Burn Bans Still Apply
An FFS authorization only covers the state layer. Counties and cities can add stricter rules, require their own permits, or prohibit open burning entirely, and some counties trigger automatic bans when the local drought index climbs past a set threshold. FDACS keeps a county burn ban page, but counties are not required to report to the state, so the list may lag reality. Call your local fire department or county government before burning, even with FFS authorization in hand. During a declared severe drought emergency, burning wildlands, building campfires, or burning trash within the affected area without written FFS permission is a second-degree misdemeanor.
Penalties and Civil Liability
Burning without authorization, or violating the terms of one, is a second-degree misdemeanor punishable by up to 60 days in jail and a $500 fine. The same penalty reaches certified burners who violate their certification requirements and anyone who knowingly provides false information on an application.
If your fire escapes the authorized area or burns past the authorized time, you owe all reasonable suppression costs incurred by the FFS and any assisting agencies, with a minimum charge of $150. The FFS can pursue legal collection after 30 days. The Department of Agriculture can also impose administrative fines based on damage severity, your prior record, and whether you misrepresented anything to obtain the authorization.
Civil liability runs alongside the criminal side. Anyone who violates Florida’s open burning laws is civilly liable for all damages caused, recoverable in any court, whether or not criminal charges follow. If your authorized burn escapes and damages a neighbor’s fence, timber, or structure, you can be sued for the full loss. Certified prescribed burn managers face the higher gross negligence standard; non-certified burners are judged on ordinary negligence, meaning the injured party only has to show you failed to exercise reasonable care. Solid firebreaks, adequate equipment, and documentation that you followed every authorization condition are the strongest defense available if a burn goes wrong.