---
title: "Campbell River fence rules: permits and height limits"
question: "Do I need a permit to build a fence, and how high can it be?"
place: Campbell River, British Columbia, Canada
place_path: ca/bc/campbell-river
category: Building, renovating and your property
owner: municipal
owner_body: City of Campbell River
sources_read: 2026-11-05
review: machine_checked
canonical: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/campbell-river/fence-rules/"
json: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/campbell-river/fence-rules.json"
---

# Campbell River fence rules: permits and height limits

**Question:** Do I need a permit to build a fence, and how high can it be?

**Short answer:** In Campbell River a fence on a single or two family residential lot needs no building permit. In residential zones a fence can be 1.2 m high within 5.0 m of the front lot line and 1.8 m elsewhere. Commercial, industrial and airport zones allow 2.43 m.

**Who handles it:** Municipal (City of Campbell River, https://www.campbellriver.ca)  
**Cost:** No building permit fee for a fence on a single or two family residential lot.  
**How long:** Not applicable for a fence on a single or two family residential lot.  
**Where:**
- Email: Planning questions, planning@campbellriver.ca
- Phone: Development Services, 250-286-5757

## Key facts

- **Permit:** No building permit for a fence, trellis or arbour on a parcel zoned for single or two family residential use. Retaining walls are separate: a wall 1.2 m or more high, or carrying extra loads, needs a permit.
  - Source: [Building Bylaw No. 3899, 2023 (PDF, consolidated, includes Bylaw 3990, 2025 amendments), s. 4.3(b), (c)](https://www.campbellriver.ca/media/file/3899-building-bylaw-2023-consolidated-bylaw-3971-2024)
  - Official wording: "a fence, a trellis, an arbour, or other similar landscape structures on a parcel zoned for" … "less than 1.2 metres in height and is not intended to support"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Height, front yard:** 1.2 m within 5.0 m of the front lot line, in residential zones and for residential uses in rural zones.
  - Source: [Zoning Bylaw 3250, 2006, Schedule A Text (PDF, consolidated to 4021, 2026), s. 4.17(c)](https://www.campbellriver.ca/media/file/zoning-bylaw-3250-2006-schedule-text)
  - Official wording: "the maximum height of a fence is 1.8 m, but within 5.0 m of the front lot line the maximum" … "height is 1.2 m."
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Height, side and rear yards:** 1.8 m in residential zones and for residential uses in rural zones. In commercial, industrial and airport zones the limit is 2.43 m.
  - Source: [Zoning Bylaw 3250, 2006, Schedule A Text (PDF, consolidated to 4021, 2026), s. 4.17(c), (f)](https://www.campbellriver.ca/media/file/zoning-bylaw-3250-2006-schedule-text)
  - Official wording: "In residential zones, and for residential uses in rural zones, the maximum" … "height of a fence is 1.8 m" … "In commercial, industrial and airport zones, the maximum height of a fence" … "may be 2.43m."
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Corner lots and sightlines:** Fences must not interfere with sight lines at intersections. Near an intersection, no fence, tree, shrub or other structure over 0.46 m wide may stand in the triangle formed by the two lot lines and a line joining points 2.4 m from the corner, where it blocks the view between 1.0 m and 2.4 m above the road.
  - Source: [Zoning Bylaw 3250, 2006, Schedule A Text (PDF, consolidated to 4021, 2026), s. 4.13(f)](https://www.campbellriver.ca/media/file/zoning-bylaw-3250-2006-schedule-text)
  - Official wording: "and where they do not interfere with sight lines at" … "intersections."
  - Source: [Public Nuisance Bylaw No. 3543, 2014 (PDF, consolidated to Bylaw 3964, 2024), s. 7.8](https://www.campbellriver.ca/media/file/3543-public-nuisance-bylaw-2014-consolidated-bylaw-3589-2015)
  - Official wording: "place or permit to be placed or grow a tree, shrub, plant, fence or other structure with horizontal" … "dimension exceeding 0.46 metres (1.5 feet) within the triangular area formed by two" … "intersecting lot lines"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Other rules:** Height is measured vertically from average grade to the top of the fence. No chain link fence along a front property line or facing a public right-of-way in the Central Business Area. A fence within 1.5 m of a retaining wall top must be no higher than 1.2 m and transparent or screened. Retaining elements max 1.5 m; taller walls terraced. Pool, spa or hot tub fence: at least 1.22 m high (Building Bylaw s. 17.5).
  - Source: [Zoning Bylaw 3250, 2006, Schedule A Text (PDF, consolidated to 4021, 2026), s. 4.17](https://www.campbellriver.ca/media/file/zoning-bylaw-3250-2006-schedule-text)
  - Official wording: "Fence height is determined by measuring vertically from the average grade" … "No chain link fences are permitted along the front property line or fronting" … "a fence may be placed within 1.5 m of the top of either a" … "retaining wall or retaining element, where such a fence does not exceed 1.2" … "No retaining element on a residential or commercial parcel shall exceed a" … "Despite 4.17 c), a fence may be placed within 1.5 m of the top of either a" … "m in height, and is either:"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Bylaw:** Zoning Bylaw No. 3250, 2006, s. 4.17 (Fence, Retaining Walls and Screening)
  - Source: [Zoning Bylaw 3250, 2006, Schedule A Text (PDF, consolidated to 4021, 2026), s. 4.17](https://www.campbellriver.ca/media/file/zoning-bylaw-3250-2006-schedule-text)
  - Official wording: "FENCE, RETAINING WALLS AND SCREENING"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06

## How it works

The City of Campbell River's [Building Bylaw](https://www.campbellriver.ca/media/file/3899-building-bylaw-2023-consolidated-bylaw-3971-2024) does not apply to a fence, trellis or arbour on a parcel zoned for single or two family residential use, so no building permit is needed. It does not say whether fences on other parcels need one; ask Development Services. Retaining walls are separate: one 1.2 m or more high, or carrying extra loads, needs a permit.

Height limits are in section 4.17 of the [Zoning Bylaw 3250, 2006](https://www.campbellriver.ca/media/file/zoning-bylaw-3250-2006-schedule-text). Height is measured vertically from average grade to the top of the fence.

- Residential zones, and residential uses in rural zones: 1.2 m within 5.0 m of the front lot line, and 1.8 m otherwise.
- Commercial, industrial and airport zones: 2.43 m.

## Good to know

- Corner lots: fences must not interfere with sight lines at intersections. Near an intersection, the [Public Nuisance Bylaw](https://www.campbellriver.ca/media/file/3543-public-nuisance-bylaw-2014-consolidated-bylaw-3589-2015) bars any fence, tree, shrub or structure over 0.46 m wide in the triangle formed by the two lot lines and a line joining points 2.4 m from the corner, where it blocks the view between 1.0 m and 2.4 m above the road.
- No chain link fence along a front property line or facing a public right-of-way in the Central Business Area.
- A fence within 1.5 m of the top of a retaining wall must be no higher than 1.2 m and transparent or screened. Retaining elements may be at most 1.5 m high; taller walls are terraced.
- A pool, spa or hot tub fence must be at least 1.22 m high (Building Bylaw s. 17.5).
- An over-height fence is a $200 ticket under the City's Ticketing for Bylaw Offences Bylaw.
- The Zoning Bylaw has no rule on barbed wire or electric fences. Find your property lines first.

## Official forms and pages

- [Zoning Bylaw 3250, 2006, Schedule A Text (section 4.17, PDF)](https://www.campbellriver.ca/media/file/zoning-bylaw-3250-2006-schedule-text)
- [Interactive Zoning Map](https://webmap.campbellriver.ca/Html5Viewer/Index.html?viewer=Realtor)

## Related questions

- [Campbell River building permits: when you need one and how to apply](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/campbell-river/building-permit.md)
- [Campbell River zoning: find your zone and what it allows](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/campbell-river/zoning-lookup.md)
- [Campbell River permits for decks, sheds, carports and garages](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/campbell-river/deck-shed-garage-permit.md)

## The same question elsewhere

- [Fence height limits in British Columbia, by municipality](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/fence-rules.md)
- [Courtenay](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/courtenay/fence-rules.md)
- [Cumberland](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/cumberland/fence-rules.md)
- [Comox](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/comox/fence-rules.md)
- [Powell River](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/powell-river/fence-rules.md)
- [Sayward](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/sayward/fence-rules.md)
- [Gold River](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/gold-river/fence-rules.md)

## Sources

- [Zoning Bylaw 3250, 2006, Schedule A Text (PDF, consolidated to 4021, 2026)](https://www.campbellriver.ca/media/file/zoning-bylaw-3250-2006-schedule-text) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Building Bylaw No. 3899, 2023 (PDF, consolidated, includes Bylaw 3990, 2025 amendments)](https://www.campbellriver.ca/media/file/3899-building-bylaw-2023-consolidated-bylaw-3971-2024) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Public Nuisance Bylaw No. 3543, 2014 (PDF, consolidated to Bylaw 3964, 2024)](https://www.campbellriver.ca/media/file/3543-public-nuisance-bylaw-2014-consolidated-bylaw-3589-2015) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Ticketing for Bylaw Offences Bylaw No. 3322, 2007 (PDF, consolidated to Bylaw 4003, 2025)](https://www.campbellriver.ca/media/file/3322-ticketing-bylaw-offences-consolidated-bylaw-4003-2025pdf) (read 2026-11-05)

_Checked by script, not yet by a person: the official wording behind 6 of 6 facts was matched to the official text. Gov Handbook is an independent guide, not affiliated with City of Campbell River. How answers are checked: https://govhandbook.com/methods/ · Canonical page: https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/campbell-river/fence-rules/_