Central Saanich fence rules: permits and height limits

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

Central Saanich, British ColumbiaChecked against official textSources read 2026-11-06

How it works

Fences are regulated by section 4.3.2 of the Zoning Bylaw No. 2270, not by the Building Bylaw. A fence does not need a building permit. A retaining wall 1.2 m or higher does. A development permit may apply near shorelines, streams or sensitive ecosystems.

Height limits:

• General and front yard: 1.3 m.
• Residential zones, between the front yard setback line and the rear lot line: 1.9 m.
• Agricultural, commercial, institutional and industrial zones, in that same area: 2.5 m.
• Panhandle lots: 1.3 m in the part of the access strip within 7 m of the lot frontage.
• Open mesh, netting or wire fences protecting crops or gardens in agricultural, rural or residential zones are exempt from these limits.

Steps

1. Find your zone and lot lines (see the zoning-lookup answer).
2. Keep the fence within the height limits above.
3. On a corner lot, keep anything over 0.7 m high out of the sight triangle: the corner bounded by lines running 6 m from the point where the two street-side property lines meet. This also applies to buildings, landscaping and vegetation.
4. If the fence sits on a retaining wall, the two count together toward the fence height limit.

Good to know

• Barbed wire fences are banned in all zones.
• Retaining walls must be on private property, with at most two tiers and 2.4 m total height.
• Pools must be 3 m from side and rear lot lines and not in the required front or side yard. The District's older guide says it has no specific pool fencing bylaw.
• The District's older fence guide uses a different sight triangle (25 m along street centre lines) and caps corner-lot fences next to the street at 1.3 m. It cites a bylaw that has been replaced, so follow the Zoning Bylaw and confirm with Planning.
• Ticket amounts for breaking these rules are not known; the current enforcement bylaw is a scan we could not read. Ask Planning or Bylaw Enforcement (250-544-4237).