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

# Fort St. John fence rules: permits and height limits

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

**Short answer:** No building permit is needed for a fence in Fort St. John. The Zoning Bylaw still sets the rules: in residential, commercial and institutional zones a fence can be 1.2 m high in a front yard and 1.8 m in a side or rear yard. Chain link is banned in residential zones.

**Who handles it:** Municipal (City of Fort St. John, https://www.fortstjohn.ca)  
**Cost:** No permit fee for an ordinary fence.  
**Where:**
- Phone: City of Fort St. John, 250-787-8150 (Ask Building or Development Services staff to check your lot.)
- Online: Fort St. John Interactive Map (parcel and zoning), https://gisapp.fortstjohn.ca/vertigisstudio/web/?app=b9231f6939714739abd23dd7d08c19ae

## Key facts

- **Permit:** No building permit is needed for fence construction, repairs or alterations. A security fence (a temporary fence around a complex-building construction site) needs a Security Fence Permit.
  - Source: [Building Bylaw No. 2589, 2024, s. 16](https://www.fortstjohn.ca/media/file/building-bylaw)
  - Official wording: "A Building Permit is not required for fence construction, repairs, or alterations."
  - Source: [Building Bylaw No. 2589, 2024, s. 31(h), s. 43](https://www.fortstjohn.ca/media/file/building-bylaw)
  - Official wording: "a Security Fence Permit before construction of a security fence;" … "An Owner must install a security fence prior to constructing a complex building"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Height, front yard:** 1.2 m in a front yard in R, C and INS zones. Height is measured from ground grade at the base of the fence to its highest point.
  - Source: [Zoning Bylaw No. 2470, 2019 (PDF, consolidated), s. 4.13.2-3](https://www.fortstjohn.ca/media/file/zoning-bylaw)
  - Official wording: "No fence shall exceed a height of 1.2 m in a front yard and 1.8 m in a side and rear yard in R," … "The height of a fence shall be measured as the vertical distance from the ground grade level"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Height, side and rear yards:** 1.8 m in side and rear yards in R, C and INS zones.
  - Source: [Zoning Bylaw No. 2470, 2019 (PDF, consolidated), s. 4.13.3](https://www.fortstjohn.ca/media/file/zoning-bylaw)
  - Official wording: "No fence shall exceed a height of 1.2 m in a front yard and 1.8 m in a side and rear yard in R,"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Corner lots and sightlines:** On a corner parcel, nothing (landscaping, screening, building or structure) may be higher than 1 m above the street grade within the space formed by points 9.0 m back along the curb lines from the intersection (s. 4.11). Fences may go in required setbacks except the part inside a required sight triangle (s. 4.13.5).
  - Source: [Zoning Bylaw No. 2470, 2019 (PDF, consolidated), s. 4.11.1](https://www.fortstjohn.ca/media/file/zoning-bylaw)
  - Official wording: "on a corner parcel within the shaded space formed by the curb lines" … "9.0 m from the point of intersection of the curb lines" … "no landscaping, screening, building or structure may be planted" … "to a height greater than 1 m above the established grade of the street." … "Fences may be constructed within any required setback, with the exception of setbacks" … "required for a watercourse and to the portion of a parcel that is within a required sight"
  - Source: [Zoning Bylaw No. 2470, 2019 (PDF, consolidated), s. 4.13.5](https://www.fortstjohn.ca/media/file/zoning-bylaw)
  - Official wording: "Fences may be constructed within any required setback, with the exception of setbacks" … "required for a watercourse and to the portion of a parcel that is within a required sight"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Other rules:** Barbed wire only in A1, M1 and M2 zones. Chain link banned in all R and RM zones and on front and flanking yards in C zones. Fences next to a highway must be see-through (opaque next to the Alaska Highway). A pool, hot tub or spa deeper than 0.75 m needs a non-climbable fence at least 1.2 m high. Over-height fence: $100 per offence per day.
  - Source: [Zoning Bylaw No. 2470, 2019 (PDF, consolidated), s. 4.13.6-9](https://www.fortstjohn.ca/media/file/zoning-bylaw)
  - Official wording: "Barbed wire included in fencing is only permitted in the A1, M1 and M2 zone." … "Fences adjacent to a highway shall be constructed from a see-through style material, except" … "Chain link fencing is prohibited in all R and RM zones." … "Chain link fencing is prohibited on the front and flanking yards in all C zones."
  - Source: [Zoning Bylaw No. 2470, 2019 (PDF, consolidated), Schedule B](https://www.fortstjohn.ca/media/file/zoning-bylaw)
  - Official wording: "32.6.3, 32.7.3, 32.8.3 Obstructing corner vision 4.11 $100.00/offence/day Over height fence 4.13 $100.00/offence/day Accessory building infringement 4.18 $100.00/offence/day Insufficient parking 5.0, 5.5, 5.8 $100.00/offence/day" … "30.7.3, 30.8.3, 30.9.3, 30.10.3, 31.7, 32.6.3, 32.7.3, 32.8.3 Obstructing corner vision 4.11 $100.00/offence/day Over height fence 4.13 $100.00/offence/day Accessory building infringement 4.18 $100.00/offence/day"
  - Source: [Building Bylaw No. 2589, 2024, s. 70](https://www.fortstjohn.ca/media/file/building-bylaw)
  - Official wording: "shall be surrounded by a non-climbable fence least 1.2 meters in height." … "private swimming pool, wading pool, hot tub or spa having a depth greater than 0.75 meters at any point"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Bylaw:** Zoning Bylaw No. 2470, 2019, s. 4.13 (Fencing) and s. 4.11 (Sight Clearance)
  - Source: [Zoning Bylaw No. 2470, 2019 (PDF, consolidated), s. 4.13](https://www.fortstjohn.ca/media/file/zoning-bylaw)
  - Official wording: "4.0 General Regulations 4.13 Fencing (continued) 7. Fences adjacent to a highway shall be constructed from a see-through style material, except" … "City of Fort St. John - Zoning Bylaw" … "Zoning Bylaw No. 2470, 2019 (Consolidated Version) This consolidated Version includes the following"
  - Source: [Zoning Bylaw No. 2470, 2019 (PDF, consolidated), cover](https://www.fortstjohn.ca/media/file/zoning-bylaw)
  - Official wording: "ZONING BYLAW 2470, 2019"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06

## How it works

The [Building Bylaw](https://www.fortstjohn.ca/media/file/building-bylaw) says a building permit is not required for fence construction, repairs or alterations. Fences must still meet [Zoning Bylaw 2470, 2019](https://www.fortstjohn.ca/media/file/zoning-bylaw), s. 4.13. Height is measured from ground grade at the base of the fence to its highest point. "Fence" includes a gate, screen, trellis and wall.

## Steps

1. Check your zone on the City's interactive map.
2. Keep to the height limits: 1.2 m in a front yard and 1.8 m in a side or rear yard in R, C and INS zones. In M zones no fence may exceed 2.4 m in any yard.
3. Keep clear of any sight triangle at a corner, and of watercourse setbacks. Otherwise fences may go in required setbacks.
4. Call the City if your lot is unusual, in an A, I or P zone, or next to a highway.

## Good to know

- Chain link is banned in all R and RM zones, and on front and flanking yards in C zones. Barbed wire is allowed only in A1, M1 and M2 zones.
- On a corner parcel, nothing may be higher than 1 m above the street grade within the space formed by points 9.0 m back along the curb lines from the intersection.
- Fences next to a highway must be see-through; next to the Alaska Highway they must be opaque.
- A pool, hot tub or spa deeper than 0.75 m needs a non-climbable fence at least 1.2 m high (Building Bylaw s. 70). Pools, hot tubs and spas less than 6.5 meters in area are exempt (Building Bylaw s. 71).
- An over-height fence is $100 per offence per day, and so is obstructing corner vision.
- A temporary security fence around a complex-building construction site needs a Security Fence Permit.

## Official forms and pages

- [Zoning Bylaw 2470, 2019, section 4.13 Fencing (PDF)](https://www.fortstjohn.ca/media/file/zoning-bylaw)
- [Building Bylaw 2589, 2024 (PDF)](https://www.fortstjohn.ca/media/file/building-bylaw)

## Related questions

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

## The same question elsewhere

- [Fence height limits in British Columbia, by municipality](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/fence-rules.md)
- [Taylor](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/taylor/fence-rules.md)
- [Dawson Creek](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/dawson-creek/fence-rules.md)
- [Pouce Coupe](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/pouce-coupe/fence-rules.md)
- [Hudson's Hope](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/hudsons-hope/fence-rules.md)
- [Chetwynd](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/chetwynd/fence-rules.md)
- [Tumbler Ridge](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/tumbler-ridge/fence-rules.md)

## Sources

- [Building Bylaw No. 2589, 2024 (PDF)](https://www.fortstjohn.ca/media/file/building-bylaw) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Zoning Bylaw No. 2470, 2019 (PDF, consolidated)](https://www.fortstjohn.ca/media/file/zoning-bylaw) (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 Fort St. John. How answers are checked: https://govhandbook.com/methods/ · Canonical page: https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/fort-st-john/fence-rules/_