--- title: "Port Moody fence rules: permits and height limits" question: "Do I need a permit to build a fence, and how high can it be?" place: Port Moody, British Columbia, Canada place_path: ca/bc/port-moody category: Building, renovating and your property owner: municipal owner_body: City of Port Moody sources_read: 2026-11-05 review: machine_checked canonical: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/port-moody/fence-rules/" json: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/port-moody/fence-rules.json" --- # Port Moody 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 Port Moody an ordinary fence does not need a building permit, but Zoning Bylaw limits apply: 1.2 m maximum in a front yard and 2.0 m behind the front face of the building (up to 3.0 m next to a major road, arterial, collector road or community pathway). Barbed wire and electrified fences are banned. **Who handles it:** Municipal (City of Port Moody, https://www.portmoody.ca) **Cost:** No building permit for an ordinary fence. A retaining wall holding soil over 1.2 m high does need one; see the building-permit-fees answer. **Where:** - Phone: Building Division, 604-469-4534 - Email: Building Permits, buildingpermits@portmoody.ca - Phone: Planning Division (zoning questions), 604-469-4540 ## Key facts - **Permit:** No building permit for an ordinary fence: the Building Bylaw does not apply to a fence, except pool fences. A retaining wall holding soil over 1.2 m does need a permit. - Source: [Building Bylaw, 2019, No. 3200 (consolidated), s. 5.3(a)](https://www.portmoody.ca/eDocs/Get?docnumber=506778) - Official wording: "except as set out in Part 17 of this Bylaw, a fence;" - Source: [Building and Renovating, FAQ](https://www.portmoody.ca/home-and-property/building-and-renovating/) - Official wording: "Retaining walls are defined as walls retaining soil over 1.2m" - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06 - **Height, front yard:** 1.2 m maximum in a front yard (single detached, semi-detached and multi-residential zones). - Source: [Zoning Bylaw, 2018, No. 2937 (consolidated), s. 5.2.12(a)(i)](https://portmoody-edocs.ghdcdn.com/v1/eDocs/PortMoody?docnumber=461917) - Official wording: "Fences may be constructed in Single Detached Residential, Semi-Detached Residential, and Multi-Residential zones" … "a Fence sited in a Front Yard shall be a maximum of 1.2m in height" - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06 - **Height, side and rear yards:** 2.0 m maximum for a fence behind the front face of the building. Up to 3.0 m on a side or rear property line next to a major road, arterial, collector road or community pathway. - Source: [Zoning Bylaw, 2018, No. 2937 (consolidated), s. 5.2.12(a)(ii)-(iii)](https://portmoody-edocs.ghdcdn.com/v1/eDocs/PortMoody?docnumber=461917) - Official wording: "a Fence sited to the rear of the front face of the Building shall be a maximum of 2.0m in height." … "a fence built on a side or rear property line adjacent to a Major Road Network, Arterial road, Collector road and community pathway shall be a maximum of 3.0 metres in height." - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06 - **Corner lots and sightlines:** No landscaping, building or structure may obstruct the line of vision between 0.6 m and 3.0 m above grade within the corner sight triangle at a street intersection (3.0 m along one street to 25.0 m along the other). Zoning Bylaw s. 5.3.1. - Source: [Zoning Bylaw, 2018, No. 2937 (consolidated), s. 5.3.1 Visibility at Intersections](https://portmoody-edocs.ghdcdn.com/v1/eDocs/PortMoody?docnumber=461917) - Official wording: "There shall be no obstruction to the line of vision by landscaping," … "the Heights of 0.6m and 3.0m above" - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06 - **Other rules:** Barbed wire, razor wire, electrified or similar materials are banned in all zones. Light industrial fences max 3.1 m; general industrial no limit. Pool fences must be at least 1.2 m with no openings over 100 mm and a self-closing, self-latching gate. - Source: [Zoning Bylaw, 2018, No. 2937 (consolidated), s. 5.2.12(b)-(d)](https://portmoody-edocs.ghdcdn.com/v1/eDocs/PortMoody?docnumber=461917) - Official wording: "Barbed wire, razor wire, electrified, or similar materials are prohibited for Fences in all zones." … "in Light Industrial zones, a Fence shall be a maximum of 3.1m in height" - Source: [Building Bylaw, 2019, No. 3200 (consolidated), s. 17.2-17.3](https://www.portmoody.ca/eDocs/Get?docnumber=506778) - Official wording: "having a minimum height of 1.2m and no openings greater than 100mm at their greatest dimension." … "self-closing and self-latching gate" - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06 - **Bylaw:** City of Port Moody Zoning Bylaw, 2018, No. 2937, s. 5.2.12 (fences); Building Bylaw, 2019, No. 3200, Part 17 (pool fences) - Source: [Zoning Bylaw, 2018, No. 2937 (consolidated), s. 5.2.12](https://portmoody-edocs.ghdcdn.com/v1/eDocs/PortMoody?docnumber=461917) - Official wording: "City of Port Moody Zoning Bylaw, 2018, No. 2937" - Source: [Building Bylaw, 2019, No. 3200 (consolidated), Part 17](https://www.portmoody.ca/eDocs/Get?docnumber=506778) - Official wording: "City of Port Moody Building Bylaw, 2019, No. 3200" - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06 ## How it works The [Building Bylaw 3200](https://www.portmoody.ca/eDocs/Get?docnumber=506778) does not apply to a fence, except a pool fence, so an ordinary fence needs no building permit. A retaining wall holding soil over 1.2 m does. The [Zoning Bylaw 2937](https://portmoody-edocs.ghdcdn.com/v1/eDocs/PortMoody?docnumber=461917) (section 5.2.12) still sets height limits in single detached, semi-detached and multi-residential zones: - Front yard: 1.2 m maximum. - Behind the front face of the building: 2.0 m maximum. - On a side or rear property line next to a major road, arterial, collector road or community pathway: up to 3.0 m. ## Good to know - Barbed wire, razor wire, electrified or similar materials are banned in all zones. - Industrial zones differ: light industrial fences are 3.1 m maximum; general industrial has no limit. - Pool fences must be at least 1.2 m with no openings over 100 mm and a self-closing, self-latching gate. - Corner lots: no landscaping, building or structure may block the line of vision between 0.6 m and 3.0 m above grade within the corner sight triangle at a street intersection (3.0 m along one street to 25.0 m along the other), under Zoning s. 5.3.1. - In single detached zones, landscape walls are limited to 1.2 m at an interior side lot line, and retaining walls have setback rules (Zoning s. 5.2.11). - Confirm your property line before building (see property-lines). Questions: Planning, 604-469-4540. ## Official forms and pages - [Zoning Bylaw 2937 (section 5.2.12 Fences)](https://portmoody-edocs.ghdcdn.com/v1/eDocs/PortMoody?docnumber=461917) - [Building Bylaw 3200 (PDF)](https://www.portmoody.ca/eDocs/Get?docnumber=506778) - [Good Neighbour Guidelines (PDF)](https://media-002-ca.cdn.govstack.com/portmoody-014-ca/media/j1ci2c54/city-of-port-moody-good-neighbour-guidelines.pdf) ## Related questions - [Port Moody permits for decks, sheds, carports and garages](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/port-moody/deck-shed-garage-permit.md) - [Port Moody building permits: when you need one and how to apply](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/port-moody/building-permit.md) ## The same question elsewhere - [Fence height limits in British Columbia, by municipality](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/fence-rules.md) - [Belcarra](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/belcarra/fence-rules.md) - [Anmore](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/anmore/fence-rules.md) - [Coquitlam](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/coquitlam/fence-rules.md) - [New Westminster](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/new-westminster/fence-rules.md) - [Port Coquitlam](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/port-coquitlam/fence-rules.md) - [Burnaby](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/burnaby/fence-rules.md) ## Sources - [Zoning Bylaw, 2018, No. 2937 (consolidated)](https://portmoody-edocs.ghdcdn.com/v1/eDocs/PortMoody?docnumber=461917) (read 2026-11-05) - [Building Bylaw, 2019, No. 3200 (consolidated) (PDF)](https://www.portmoody.ca/eDocs/Get?docnumber=506778) (read 2026-11-05) - [Building and Renovating, City of Port Moody](https://www.portmoody.ca/home-and-property/building-and-renovating/) (read 2026-11-05) - [Zoning, City of Port Moody](https://www.portmoody.ca/business-development-and-planning/zoning/) (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 Port Moody. How answers are checked: https://govhandbook.com/methods/ · Canonical page: https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/port-moody/fence-rules/_