{"title":"Radium Hot Springs fence rules: permits and height limits","question":"Do I need a permit to build a fence in Radium Hot Springs, and how high can it be?","slug":"fence-rules","place":{"path":"ca/bc/radium-hot-springs","name":"Radium Hot Springs","region":{"code":"bc","name":"British Columbia"},"country":{"code":"ca","name":"Canada"}},"category":{"slug":"building-and-renovating","name":"Building, renovating and your property"},"owner":"municipal","owner_label":"Municipal","owner_body":{"name":"Village of Radium Hot Springs","url":"https://radiumhotsprings.ca"},"short_answer":"In Radium Hot Springs a fence can be 1.3 m high in a front yard and 2.0 m elsewhere on the parcel (most zones). The Village's Building Permit Guide lists fences as not needing a building permit, but zoning rules still apply. Barbed wire and razor wire are banned in most zones.","aliases":["fence height radium hot springs","fence bylaw radium hot springs","do i need a permit for a fence radium","backyard fence rules radium"],"cost":"No building permit fee for a fence, per the Village's Building Permit Guide. Retaining walls over 1.5 m need a building permit.","how_long":"Not stated by the Village. Ask Building and Development Services.","where":[{"type":"in_person","label":"Village Office","value":"4836 Radium Boulevard, Radium Hot Springs, BC","note":"Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m."},{"type":"phone","label":"Building and Development Services","value":"250-347-6455 ext. 7","note":"The Building Official is available Monday to Thursday only."},{"type":"email","label":"Building and Development Services","value":"building@radiumhotsprings.ca"}],"documents":[],"forms":[{"title":"Zoning Bylaw No. 528, 2026 (PDF)","url":"https://radiumhotsprings.civicweb.net/document/21642/"},{"title":"Building Permit Guide (PDF)","url":"https://radiumhotsprings.civicweb.net/document/10063/"}],"related":[{"slug":"building-permit","title":"Radium Hot Springs building permits: when you need one and how to apply","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/radium-hot-springs/building-permit/"},{"slug":"deck-shed-garage-permit","title":"Radium Hot Springs permits for decks, sheds, carports and garages","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/radium-hot-springs/deck-shed-garage-permit/"},{"slug":"zoning-lookup","title":"Radium Hot Springs zoning: find your zone and what it allows","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/radium-hot-springs/zoning-lookup/"}],"nearby":[{"place":"ca/bc/invermere","name":"Invermere","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/invermere/fence-rules/"},{"place":"ca/bc/canal-flats","name":"Canal Flats","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/canal-flats/fence-rules/"},{"place":"ca/bc/golden","name":"Golden","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/golden/fence-rules/"},{"place":"ca/bc/kaslo","name":"Kaslo","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/kaslo/fence-rules/"},{"place":"ca/bc/elkford","name":"Elkford","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/elkford/fence-rules/"},{"place":"ca/bc/kimberley","name":"Kimberley","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/kimberley/fence-rules/"}],"topic":{"title":"Fence height limits in British Columbia, by municipality","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/fence-rules/"},"facts":{"permit":{"label":"Permit","value":"No building permit is needed for a fence (the Village's Building Permit Guide lists \"Landscaping, sidewalks, fences\" as exemptions). Retaining walls over 1.5 m (5 ft) need a permit. Zoning height limits still apply.","short":"No building permit","status":"stated","sources":[{"url":"https://radiumhotsprings.civicweb.net/document/10063/","title":"Building Permit Guide, Village of Radium Hot Springs (PDF)","section":"When do you need a building permit? Exemptions","quotes":["Landscaping, sidewalks, fences.","Construct retaining walls over 5 ft in height."]}],"check":{"result":"matched","text_date":"2026-11-08"}},"height_front":{"label":"Height, front yard","value":"1.3 m (a fence, screen, wall or similar structure in a front yard). Applies in all zones except M1 and M2.","short":"1.3 m","status":"stated","sources":[{"url":"https://radiumhotsprings.civicweb.net/document/21642/","title":"Zoning Bylaw No. 528, 2026 (PDF)","section":"s. 3.8.1","quotes":["the height of a Fence or Screen, wall, or similar Structure located in a front Yard shall not exceed 1.3 m in height"]}],"check":{"result":"matched","text_date":"2026-11-08"}},"height_side_rear":{"label":"Height, side and rear yards","value":"2.0 m for a fence, screen or wall elsewhere on the parcel (all zones except M1 and M2). In industrial zones, 2.0 m anywhere on the parcel. Exception: where a rear and side parcel line meet in a residential zone, the front-yard part of the fence along the rear line is limited to 1.3 m.","short":"2.0 m","status":"stated","sources":[{"url":"https://radiumhotsprings.civicweb.net/document/21642/","title":"Zoning Bylaw No. 528, 2026 (PDF)","section":"s. 3.8.1, 3.8.3","quotes":["and the height of any Fence or Screen, wall or similar Structure elsewhere on the Parcel shall not exceed 2.0 m.","shall not exceed 1.3m in height."]}],"check":{"result":"matched","text_date":"2026-11-08"}},"corner_lots":{"label":"Corner lots and sightlines","value":"On corner parcels (all zones except C1), nothing may block visibility by more than 60 cm in height within a triangle formed by the two parcel lines along the streets and a line joining points 6.0 m from where the lines meet. No parking area may be in the sight triangle.","status":"stated","sources":[{"url":"https://radiumhotsprings.civicweb.net/document/21642/","title":"Zoning Bylaw No. 528, 2026 (PDF)","section":"s. 3.15","quotes":["no person shall obstruct the visibility at any intersection on corner Parcels by any means greater than 60 horizontal centimetres","at a distance of 6.0 m from their point of intersection"]}],"check":{"result":"matched","text_date":"2026-11-08"}},"other_rules":{"label":"Other rules","value":"Barbed wire and razor wire are banned as fence or screen material in commercial, mixed-use, residential and public zones. A commercial or industrial parcel next to a residential zone needs an opaque fence or screen on the shared line. Fences and retaining walls may sit in a setback. Retaining structures over 1.5 m high need a building permit.","status":"stated","sources":[{"url":"https://radiumhotsprings.civicweb.net/document/21642/","title":"Zoning Bylaw No. 528, 2026 (PDF)","section":"s. 3.8.6, 3.8.5","quotes":["The use of barbed wire or razor wire as a Fence or Screen material, and any related hardware, is prohibited","the Parcel Line must include an opaque Fence or Screen around the"]},{"url":"https://radiumhotsprings.civicweb.net/document/21642/","title":"Zoning Bylaw No. 528, 2026 (PDF)","section":"Table 1","quotes":["f) Fence or Screen, and retaining walls"]},{"url":"https://radiumhotsprings.ca/building-development/building-permits/","title":"Building Permits, Village of Radium Hot Springs","section":"Building Permits","quotes":["Retaining structures over 1.5 metres in height"]}],"check":{"result":"matched","text_date":"2026-11-08"}},"bylaw":{"label":"Bylaw","value":"Village of Radium Hot Springs Zoning Bylaw No. 528, 2026, s. 3.8 (Fencing and Screening) and s. 3.15 (Visibility at Intersections).","status":"stated","sources":[{"url":"https://radiumhotsprings.civicweb.net/document/21642/","title":"Zoning Bylaw No. 528, 2026 (PDF)","section":"s. 3.8, 3.15","quotes":["3.8 Fencing and Screening","3.15 Visibility at Intersections"]}],"check":{"result":"matched","text_date":"2026-11-08"}}},"facts_summary":{"total":6,"stated":6,"matched":6,"none":0,"unknown":0},"body_markdown":"## How it works\n\nFence heights are set in s. 3.8 of the [Zoning Bylaw No. 528](https://radiumhotsprings.civicweb.net/document/21642/). The limits apply in all zones except M1 and M2:\n\n- **Front yard:** 1.3 m for a fence, screen, wall or similar structure.\n- **Elsewhere on the parcel:** 2.0 m. In industrial zones, 2.0 m anywhere on the parcel.\n- **Exception:** where a rear and a side parcel line meet in a residential zone, the front-yard part of the fence along the rear line is limited to 1.3 m.\n\nThe Village's [Building Permit Guide](https://radiumhotsprings.civicweb.net/document/10063/) lists \"landscaping, sidewalks, fences\" as work that does not need a building permit. Retaining walls over 1.5 m (5 ft) do need one. The zoning height limits still apply.\n\n## Steps\n\n1. Find your zone and parcel lines. See the zoning-lookup answer.\n2. Keep the fence within the height limits above.\n3. On a corner lot, check the visibility rule below.\n4. If the fence includes a retaining wall over 1.5 m, apply for a building permit. See the building-permit answer.\n\n## Good to know\n\n- **Corner lots** (all zones except C1): nothing may block visibility by more than 60 cm in height within a triangle formed by the two parcel lines along the streets and a line joining points 6.0 m from where the lines meet. No parking area may be in the sight triangle.\n- Barbed wire and razor wire are banned as fence or screen material in commercial, mixed-use, residential and public zones.\n- A commercial or industrial parcel next to a residential zone needs an opaque fence or screen on the shared line.\n- Fences and retaining walls may sit in a setback.\n- No Village page or bylaw we read says in plain words that a fence needs, or does not need, a building permit; the Guide's list is the only statement. The bylaws we read do not set a method for measuring height or rules for pool fences. Ask Building and Development Services to confirm.","sources":[{"url":"https://radiumhotsprings.civicweb.net/document/21642/","title":"Zoning Bylaw No. 528, 2026 (PDF)","accessed":"2026-11-08"},{"url":"https://radiumhotsprings.civicweb.net/document/10063/","title":"Building Permit Guide, Village of Radium Hot Springs (PDF)","accessed":"2026-11-08"},{"url":"https://radiumhotsprings.ca/building-development/building-permits/","title":"Building Permits, Village of Radium Hot Springs","accessed":"2026-11-08"},{"url":"https://radiumhotsprings.civicweb.net/document/4160/","title":"Building and Plumbing Bylaw No. 392, 2013 (PDF)","accessed":"2026-11-08"},{"url":"https://radiumhotsprings.ca/administration/departments-staff/building-and-development-services/","title":"Building and Development Services, Village of Radium Hot Springs","accessed":"2026-11-08"}],"sources_read":"2026-11-08","review":{"status":"machine_checked","badge":"Checked against official text","label":"Checked by script, not yet by a person: the official wording behind 6 of 6 facts was matched to the official text."},"urls":{"html":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/radium-hot-springs/fence-rules/","markdown":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/radium-hot-springs/fence-rules.md","json":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/radium-hot-springs/fence-rules.json"}}