---
title: "Salt Spring Island fence rules: permits and height limits"
question: "Do I need a permit to build a fence, and how high can it be?"
place: Salt Spring Island, British Columbia, Canada
place_path: ca/bc/salt-spring-island
category: Building, renovating and your property
owner: other
sources_read: 2026-11-05
review: machine_checked
canonical: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/salt-spring-island/fence-rules/"
json: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/salt-spring-island/fence-rules.json"
---

# Salt Spring Island fence rules: permits and height limits

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

**Short answer:** On Salt Spring Island, a fence does not need a Capital Regional District (CRD) building permit. The Islands Trust land use bylaw sets no fence height limit that we found. Near road corners, nothing over 0.75 m may stand in a 6 m sight triangle.

**Who handles it:** Another public body  
**Cost:** No CRD permit fee for a fence.  
**Where:**
- Phone: Islands Trust Salt Spring office, 250-537-9144 (Unit 4, 121 McPhillips Avenue, V8K 2T6.)
- Email: Islands Trust Salt Spring office, ssiinfo@islandstrust.bc.ca
- Email: CRD building permit questions, permitquestion@crd.bc.ca

## Key facts

- **Permit:** No CRD building permit is needed to build a fence. Land use is regulated by the Islands Trust Land Use Bylaw, which exempts fences from its lot-line setbacks.
  - Source: [CRD Building Regulation Bylaw No. 3741, section 2.1.3, s. 2.1.3(6)](https://www.crd.ca/media/file/bylawno3741consolidated)
  - Official wording: "construction of a fence;"
  - Source: [Salt Spring Island Land Use Bylaw No. 355, sections 4.2 and 4.3, s. 4.3.1](https://islandstrust.bc.ca/document/ssi-ltc-bylaw-no-355/)
  - Official wording: "no building or structure except a fence, pumphouse,"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Height, front yard:** Not confirmed. The bylaws read do not set a fence height limit; the Islands Trust can give a firm answer.
- **Height, side and rear yards:** Not confirmed. The bylaws read do not set a fence height limit; the Islands Trust can give a firm answer.
- **Corner lots and sightlines:** No building or structure taller than 0.75 m may be placed in the triangle formed by two intersecting highways and a line joining points 6 m from their intersection.
  - Source: [Salt Spring Island Land Use Bylaw No. 355, sections 4.2 and 4.3, s. 4.2.1](https://islandstrust.bc.ca/document/ssi-ltc-bylaw-no-355/)
  - Official wording: "No building or structure exceeding 0.75 metres in height may be sited within the" … "triangle formed by the boundaries of two intersecting highways and a line joining" … "points on those boundaries 6 metres from their point of intersection"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Other rules:** Retaining structures under 1.2 m high need no CRD building permit; taller ones do unless more than 30 degrees off vertical. A fence is exempt from building permits but must still meet any zoning or development permit area rules.
  - Source: [CRD Building Regulation Bylaw No. 3741, section 2.1.3, s. 2.1.3(4)-(5)](https://www.crd.ca/media/file/bylawno3741consolidated)
  - Official wording: "construction of retaining structures less than 1.2 meters in height;" … "greater than 30° off vertical;"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Bylaw:** CRD Building Regulation Bylaw No. 3741 s. 2.1.3 (permits); Salt Spring Island Land Use Bylaw No. 355 s. 4.2.1 and 4.3.1 (siting). Both apply to the Salt Spring Island electoral area.
  - Source: [CRD Building Regulation Bylaw No. 3741, section 2.1.3, s. 1.1.1](https://www.crd.ca/media/file/bylawno3741consolidated)
  - Official wording: "Islands, and Salt Spring Island electoral areas in the Capital Regional District."
  - Source: [Salt Spring Island Land Use Bylaw No. 355, sections 4.2 and 4.3, s. 2.1.1](https://islandstrust.bc.ca/document/ssi-ltc-bylaw-no-355/)
  - Official wording: "The provisions of this Bylaw apply to that portion of Salt Spring Island Local Trust" … "Area that lies within Electoral Area “F” of the Capital Regional District"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06

## How it works

Salt Spring Island is not a municipality. A fence is exempt from CRD building permits under [Building Regulation Bylaw No. 3741](https://www.crd.ca/media/file/bylawno3741consolidated). Land use is regulated by the Islands Trust through [Land Use Bylaw No. 355](https://islandstrust.bc.ca/document/ssi-ltc-bylaw-no-355/), which exempts fences from its lot-line setbacks.

The bylaws we read do not set a fence height limit, in front yards or in side and rear yards. The Trust and the CRD do not state one, so ask the Islands Trust if you want a firm answer.

## Steps

1. Build an ordinary fence without a CRD permit.
2. If you are near a road intersection, check the corner rule: no building or structure taller than 0.75 m may be placed in the triangle formed by two intersecting highways and a line joining points 6 m from their intersection. The bylaw does not name fences, but it treats a fence as a structure.
3. If the fence is in a development permit area (for example near the shore or a stream) and building it involves vegetation removal or soil disturbance, ask the Islands Trust whether you need a development permit.
4. For a firm answer on height, call or email the Islands Trust with your address.

## Good to know

- Retaining structures under 1.2 m high need no CRD building permit. Taller ones do, unless they are more than 30 degrees off vertical.
- A fence still has to meet any zoning or development permit area rules.
- We found no rules on fence materials (such as barbed wire or electric fencing) or pool fences in the documents we read.

## Official forms and pages

- [Salt Spring Island Land Use Bylaw No. 355 (PDF)](https://islandstrust.bc.ca/document/ssi-ltc-bylaw-no-355/)
- [CRD Building Regulation Bylaw No. 3741 (PDF)](https://www.crd.ca/media/file/bylawno3741consolidated)

## Related questions

- [Salt Spring Island zoning: find your zone and what it allows](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/salt-spring-island/zoning-lookup.md)
- [Salt Spring Island tree removal rules and permits](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/salt-spring-island/tree-removal.md)
- [Salt Spring Island permits for decks, sheds, carports and garages](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/salt-spring-island/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)

## Sources

- [CRD Building Regulation Bylaw No. 3741, section 2.1.3 (PDF)](https://www.crd.ca/media/file/bylawno3741consolidated) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Salt Spring Island Land Use Bylaw No. 355 (PDF), sections 4.2 and 4.3](https://islandstrust.bc.ca/document/ssi-ltc-bylaw-no-355/) (read 2026-11-05)

_Checked by script, not yet by a person: the official wording behind 4 of 6 facts was matched to the official text; 2 could not be confirmed. Gov Handbook is an independent guide, not affiliated with any government. How answers are checked: https://govhandbook.com/methods/ · Canonical page: https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/salt-spring-island/fence-rules/_