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

# Terrace 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 Terrace a fence does not need a building permit, but the Zoning Bylaw limits height. In Agricultural and Residential zones the maximum is 1.2 m in the front yard and 1.85 m in side and rear yards. Pool fences follow a separate bylaw.

**Who handles it:** Municipal (City of Terrace, https://www.terrace.ca)  
**Cost:** No building permit fee, since no building permit is required.  
**Where:**
- Phone: Development Services, 250-615-4022 (5003 Graham Avenue)
- Email: Development Services, developmentservices@terrace.ca

## Key facts

- **Permit:** No building permit: the Building Bylaw does not apply to a fence. A development permit may still be needed if the fence is in an OCP development permit area such as an environmentally sensitive area. A retaining wall over 1.2 m high needs a permit.
  - Source: [Building Bylaw No. 2307-2024, s. 3.4.3, 15.2](https://www.terrace.ca/media/3959)
  - Official wording: "a fence, a trellis, an arbour, or other similar landscaping or decorative structures." … "No person may construct a retaining wall without a permit."
  - Source: [Environmentally Sensitive Areas Strategy (Final), s. 5.3 Development Classification](https://www.terrace.ca/sites/default/files/ESA%20Strategy%20-%20FINAL.pdf)
  - Official wording: "Activities considered to be development will be required" … "Fences, patios, docks, wharves, or bridges; and"
  - Source: [https://www.terrace.ca/media/4106, Development Permit Areas, Exemptions](https://www.terrace.ca/media/4106)
  - Official wording: "A proposed development that solely consists of the construction or placement of fences, gates, landscaping and signage that comply with all applicable DPA"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Height, front yard:** 1.2 m in the front yard in Agricultural and Residential zones. It may be 1.85 m if the front parcel line is next to an arterial road identified in the OCP.
  - Source: [Zoning Consolidated Bylaw No. 2069-2014 (PDF, to Bylaw 2345-2026), s. 3.6.1, 3.6.2](https://www.terrace.ca/media/4249)
  - Official wording: "Agricultural and Residential 1.2 m 1.85 m" … "Where the front parcel line is adjacent to an arterial roadway as identified in" … "the OCP, the maximum height of a fence in the Agricultural and Residential" … "zones may be increased to 1.85 m in the front yard"
  - Source: [Fact Sheet DS-11 Building a Fence, How tall can I build a fence?](https://www.terrace.ca/sites/default/files/docs/business-development/planning-document/Fact-Sheets/ds-11-fact-sheet-building-a-fence.pdf)
  - Official wording: "On residential properties, fences can be a maximum"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Height, side and rear yards:** 1.85 m in side and rear yards in Agricultural and Residential zones.
  - Source: [Zoning Consolidated Bylaw No. 2069-2014 (PDF, to Bylaw 2345-2026), s. 3.6.1](https://www.terrace.ca/media/4249)
  - Official wording: "Agricultural and Residential 1.2 m 1.85 m" … "Subject to the visual clearance requirements of Section 3.9, fences must comply"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Corner lots and sightlines:** In all zones, no fence, wall or structure may be higher than 1.0 m, and no hedge, bush or tree may block vision, in the corner area at a street, lane, roadway or driveway corner, bounded by the parcel lines and a line joining points 6.0 m from where they meet.
  - Source: [Zoning Consolidated Bylaw No. 2069-2014 (PDF, to Bylaw 2345-2026), s. 3.9](https://www.terrace.ca/media/4249)
  - Official wording: "In all zones, no fence, wall or structure is to be erected to a height greater than 1.0 m and" … "6.0 m from their point of intersection as illustrated in Figure 11."
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Other rules:** Height is measured from ground level to the top of the fence at any point. Barbed wire only on farm land for livestock, or above 1.85 m in industrial and public zones; electrified wire only on farm land for livestock; razor wire banned. Pool fence: at least 1.5 m high, openings no more than 100 mm (Bylaw 1709-2000).
  - Source: [Zoning Consolidated Bylaw No. 2069-2014 (PDF, to Bylaw 2345-2026), s. 2 (fence definition), 3.6.3-3.6.5](https://www.terrace.ca/media/4249)
  - Official wording: "fence height is the vertical distance between the ground level and the top of" … "No fence is to be constructed using barbed wire except:" … "No fence is to be constructed using electrified wire except in an Agricultural zone" … "No fence in any zone is to be constructed using razor wire, ribbon wire, ultra-barrier"
  - Source: [Building Bylaw No. 2307-2024, s. 2 definitions](https://www.terrace.ca/media/3959)
  - Official wording: "RETAINING WALL means a structure exceeding 1.2 metres in height that is intended to hold or retain soil or other material."
  - Source: [Private Swimming Pool Bylaw No. 1709-2000, Bylaw 1709-2000 s. 2.1](https://www.terrace.ca/media/3935)
  - Official wording: "Every private swimming pool shall be enclosed within a fence not less than 1.5 m in height with no openings greater than 100 mm"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Bylaw:** Zoning Bylaw No. 2069-2014, s. 3.6 (fences) and s. 3.9 (visual clearance); Private Swimming Pool Bylaw No. 1709-2000 (pool fences)
  - Source: [Zoning Consolidated Bylaw No. 2069-2014 (PDF, to Bylaw 2345-2026), Title page, s. 3.6, 3.9](https://www.terrace.ca/media/4249)
  - Official wording: "City of Terrace Zoning Bylaw No. 2069 - 2014" … "(and Amendments thereto up to and including Bylaw #2345-2026)" … "3.6 Fences"
  - Source: [Private Swimming Pool Bylaw No. 1709-2000, Title, s. 2.1](https://www.terrace.ca/media/3935)
  - Official wording: "A BYLAW OF THE CITY OF TERRACE TO REGULATE THE FENCING OF PRIVATE SWIMMING POOLS." … "BYLAW NO. 1709-2000"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06

## How it works

Section 3.6 of [Zoning Bylaw 2069](https://www.terrace.ca/media/4249) sets maximum fence heights, measured from ground level to the top of the fence at any point. The [Building Bylaw](https://www.terrace.ca/media/3959) does not apply to a fence, so no building permit is needed.

| Zone | Front yard | Side and rear yard |
|---|---|---|
| Agricultural and Residential | 1.2 m | 1.85 m |
| Commercial, Industrial, Public | 1.2 m (1.8 m open mesh) | 3.0 m (open mesh) |

## Good to know

- Where the front parcel line is next to an arterial road identified in the Official Community Plan, a front-yard fence in a residential or agricultural zone may be 1.85 m.
- In every zone, nothing (fence, wall, hedge, bush or tree) may block vision in the corner area at a street, lane or driveway corner. Fences and walls there may not exceed 1.0 m. The area is bounded by the parcel lines and a line joining points 6.0 m from where they meet.
- Barbed wire is allowed only on farm land for livestock, or above 1.85 m in industrial and public zones. Electrified wire is allowed only on farm land for livestock. Razor wire is banned.
- Pool fences: [Private Swimming Pool Bylaw 1709-2000](https://www.terrace.ca/media/3935) requires at least 1.5 m high with openings no more than 100 mm.
- A retaining wall over 1.2 m high needs a building permit.
- If your lot is in an Official Community Plan development permit area, such as an environmentally sensitive area, a development permit may still be needed. Check TerraMap or call Development Services.

## Official forms and pages

- [Fact Sheet DS-11, Building a Fence (PDF)](https://www.terrace.ca/sites/default/files/docs/business-development/planning-document/Fact-Sheets/ds-11-fact-sheet-building-a-fence.pdf)
- [Zoning Bylaw 2069 (PDF)](https://www.terrace.ca/media/4249)
- [Private Swimming Pool Bylaw 1709 (PDF)](https://www.terrace.ca/media/3935)
- [TerraMap (find your zoning and roads)](https://www.terrace.ca/business-development/maps-zoning/terramap)

## Related questions

- [Terrace zoning: find your zone and what it allows](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/terrace/zoning-lookup.md)
- [Terrace permits for decks, sheds, carports and garages](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/terrace/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)
- [Kitimat](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/kitimat/fence-rules.md)
- [New Hazelton](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/new-hazelton/fence-rules.md)
- [Smithers](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/smithers/fence-rules.md)
- [Telkwa](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/telkwa/fence-rules.md)
- [Hazelton](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/hazelton/fence-rules.md)
- [Port Edward](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/port-edward/fence-rules.md)

## Sources

- [Zoning Consolidated Bylaw No. 2069-2014 (PDF, to Bylaw 2345-2026), City of Terrace](https://www.terrace.ca/media/4249) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Building Bylaw No. 2307-2024 (PDF), City of Terrace](https://www.terrace.ca/media/3959) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Private Swimming Pool Bylaw No. 1709-2000 (PDF), City of Terrace](https://www.terrace.ca/media/3935) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Fact Sheet DS-11 Building a Fence (PDF), City of Terrace](https://www.terrace.ca/sites/default/files/docs/business-development/planning-document/Fact-Sheets/ds-11-fact-sheet-building-a-fence.pdf) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Environmentally Sensitive Areas Strategy (Final), City of Terrace](https://www.terrace.ca/sites/default/files/ESA%20Strategy%20-%20FINAL.pdf) (read 2026-11-05)
- [https://www.terrace.ca/media/4106](https://www.terrace.ca/media/4106) (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 Terrace. How answers are checked: https://govhandbook.com/methods/ · Canonical page: https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/terrace/fence-rules/_