Fence laws in District of Columbia
What District of Columbia statutes and statewide codes say about fences, one topic at a time, with the section number and a link to the document behind every line.
Fence laws in District of Columbia, question by question
The short version
- Who pays on the line
- District of Columbia has no statute splitting the cost of a fence on the boundary. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide this one.
- How tall
- A fence along a street in DC may stand 7 feet tall in a residential zone, and on a lot fronting the Anacostia or the Potomac. The figure is 7 feet, for height of a fence along a street in a residential zone. It reaches a fence along a street in a residential zone of the District only.
- Permits
- The Council approves the Construction Codes, and they are then printed in Title 12 of the DC regulations as the Construction Codes Supplement of 2017.
- Pool barriers
- DC writes no pool fence rule of its own.
- Spite fences
- District of Columbia has no spite fence statute. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide this one.
- Measured from what
- Fence height in DC is measured from the top of the fence down to the ground. It reaches fences in the District of Columbia only.
- Corner lots
- District of Columbia sets no rule about what may stand near a corner. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide this one.
- Retaining walls
- A wall that holds back earth needs a building permit in DC unless it passes three tests at once. The figure is 4 feet, for height at which a wall that holds back earth needs a building permit. It reaches one and two family dwellings only.
- Materials
- DC bans barbed wire on a fence along a street, avenue, alley, road, public walk, driveway or parking area inside the fire limits. It reaches fences along a public way inside the fire limits only.
- Livestock
- In DC the person who owns or keeps an animal has to hold it.
Who owns the fence between two properties in District of Columbia?
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District of Columbia law has no rule about this. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide it instead.
DC has no law about who pays for a fence on the property line. Title 42 of the DC Official Code covers real property and has no fence chapter. Title 8 and Title 16 do not have one either. What DC does have is a permit step. The Department of Buildings makes an owner tell the neighbor when permitted work touches a shared fence, a party wall or a retaining wall on the line. That is a notice, and it settles nothing about cost.
Documents read before writing that:
- D.C. Code tit. 42Council of the District of Columbia
- D.C. Code tit. 8Council of the District of Columbia
- D.C. Code tit. 16Council of the District of Columbia
- Homeowner's CenterDistrict of Columbia Department of Buildings
- Neighbor NotificationDistrict of Columbia Department of Buildings
How tall can a fence be in District of Columbia?
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District of Columbia answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
A fence along a street in DC may stand 7 feet tall in a residential zone, and on a lot fronting the Anacostia or the Potomac. In a mixed use, special purpose, commercial or PDR zone the same fence may stand 10 feet. Those two numbers carry over to a fence along an alley and to a fence within 10 feet of a party line. A fence set back more than 10 feet from a lot line, a party line, an alley or a building restriction line has no height limit at all. It still has to stay out of a required yard or court and must not block light or air to a required window. DC sets this in its building code, not in its zoning rules.
Fences abutting a street shall not exceed 7 feet (2134 mm) in height in Residential Zones or on properties with frontage on the Anacostia or Potomac Rivers, nor 10 feet (3048 mm) in height in Mixed Use, Special Purpose, Commercial, or PDR Zones.
7 ftheight of a fence along a street in a residential zone
Do I need a permit for a fence in District of Columbia?
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District of Columbia answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
The Council approves the Construction Codes, and they are then printed in Title 12 of the DC regulations as the Construction Codes Supplement of 2017. That supplement took effect May 29, 2020 and is built on the 2015 model codes from the International Code Council. Every fence permit question in DC starts there.
The Council approves the Construction Codes pursuant to the procedures set forth in § 6-1409.
Also on permits in District of Columbia
- set in state lawA new fence in DC needs a building permit. The Department of Buildings lists fence work on the same line as retaining walls, sheds, garages and vaults. How to Get a PermitDistrict of Columbia · Agency guidance
- set in state lawFixing a fence that is already there does not need a permit, so long as the repair uses the same materials. The Department of Buildings puts that on its list of work that needs no permit. So the line runs between building something new and repairing what is already standing. How to Get a PermitDistrict of Columbia · Agency guidance
- set in state lawReplacing a fence with the same kind of fence can get an instant permit when the fence sits wholly on the owner's own land and stands under 7 feet. That 7 feet is the cutoff for the fast permit, not a limit on how tall a fence may be. The real height rule is in section 3112 of the building code, which DC publishes only as a PDF. Instant Permits for Simple Scopes of WorkDistrict of Columbia · Agency guidance
- set in state lawThe Department of Buildings runs a fence permit of its own, and it covers replacing, repairing and building a fence on private land. A new fence needs a surveyor plat. A fence in public space is handled by the District Department of Transportation instead. Fence PermitDistrict of Columbia · Agency guidance
Pool fence requirements in District of Columbia
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District of Columbia answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
DC writes no pool fence rule of its own. The law says the Construction Codes are the newest model codes from the International Code Council, as adopted and changed by DC. The pool part of the 2017 supplement carries only three chapters, and none of them prints a barrier height. The model code rules are adopted by reference, so the number lives in the model code and not on any DC server.
"Construction Codes" means the most recent edition of the codes published by the International Code Council, or by a comparable nationally recognized and accepted code development organization, as adopted and amended by the Construction Codes Supplement by the District
Spite fence laws in District of Columbia
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District of Columbia law has no rule about this. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide it instead.
DC has no spite fence law. Nothing in the DC Official Code and nothing in the city regulations reaches a fence built to bother a neighbor. Title 42 does carry a whole subtitle on nuisance property, but it is about drugs, guns, prostitution and graffiti. The zoning regulations have no fence chapter at all, so there is no height that sets anything off there either.
Documents read before writing that:
- D.C. Code tit. 42, subtit. VICouncil of the District of Columbia
- D.C. Code tit. 16Council of the District of Columbia
- D.C. Code tit. 8Council of the District of Columbia
- 11-C DCMRDistrict of Columbia Office of Documents and Administrative Issuances
How fence height is measured in District of Columbia
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District of Columbia answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Fence height in DC is measured from the top of the fence down to the ground. Where the ground sits higher on one side than the other, the measurement is taken on the higher side, which gives the smaller number. The same building code section that sets the height limits prints this rule. Changing the ground next to a fence counts as part of the height question, because a permit to change the grade beside a fence needs the same plat as a permit to make the fence taller.
The measurement of the height of a fence shall be made from the top of the fence to grade, on the side of the fence where grade level is higher.
Also on how height is measured in District of Columbia
- left to the townThe DC Official Code never says where a fence height is measured from. It gives the Zoning Commission the power to set height rules and to split the city into zones, and stops there. It never defines natural grade or finished grade, and it never says how a fence standing on a retaining wall is measured. The measuring rule is printed in the building code instead, at 12-A DCMR 3112.1.3. D.C. Code 6-641.01District of Columbia · Zoning code
Fence rules for corner lots in District of Columbia
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District of Columbia law has no rule about this. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide it instead.
DC has no corner clearance rule for a fence. DC writes its own zoning rather than handing it down, so a rule like that would sit in the Zoning Regulations of 2016. The whole text was read. It defines a corner lot and a triangular lot and sets yard and setback rules for them, and it never marks off a wedge near an intersection where nothing tall may stand. The one clear sight line in the book is a see through rule for security grilles on downtown storefronts.
Documents read before writing that:
- 11 DCMRDistrict of Columbia Office of Zoning
Retaining wall rules in District of Columbia
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District of Columbia answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
A wall that holds back earth needs a building permit in DC unless it passes three tests at once. It has to be 4 feet or less, measured from the bottom of the footing to the top of the wall. It has to serve a one or two family home. And the work has to disturb less than 50 square feet of ground. Miss one of the three and the permit is required. DC takes the 4 foot line from the model code and adds the other two tests itself.
Retaining walls that are not over 4 feet (1219 mm) in height, measured from the bottom of the footing to the top of the wall, for one- and two-family dwellings only where the area of land disturbance is less than 50 square feet (4.65 m2).
4 ftheight at which a wall that holds back earth needs a building permit
Fence materials allowed in District of Columbia
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District of Columbia answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
DC bans barbed wire on a fence along a street, avenue, alley, road, public walk, driveway or parking area inside the fire limits. A fence that is only partly barbed wire is banned too.
No fence, barrier, or obstruction consisting or made, in whole or in part, of what is commonly called barbed wire shall be erected, constructed, or maintained along the line of or in or upon any street, avenue, alley, road, or other public walk, driveway, or public or private parking within the fire limits of the District of Columbia.
Livestock and boundary fence law in District of Columbia
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District of Columbia answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
In DC the person who owns or keeps an animal has to hold it. The animal control law says an owner may not let an animal go at large, and it is written for every animal rather than for farm stock alone. Nothing in it asks a neighbor to build a fence first.
An owner or custodian shall not allow his or her animal to go at large.
Also on agricultural fencing in District of Columbia
- no rule, documents checkedDC has no lawful fence law. Nothing in the animal control chapter sets a fence height, a wire count, a board count or a post spacing. Nothing there makes payment for a straying animal depend on the land being fenced first. D.C. Code 8-1801 to 8-1814District of Columbia · Statute
Documents behind this page
17 documents, each read on the date shown. Nothing on this page rests on a summary of one.
- Council of the District of ColumbiaDC Official Code, Title 42, Real Property, chapter list
- Council of the District of ColumbiaDC Official Code, Title 8, Environmental and Animal Control and Protection, chapter list
- Council of the District of ColumbiaDC Official Code, Title 16, Particular Actions, Proceedings and Matters, chapter list
- District of Columbia Department of BuildingsHomeowner's Center
- District of Columbia Department of BuildingsNeighbor Notification
- District of Columbia Department of Buildings2017 District of Columbia Building Code, Chapter 31, Special Construction, Section 3112 Fences
- Council of the District of ColumbiaDC Official Code, Title 6, Chapter 14, Construction Codes, Subchapter I
- District of Columbia Department of BuildingsHow to Get a Permit
- District of Columbia Department of BuildingsInstant Permits for Simple Scopes of Work
- District of Columbia Department of BuildingsFence Permit
- Council of the District of ColumbiaDC Official Code, Title 6, Chapter 14, Construction Codes, Subchapter I, General Provisions
- District of Columbia Office of Documents and Administrative IssuancesDistrict of Columbia Municipal Regulations, Title 11 Subtitle C, chapter list
- Council of the District of ColumbiaDistrict of Columbia Official Code, Title 6, Chapter 6, Zoning and Height of Buildings, Section 6-641.01
- District of Columbia Office of ZoningDistrict of Columbia Municipal Regulations, Title 11, Zoning Regulations of 2016, consolidated text published by the Office of Zoning
- Council of the District of ColumbiaCode of the District of Columbia, Title 9, Chapter 12, Subchapter VII, Barbed-Wire Fences
- Council of the District of ColumbiaCode of the District of Columbia, Title 8, Chapter 18, Animal Control
- Council of the District of ColumbiaCode of the District of Columbia, Title 8, Chapter 18, Subchapter I, General
What this page does not cover
Everything above is state law. Fence height, setback, corner visibility and materials are set by city and county ordinance in almost every state, and a local rule can be far stricter than the statewide default. A parcel can also carry an easement, an overlay district, a fire hazard zone or a recorded HOA restriction, none of which appear in a statute.
This is general information drawn from published government documents. It is not legal advice, statutes are amended, and the date beside each finding is the date the document was read. How findings are made · What the terms mean