All 50 states and DC
Do I need a permit for a fence?
Most states adopt a national model code and inherit its permit exemption without writing one of their own. Some write their own number directly into state law. Several have no statewide residential code at all and leave the whole question to each county or town. The differences are larger than most people expect, and a few states are genuine outliers.
Do I need a permit for a fence, state by state
48 stated, 2 silent, 1 delegated. Every row links the state page and the document behind it.
| State | What the record says | Exemption height | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | StatedAlabama does not write its own residential code from scratch. | none stated | Ala. Code 34-14A-82(b) |
| Alaska | StatedAlaska adopts the 2021 International Building Code by regulation and then rewrites the list of work that ne... | none stated | 13 AAC 50.020(6) |
| Arizona | StatedArizona has no statewide building code and hands the job to county government by statute. | none stated | A.R.S. § 11-861(A) |
| Arkansas | StatedArkansas has no separate statewide building code. | none stated | Arkansas Contractors Licensing Board, Building Codes |
| California | StatedCalifornia does not write its own building code from scratch. | none stated | Health & Saf. Code 17922 |
| Colorado | SilentColorado adopts no statewide residential building code, so there is no statewide fence permit rule and no s... | none stated | C.R.S. 30-28-201 |
| Connecticut | StatedConnecticut runs one building code across the whole state. | none stated | Conn. Gen. Stat. 29-252 |
| Delaware | DelegatedDelaware does not have a state building code. | none stated | 16 Del. C. 7601 |
| District of Columbia | StatedThe Council approves the Construction Codes under the procedure in D.C. | none stated | D.C. Code 6-1402 |
| Florida | StatedFlorida runs one statewide building code and makes a permit the default for building work. | none stated | Fla. Stat. 553.79(1)(a) |
| Georgia | StatedGeorgia adopted the 2024 International Residential Code as its state minimum standard one and two family dw... | none stated | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. r. 110-11-1-.25 |
| Hawaii | StatedHawaii has one set of state building codes that covers all construction in the state. | none stated | HRS 107-25 |
| Idaho | StatedIdaho runs a real statewide residential code. | none stated | Idaho Code 39-4109 |
| Illinois | StatedIllinois has no single statewide building permit rule for homes. | none stated | Illinois Residential Building Code Act, Sec. 15 |
| Indiana | StatedIndiana has one statewide code of fire safety and building laws, adopted by rule by the Fire Prevention and... | none stated | IC 22-13-2-2 |
| Iowa | StatedIowa has a state building code, but it does not switch on by itself everywhere. | none stated | Iowa Code 103A.12 |
| Kansas | SilentKansas has no statewide fence permit rule for a house. | none stated | K.S.A. Chapter 29 |
| Kentucky | StatedKentucky adopts the 2015 International Residential Code as the mandatory state residential building code, w... | none stated | 815 KAR 7:125 Section 2(2)(a) |
| Louisiana | StatedLouisiana adopts national model codes as the State Uniform Construction Code. | none stated | La. R.S. 40:1730.28(A)(3)(a) |
| Maine | StatedMaine draws the enforcement line at population. | none stated | 10 M.R.S. 9724(1) |
| Maryland | StatedThe Maryland Building Performance Standards adopt the 2021 International Building Code, the 2021 Internatio... | none stated | COMAR 09.12.51.04 |
| Massachusetts | StatedMassachusetts runs one state building code, 780 CMR, written by the Board of Building Regulations and Stand... | none stated | M.G.L. c. 143, § 94 |
| Michigan | StatedMichigan amends the model code permit exemption in its own administrative rule and sets the fence line at s... | 7 ft | R 408.30505 |
| Minnesota | StatedMinnesota has a statewide building code, and the administrative rules that come with it list work that need... | 7 ft | Minn. R. 1300.0120, subp. 4 |
| Mississippi | StatedMississippi does not run one building code from the capital. | none stated | Mississippi Insurance Department, Mississippi Uniform Building Codes |
| Missouri | StatedMissouri hands the building code job to local government by statute instead of running one from the capital. | none stated | RSMo § 67.280 |
| Montana | StatedThe Montana state building code does not reach an ordinary house. | none stated | MCA 50-60-102(1)(a) |
| Nebraska | StatedNebraska has a statewide building code. | none stated | Neb. Rev. Stat. 71-6403 |
| Nevada | StatedNevada does not put one building code over the whole state. | none stated | NRS 278.580 |
| New Hampshire | StatedThe state building code applies everywhere in New Hampshire and a permit comes before the work. | none stated | RSA 155-A:4, I |
| New Jersey | StatedNew Jersey runs one construction code for the whole state. | none stated | N.J.S.A. 52:27D-123 |
| New Mexico | StatedNew Mexico runs one statewide permit rule through the Construction Industries Division. | none stated | 14.5.2.9 NMAC |
| New York | StatedNew York writes one uniform code for the state but hands the permit counter to local government. | none stated | Exec. Law 381(2) |
| North Carolina | StatedNorth Carolina sets its residential permit exemption by dollar value rather than by height, which makes it... | none stated | N.C.G.S. 160D-1110(c) |
| North Dakota | StatedNorth Dakota has a state building code, but enforcing it is a local choice. | none stated | N.D.C.C. 54-21.3-03(6) |
| Ohio | StatedThe Residential Code of Ohio calls the step approval rather than a permit, and a fence of six feet or less... | 6 ft | OAC 4101:8-1-01, Section 102.10 |
| Oklahoma | StatedOklahoma puts code adoption in the hands of one state body. | none stated | 59 O.S. § 1000.23 |
| Oregon | StatedThe Oregon Residential Specialty Code leaves wood, wire mesh and chain link fences off the building permit... | 7 ft | ORSC R101.2.2, item 1 |
| Pennsylvania | StatedPennsylvania writes the residential fence permit exemption straight into its own regulation instead of leav... | 6 ft | 34 Pa. Code 403.62(c)(1) |
| Rhode Island | Statedone and two family dwellings | 6 ft | 510-RICR-00-00-2, R105.2 |
| South Carolina | StatedSouth Carolina does not write its own building code. | none stated | S.C. Code 6-9-50(A) |
| South Dakota | Stateddetached single family owner occupied homes | none stated | SDCL 11-10-15 |
| Tennessee | StatedTennessee adopts the 2018 International Residential Code, with state amendments, as the statewide code for... | none stated | Code Adoption History, residential codes |
| Texas | StatedTexas adopted the International Residential Code as it stood on May 1, 2012 as the residential building cod... | none stated | Local Gov't Code 214.212(a) |
| Utah | StatedUtah adopts one construction code for the whole state and names the exact editions in statute. | none stated | Utah Code 15A-2-103 |
| Vermont | StatedVermont state construction rules reach public buildings, and the statute says what a public building is not. | none stated | 20 V.S.A. 2730(b)(1) |
| Virginia | StatedVirginia is unusual here. | none stated | 13VAC5-63-80 |
| Washington | StatedWashington adopts the 2021 International Residential Code as its statewide code for one- and two-family homes. | none stated | WAC 51-51-003 |
| West Virginia | StatedWest Virginia has a State Building Code written by the State Fire Commission, but it does not switch on by... | none stated | W. Va. Code 15A-11-5(e) |
| Wisconsin | StatedWisconsin does not use the International Residential Code. | none stated | Wis. Admin. Code § SPS 320.01 |
| Wyoming | StatedWyoming does not write its own building code. | none stated | W.S. 35-9-106(a)(i) |
The other nine questions
A fence rule usually turns on more than one of these, and the answer to one does not settle another.
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 each state page carries the date its documents were read. How findings are made · What the terms mean · Browse by state