How high can a fence be in Brisbane?
Up to 2 m, the same as the rest of Queensland. The 1.2 m and 1.8 m figures you see on fencing websites are real, but they only apply to certain properties, and probably not yours.
- Without approval
- Up to 2 m, measured from the natural ground. Council adds up everything stacked together, so a retaining wall plus the fence on top of it counts as one height 1
- Front fences
- Usually 2 m like the rest. But on streets Council protects for their older look, front fences drop to 1.2 m and have to be partly see-through. Check whether your street is one of them 3
- The 1.8 m you keep reading
- That number is for unit and townhouse blocks, not houses. And on those it is a minimum, not a limit. Ignore it if you own a house 4
- Check your own address
- Council's extra rules land street by street, not suburb by suburb. Type your address into Council's City Plan Online map before you trust any number here 6
- Barbed wire
- Banned on fences next to a public place, unless your land is in an industrial or rural area 2
- Electric fences
- Only behind a second, non-electric fence at least 1.2 m high and 1 m clear of it, or an equivalent barrier 2
- Who pays for it
- This is state law, not Council. You and your neighbour go halves on a basic fence, which Queensland puts at 0.5 m to 1.8 m. Want it taller? You pay the extra 7
- Retaining walls
- A wall holding back soil is not a fence, and it has its own limit: 1 m for the wall plus the soil behind it, before you need approval 5
Search for Brisbane fence rules and you’ll be told 1.2 m at the front and 1.8 m at the sides. Both numbers are real. Neither is the Brisbane rule.
One of them only applies on certain streets. The other is for unit blocks, not houses. The number that covers every fence in Brisbane is the Queensland one: 2 m.
How high can you build a fence in Brisbane without approval?
Up to 2 m. You measure from the natural ground, not from the top of any soil you’ve brought in. 1
Boundary fences — approvals The one rule that covers every Brisbane fence Brisbane City Council — Boundary fences: approvals and requirements 1
You'll need building approval if your proposed fence height is more than 2 metres above the natural ground surface, or forms part of the fencing for a regulated pool. Fence height includes a combination of screens, fences and retaining walls.
Watch how Council adds it up. Screens, fences and retaining walls all count together as one height. So a 1 m retaining wall with a 1.5 m fence on top isn’t a 1.5 m fence. It’s 2.5 m, and it needs building approval. 1
That 2 m comes from Queensland law, and we set out the whole chain behind it on our Queensland fence page. Brisbane doesn’t change it.
Where does the 1.2 m front fence rule come from?
From Council’s map of older character streets — mostly the pre-war timber-and-tin areas it wants to keep looking the way they do. If your place is on that map, anything in front of the house is capped at 1.2 m and has to be partly see-through. 3
That includes the bit of side fence that runs forward past the house towards the street, which is what the rule means by a “return side fence”.
s 8.2.22, AO17 The rule for older character streets Brisbane City Plan 2014 — Traditional building character (design) overlay code 3
Development involving front and return side fences forward of the building are: a maximum height of 1.2m; of a timber paling or wire construction that complements the traditional character of the streetscape; at least 20% transparent.
There’s a second version for period-style homes. Same 1.2 m, and it has to be even more see-through. 3
The important part: this lands street by street, not suburb by suburb. Your neighbour two roads over may have a completely different answer. Type your address into Council’s City Plan Online map to see which one you are. 6
Where does the 1.8 m rule come from?
From the rules for building units and townhouses, not houses. And it says the opposite of how it gets quoted. Along the side and back boundaries, 1.8 m is a minimum those developments have to put up, not a ceiling. 4
Multiple Dwelling Code, PO37/AO37 The unit-block rule people misquote Brisbane City Plan 2014 — Multiple Dwelling Code 4
Development provides side and rear boundary fencing that is: a minimum of 1.8m in height; a maximum of 1.2m in height where fence construction is solid or less than 50% transparent, or 1.5m where fence construction is at least 50% transparent, forward of the main building line to the front boundary except where it has a noise mitigation function.
If you’re fencing a house, this one isn’t your rule at all.
So what applies to an ordinary Brisbane house?
Council publishes its current planning rules through an address-by-address map tool, not as a document you can read start to finish. The last full copy it released in readable form stops at 2020, and the rules have changed many times since. The version in force now is v36.00/2026, which started on 12 June 2026. 6
So we can tell you where the 1.2 m and 1.8 m numbers come from, and we can tell you the 2 m approval limit applies everywhere in Brisbane. What we won’t do is promise you there’s no other Council rule sitting over your particular street. Look your address up on Council’s map, or give them a ring, before you build.
What does Brisbane’s own local law say about fences?
Council’s own by-law doesn’t set heights at all. It’s about what your fence is made of, and it has three rules worth knowing.
Barbed wire is banned on any fence next to a footpath, park or other public place, unless your land is industrial or rural. Razor wire and similar are banned more tightly still, with only industrial land excepted. 2
s 38(2)–(3) Barbed wire next to a public place Health, Safety and Amenity Local Law 2021 (Brisbane City Council) 2
The use of barbed wire in fences adjoining a public access place is prohibited on all areas of land in the local government area other than land in — (a) an industrial area; or (b) a rural area. […] The use of hazardous fencing material is prohibited in fences adjoining a public access place on all areas of land in the local government area other than land in an industrial area.
On industrial land, that wire has to sit at least 2 m above the footpath, or behind a barrier. 2
An electric fence needs a second fence in front of it. That one can’t be electric, and it has to be at least 1.2 m high. It also has to be built so nobody can climb through, and stand at least 1 m clear of the electric one. A barrier that does the same job works too. 2
s 40(1) Electric fences need a fence in front of them Health, Safety and Amenity Local Law 2021 (Brisbane City Council) 2
A person must not construct or allow an electric fence to be constructed or remain on land unless — (a) the electric fence is separated from the boundary of a premises by a second fence which is not an electric fence or other fence made of hazardous fencing material and which is — (i) at least 1.2m high; and (ii) constructed from materials that are sufficient to prevent a person from climbing through the fence and coming into contact with the electric fence; and (iii) at least 1m from the electric fence […]
Who pays for a fence on the boundary in Brisbane?
Council has nothing to do with this one. It’s state law, and we cover it in full on the Queensland page. 7
The short version: you and your neighbour go halves on a basic fence, which Queensland puts at between 0.5 m and 1.8 m. Those numbers decide what your neighbour has to chip in for, not how tall you’re allowed to build. Want something taller? Build it, and pay the extra yourself. 7
What happens if you and your neighbour disagree?
Brisbane City Council isn’t who you deal with here. Splitting the cost with a neighbour is Queensland law, and it works the same way across the state.
First, you write to your neighbour. There’s a form for it, called a notice to contribute. You fill it in, attach a written quote, and give it to them. Then you have a month to agree. If you can’t, either of you can apply to QCAT, the tribunal that settles everyday disputes in Queensland, within two months of sending the notice. We set the whole process out on the Queensland page. 7
Where Council does come in is everything else, and it doesn’t stop mattering once the fence is up. The 2 m approval limit applied before you built and still applies after. If your street is one Council protects for its older look, the 1.2 m front-fence rule applied too. And the by-law about barbed wire, razor wire and electric fences is about what your fence is made of, whenever it went up. 1 2
If your block is a corner, a heritage street or an odd shape, look your address up on Council’s City Plan Online map before you order materials. 6
What about retaining walls in Brisbane?
A wall that holds back soil isn’t a fence, and Council treats it separately. You can build one up to 1 m without approval, counting the wall plus the soil behind it. 5
Retaining walls — approvals Retaining walls run on their own 1 m rule Brisbane City Council — Retaining walls 5
[You can] construct retaining walls up to one metre, requiring fill or excavation, in accordance with an accepted industry standard publication […] the total height of the wall and of the fill or cut retained by the wall is no more than one metre above the wall's natural ground surface.
Put a fence on top and both rules apply at once. The wall has to stay under its own 1 m, and the whole lot added together counts towards the fence’s 2 m. 1
Common questions
How high can a fence be in Brisbane without council approval?
Up to 2 m, measured from the natural ground rather than from the top of any soil you have added. Watch how Council adds it up, though. Screens, fences and retaining walls all count together. So a 1 m retaining wall with a 1.5 m fence on top is 2.5 m, and that needs building approval. 1
Is there a 1.2 m front fence limit in Brisbane?
Only on some streets. Council keeps a map of areas it protects for their older look, mostly the pre-war timber-and-tin streets. If your place is on that map, any fence in front of the house is capped at 1.2 m and has to be partly see-through. That includes the stretch of side fence that runs forward past the house towards the street. Everywhere else in Brisbane, the ordinary 2 m applies. Type your address into Council's City Plan Online map to find out which you are. 3
Is there a 1.8 m fence limit in Brisbane?
Not if you live in a house. That number comes from the rules for building units and townhouses, and even there it is a minimum rather than a limit: those developments have to put up at least 1.8 m along the side and back. Fencing websites quote it as if it capped everybody. It doesn't. 4
Can I build a 2 m fence in Brisbane?
Usually yes, and without building approval, as long as nothing underneath it pushes the total over 2 m and Council has no extra rules for your street. If the fence doubles as a pool barrier, different rules apply whatever its height. 1
Can you have barbed wire on a fence in Brisbane?
Not on a fence next to a public place, unless your land is in an industrial or rural area. Razor wire and similar hazardous materials are banned even more tightly, with only industrial land excepted. In an industrial area the wire has to sit at least 2 m above the footpath, or behind a physical barrier. 2
Are electric fences legal in Brisbane?
Only with a guard in front of them. An electric fence has to be separated from the boundary by a second, non-electric fence at least 1.2 m high, built so nobody can climb through it, and sitting at least 1 m away from the electric one. An equivalent barrier can do the same job. 2
Who pays for a boundary fence in Brisbane?
Council has nothing to do with this one. It is state law. You and your neighbour go halves on a basic fence, which Queensland puts at between 0.5 m and 1.8 m. Those numbers decide what your neighbour has to chip in for, not how tall you are allowed to build. Want something taller? Build it, and pay the extra yourself. 7
How high can a retaining wall be in Brisbane?
A wall that holds back soil is not a fence, and it has its own limit. You can build one up to 1 m without approval, counting the wall plus the soil behind it. Put a fence on top and both rules apply at once: the wall has to stay under its own 1 m, and the whole lot added together counts towards the fence's 2 m. 5
Every source on this page
The small numbered marks throughout this page point to this list — 1 means source 1 below.
- Brisbane City Council — Boundary fences: approvals and requirements
- Health, Safety and Amenity Local Law 2021 (Brisbane City Council), ss 38–40 (made 30 November 2021, commenced 1 February 2022)
- Brisbane City Plan 2014 — Traditional building character (design) overlay code, s 8.2.22, AO17 and AO20 — text as at 27 November 2025, one version behind the current City Plan
- Brisbane City Plan 2014 — Multiple Dwelling Code, PO37/AO37 — text as at City Plan v19.00, 1 May 2020; not reconfirmed against the current version
- Brisbane City Council — Retaining walls
- Brisbane City Council — Find an adopted amendment (current City Plan version), City Plan v36.00/2026, effective 12 June 2026
- Queensland Government — Your responsibility as a fence owner
© Brisbane City Council 2016. Sourced from brisbane.qld.gov.au at 30 Aug 2026: https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/building-and-planning/getting-started-on-your-project/residential-projects/boundary-fence. Licensed under CC BY 4.0. Reproduced without changes. This is not an official version. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence.
© Brisbane City Council 2016. Sourced from brisbane.qld.gov.au at 28 Aug 2026: https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/content/dam/brisbanecitycouncil/corpwebsite/laws-and-permits-/documents/health-safety-and-amenity-local-law-2021.pdf.coredownload.pdf. Licensed under CC BY 4.0. Reproduced without changes. This is not an official version. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence.
© State of Queensland. Sourced from cityplan.brisbane.qld.gov.au at 28 Aug 2026. Reproduced without changes. This is not an official version.
© Brisbane City Council 2016. Sourced from brisbane.qld.gov.au at 28 Aug 2026: https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/building-and-planning/getting-started-on-your-project/residential-projects/retaining-wall. Licensed under CC BY 4.0. Reproduced without changes. This is not an official version. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence.
Fence heights rules nearby
- Queensland (state rules) Up to 2 m
Page history
Every change to this page
- 30 Aug 2026
- First published. Current to Brisbane's Health, Safety and Amenity Local Law 2021 and Council's fencing guidance. Two City Plan rules are shown at their most recent readable versions, dated on the page, because Council publishes the current text only through its address map.