Understanding Canadian Fence Building Regulations (Part 1)

When building a fence, some of the common legal questions that arise are: who owns the fence? Where can you build the fence? Who pays for the fence and maintenance?

“Good Fences Make Good Neighbours” written by Brian Madigan is a useful article to read, if you are interested in understanding Canadian rules and regulations of building fences.

To answer the previous questions, The Line Fences Act provides something of a solution. The Act provides a solution to resolve disputes, as follows:


1) One party will be given authority to construct the fence,

2) The fence will be located along the boundary of the two properties,

3) The fence will be jointly owned,

4) Each owner will have to pay a certain percentage of the cost (not necessarily 50%), and

5) Both owners will have to share in the maintenance.

Madigan brings up an interesting point, what happens if your neighbour wants a 3ft fence and you want a 6ft fence? What happens? Well, the Act are likely to conclude that if you want a 6ft fence, then your neighbour only need to contribute half the cost of the cheaper fence at 3ft. Therefore, you will need to pay majority of your 6ft fence. However, another solution is to pay the entire cost of the fence and build it on your property (not on the property line), maintain it, and preserve your rights to the fence.



Keep in mind that, although fences mark boundaries, they do not mark property boundaries between neighbours. If your fence is built on your neighbour’s property, by law, it can be taken down with proof of property line.

Original Published content: Fence Vancouver