Last updated September 28, 2026 · By All County Fence · Installing fences across Orange and Seminole counties since 2004
The City of Orlando does not require a permit for most residential fences. If your fence is on a one or two-family property, is six feet or less, and is built from wood, vinyl, chain link, aluminum, wrought iron or plant material, no permit is needed. Eleven specific conditions do trigger one, and the rules change entirely once you leave city limits.
Key takeaways
- No permit is required inside Orlando when all of these are true: one or two-family residential property, six feet or less in height, an exempt material, outside a Historic Preservation district, and compliant with Orlando Code Chapter 58 Part 5B(5).
- Height limits: 4 ft in front yards, 6 ft in side, street-side and rear yards. Street-side drops to 4 ft where it abuts a neighbor’s front yard. Side and rear can reach 8 ft against commercial or industrial property.
- Powered and vehicular gates always require a permit, even on a fence that would otherwise be exempt.
- Gates across a driveway must be set back at least 20 feet from the property line.
- A fence serving as a required pool barrier needs a permit, and must meet Fla. Stat. § 515.29.
- An exempt fence is not an unregulated fence. It still has to comply with City Code, and with your HOA.
- Outside Orlando city limits these rules do not apply. Winter Park, Winter Garden, unincorporated Orange County and all of Seminole County set their own.
Do I need a permit to build a fence in Orlando?
Usually not. The City of Orlando exempts a fence from permitting when every one of the following is true:
- The fence is on a one or two-family residential property
- The fence is six feet or less, measured from established normal building site grade
- The fence is not in a Historic Preservation district
- The material is one of: wood, plastic or vinyl, chain link, aluminum, wrought iron, or plant material
- The fence complies with any Special Plan (SP) overlay, Planned Development (PD) district rules, and Orlando Code Chapter 58 Part 5B(5)
That covers the large majority of residential fence projects in the city, including most replacements.
One thing homeowners consistently miss: the City is explicit that all fences must comply with City Code even when no permit is required. Skipping the permit does not mean skipping the height limits, the setbacks or the sight-visibility rules. And if you’re in an HOA, HOA approval is still required regardless of what the City does.
When does Orlando require a fence permit?
A permit is required if any one of these applies:
- The property is commercial, or residential with three or more dwelling units
- The fence is taller than six feet
- The fence is in a Historic Preservation district (Chapter 62 applies and Appearance Review is required)
- The material is concrete, masonry or block, including posts, or includes concrete or rebar reinforcement
- The fence is used as a required pool or spa barrier
- The fence is on or near any public easement shown on a property survey
- The property has an alley at the rear
- The fence includes vehicular gates or powered gates (electric, solar, or otherwise)
- The fence is associated with a demolition permit or the demolition of a structure
- The fence is required under FBC Chapter 33, Safeguards During Construction
- The property is in a floodplain or floodway
Numbers 8 and 11 are the two that catch people out most often in Central Florida. A standard six-foot wood privacy fence needs no permit, but add an electric sliding gate at the driveway and the whole project becomes permitted work.
On powered gates: All County Fence installs fences and gates. We do not install electric or automatic gate operators. On projects that call for one, we build and hang the gate and bring in a licensed operator specialist for the automation. Ask us during your estimate and we’ll tell you honestly what falls inside our scope and what doesn’t.
What is the maximum fence height allowed in Orlando?
Four feet in front yards. Six feet in side, street-side and rear yards. All heights are measured from established normal building site grade, not from wherever the ground happens to sit after landscaping.
Two exceptions worth knowing:
- A street-side yard drops to four feet where that yard abuts your neighbor’s front yard.
- A side or rear fence may go to eight feet where it abuts commercial or industrial property.
Your fence must sit on or inside your property line, and it cannot block corner or driveway sight-visibility triangles. If your driveway has a gate across it, that gate must be set back at least 20 feet from the property line so a vehicle can pull clear of the road while it opens.
Anything above six feet needs a permit or a variance.
Can my neighbor put up a 7-foot fence?
Not in an Orlando residential side or rear yard without a permit, and not without a height variance. The six-foot cap applies to the fence, regardless of who is paying for it.
If a neighbor’s fence exceeds six feet on a one or two-family lot and was never permitted, that’s a matter for City code enforcement rather than something to settle over the fence line. Where the property line actually falls is a separate question and a civil one between owners. Pull your survey before you argue about either.
Which side of the fence faces my neighbor?
The City’s guidance is direct: the finished side of a wood fence should face outward. The posts and rails face in, toward your property. This is the single most common source of neighbor friction on a new privacy fence, and it’s worth settling before the posts go in rather than after.
Do these rules apply outside Orlando city limits?
No, and this is where most online fence permit advice goes wrong. Everything above is City of Orlando code. It applies inside city limits only.
Much of Central Florida is not in the City of Orlando. Winter Park, Winter Garden, Maitland, Apopka and Casselberry are separate municipalities with their own codes. Unincorporated Orange County and all of Seminole County are governed separately again. An address with an “Orlando, FL” mailing address is very often not in the City of Orlando.
Check which jurisdiction you’re actually in before assuming the city exemption covers you. If you’re not sure, we’ll confirm it as part of your estimate. We’ve worked across both Orange and Seminole counties since 2004.
What does Florida law require for a pool fence?
Florida Statute § 515.29 sets the barrier requirements for residential pools. The barrier must:
- Be at least four feet high measured on the outside
- Have no gaps, openings, indentations or protrusions that would let a young child crawl under, squeeze through or climb over
- Be separate from the yard fence, unless that yard fence sits at the pool’s edge and meets every barrier requirement on its own
- Sit far enough back from the water’s edge that a child who gets through it does not immediately fall in
The requirement most often missed is the gate. Gates that give access to the pool must open outward, away from the pool, be self-closing, and have a self-latching locking device. A standard gravity latch on an inward-swinging gate does not comply.
In Orlando, a fence used as a required pool or spa barrier triggers a building permit even where a six-foot fence of the same material would not.
Can I put a fence on an easement?
Sometimes, but it triggers a permit in Orlando, and it carries a risk worth understanding. The utility or municipality holding the easement keeps the right to remove your fence to get access, and they do not have to compensate you for it or put it back.
Check your survey for easements and their stated purpose before you finalize a fence line, not after the posts are set. Easements are one of the reasons we ask to see your survey during the estimate.
What do I need to apply for an Orlando fence permit?
For a fence, you need a site plan, which can be drawn on top of a copy of your property survey. A survey should already show the legal description, property lines and dimensions, easements and their purpose, adjacent streets, buildings and structures with setbacks, and driveways, patios and decks.
You add the proposed location and height of the fence to it.
For walls rather than fences, you’ll need electronically signed construction drawings instead.
Two extras that catch people: fences in a historic district need a Certificate of Appropriateness, and if any trees have to come out to run the fence line, that’s a separate tree permit.
Properties zoned Planned Development (PD) may have their own rules on height, material, location and style. Orlando’s Planning department will provide a visual fence diagram for your property type if you contact them.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a permit to replace an existing fence in Orlando?
Usually no, as long as the new fence is on a one or two-family property, is six feet or less, and uses an exempt material. The exemption applies to the fence you are building, not the one you are removing. If the replacement is taller, masonry, includes a powered gate, or serves as a pool barrier, you need a permit. More on fence replacement.
Does an exempt fence still have to follow the rules?
Yes. The City states plainly that all fences must comply with City Code even when no permit is required. The exemption removes the paperwork, not the height limits, setbacks or sight-triangle rules. HOA approval is also still required.
How deep should fence posts be set in Orlando’s sandy soil?
We dig two feet deep and set every post in a full 50 lb bag of concrete mix, which comes to about 60 lbs in the ground once water is added. Two feet is the standard burial depth for a six-foot fence; the number that actually varies between contractors is how much concrete goes in each hole. Ask for both in writing, because neither is something you can inspect once the fence is up.
Who owns the fence between two properties?
Ownership follows the property line. A fence built entirely inside your line is yours. A fence straddling the line is generally shared. Disputes about where the line actually sits are civil matters between owners, not City code matters. Pull your survey first.
Do I need a permit for a fence in Winter Park or Winter Garden?
Those are separate municipalities with their own codes, so Orlando’s exemption does not apply. Same for unincorporated Orange County and all of Seminole County. We confirm the jurisdiction as part of every estimate.
Do you handle the permit for me?
Yes. On jobs that require a permit, All County Fence pulls it and the fee is included in your quote. You don’t deal with the City. Most residential fences don’t need one, and we’ll tell you which category yours falls into during the estimate.
How long does a fence job take from quote to installation?
About four weeks, most of which is material ordering rather than time on site. A permitted job can add jurisdiction review time on top of that.
How much does a fence cost in Orlando?
Our installed prices run from about $13 per linear foot for galvanized chain link to about $40 for ornamental aluminum. See our full Orlando fence price guide.
Not sure whether your fence needs a permit?
We’ve been installing fences across Orange and Seminole counties since 2004. Tell us where the fence is going and we’ll tell you which jurisdiction you’re in, whether it’s permitted work, and what it will cost. Compare materials on our fence styles page.
Get a free estimate or call (407) 885-5520