Fence Rules & Height Limits
Height limits, permits, and allowed materials for building a fence.
Fences in Vaudreuil-Dorion are capped at different heights depending on where they sit on your lot, need a permit before you build, and have specific rules about materials and placement near hydrants or retaining walls. These rules come from the City's current Zoning Bylaw (no 1872) and Permits and Certificates Bylaw (no 1871), both in force since November 12, 2025.
Maximum height by location on your lot
In the front setback ("marge avant"), fences are capped at 1.25 m - or 0.9 m within the visibility triangle at a corner lot. In the secondary front setback (corner lots), the cap is 1.5 m. Everywhere else - the rest of the front yard, side yards, and the back yard - the maximum is 1.85 m. Corner and through lots have some extra allowances up to 1.85 m in the secondary front margin under specific conditions.
Retaining walls and tennis courts
A fence within 1 m of a retaining wall is capped at 1.20 m in the front yard, or 2 m in side/rear yards. A private tennis-court fence is allowed up to 3.7 m, but only if it's at least 75% see-through.
Permit required
You need a "certificat d'autorisation" before installing a fence, hedge, or retaining wall. The application has to specify the location, dimensions, and materials, plus a site plan.
Service de l'urbanisme
- 2000, rue Émile-Bouchard, Vaudreuil-Dorion, QC J7V 1A5
- Mon–Thu 8:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m. & 1:00–4:45 p.m.; Fri 8:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.
Allowed and prohibited materials
Allowed: planed, painted, stained, or pressure-treated wood; natural rustic wood poles; metal; PVC; aluminum; concrete; composite; glass; masonry; and chain-link (though chain-link is banned in the front yard unless it's plastic-coated or screened by a hedge).
Prohibited everywhere: chicken wire or wire mesh, unenameled sheet metal, plywood or particleboard panels, plastic-imitation panels, and barbed wire.
Where you can't put a fence
A fence, hedge, or retaining wall can't be within 1 m of a fire hydrant, and can't encroach on the street right-of-way.
Pool fences are a separate set of rules
If the fence is enclosing a pool, different and more specific rules apply (minimum height, gap size, self-locking gates, etc.) - see this site's Swimming Pools page rather than the general limits above.
Shared fences with a neighbour
Research for this page didn't find any provision in the City's zoning or permits bylaws about cost-sharing or decision-making for a fence built on a shared property line. That's likely governed by the Quebec Civil Code's rules on boundary works (articles 1002-1008) rather than a municipal bylaw - confirm with the City or a legal source before assuming either neighbour can be compelled to pay.
Verify with the City: Details in this section were unclear or unconfirmed from a direct primary source during research. Confirm with the City before relying on the specifics above.