FENCE RULES – UNION (COUNTY), GEORGIA
OVERVIEW
Residential fences are permitted on private property within Union County, subject to local regulations. This page applies to properties in the unincorporated areas of Union County; incorporated municipalities may regulate fences under their own ordinances.
Union County does not publish a consolidated residential fence ordinance. Local fence-related rules appear across the Code of Union County, Georgia, the Union County Building & Development Department building-permit and land-disturbance materials, the county’s environmental and floodplain chapters, E-911 address-numbering rules, and animal-control enclosure provisions.
This page focuses on typical single-family residential fencing. If the jurisdiction’s adopted materials do not state a specific limit or requirement, this page notes that the code does not specify one.
Compiled From the Code of Union County, Georgia; Union County Building & Development Department building-permit and land-disturbance materials; the Union County Land-Disturbing Activity Permit Application; and Union County GIS/flood map references, as of June 2026.
GOVERNANCE
Union County is governed by the Union County Commissioner. The county code is organized as the Code of Union County, Georgia.
The Union County Building & Development Department administers building permits, building inspections, land-disturbance permits, and environmental concerns related to land development.
Union County does not publish a standard single-family residential zoning fence table. For residential fences, the most relevant local materials are the building-permit page, Chapter 30 environmental rules, Chapter 34 floodplain rules, E-911 structure-numbering requirements, and animal-control provisions when a fence is used as a required animal enclosure.
PERMIT AND APPROVAL REQUIREMENTS
• Building Permit: Union County’s published building-permit materials list fences among projects that do not require a building permit.
• Separate Fence Permit / Zoning Permit: Union County does not publish a separate residential fence permit, zoning permit, development certificate, or all-fences approval rule for standard residential fences.
• Land-Disturbance Permit: A fence that does not require a building permit may still be part of a land-disturbing project. Union County publishes a land-disturbance permit process for projects disturbing 1 acre or more or located in a planned development recorded on or after August 1, 2000.
• Minor Fence-Related Disturbance: Chapter 30 exempts minor land-disturbing activities such as fences when they result in minor soil erosion. Fence work that exceeds that minor-disturbance context or is part of a larger regulated project must be evaluated under the land-disturbance rules.
• Erosion and Sediment Control Plan: When a Land-Disturbing Activity Permit is required, the application requires an Erosion and Sediment Control Plan.
• Floodplain Development: Chapter 34 requires a development permit before development begins in a mapped special flood hazard area. For fence work, this matters when the project involves development, construction, fill, grading, excavation, or similar site work within a special flood hazard area.
• Animal-Control Enclosures: If a fence is used as a required enclosure for a classified dog or other animal-control requirement, the animal-control chapter applies separately from ordinary yard-fence rules.
FENCE PLACEMENT RULES
• Property Lines: The ordinance does not state a setback requirement for standard residential fences from property lines; however, fences must be located entirely on the owner’s property and must not encroach into rights-of-way or easements.
• Roads, Rights-of-Way, and Easements: The code does not specify a fence-specific setback from county road rights-of-way or private easements for standard residential fences.
• Address Visibility: Fences, landscaping, shrubs, vegetation, canopies, lamp-posts, and other structures must not obstruct the required structure number from view from the road or street.
• Land Disturbance and Stream Buffers: For non-exempt land-disturbing activity, Chapter 30 includes stream-buffer and erosion-control rules. The code establishes a 25-foot buffer along state waters and a 50-foot buffer along trout streams, subject to the ordinance’s stated exceptions and variance provisions.
• Water Supply Watershed / River Corridor / Wetland / Mountain Protection Areas: Chapter 30 contains separate environmental protections for the Nottely River water supply watershed, river corridor, wetlands, and mountain-protection areas. These provisions matter when fence work involves regulated land disturbance, clearing, grading, tree removal, fill, excavation, or work in protected mapped areas.
• Flood Hazard Areas: Chapter 34 applies to areas of special flood hazard. Fence work in a mapped flood hazard area may require floodplain review when it qualifies as development or involves construction, fill, grading, excavation, or similar site work.
• Utility Safety: Georgia law requires notice to the Utilities Protection Center, commonly known as Georgia 811, before excavation where Georgia’s underground utility damage-prevention law applies. For fence projects that involve mechanized digging, including mechanized post-hole excavation, the locate request effective date must be not less than two (2) business days and not more than eight (8) business days after the request is received, and work under that locate request may not begin more than 30 calendar days after the effective date.
FENCE HEIGHT AND VISIBILITY RULES
• Maximum Height: The code does not specify a maximum height for standard residential fences.
• Yard-Based Height Limits: The code does not specify front-yard, side-yard, rear-yard, corner-lot, or driveway-based fence height limits for standard residential lots.
• Sight Triangles and Driveways: The code does not publish a standard residential fence sight-triangle, clear-vision, or driveway-visibility height standard.
• Address Visibility: A fence must not obstruct the required structure number from view from the road or street.
MATERIAL AND CONSTRUCTION LIMITS
• Standard Residential Materials: The code does not specify permitted materials, prohibited materials, opacity, finished-side orientation, or decorative-facing rules for standard residential fences.
• Barbed Wire, Razor Wire, Electric Fencing, and Security Fencing: The code does not publish a residential material rule for these fence types as applied to standard single-family residential fences.
• Animal-Control Enclosures: The animal-control chapter contains separate enclosure standards when a fence is used to confine unsterilized animals or classified dogs. For classified dogs, the enclosure must be suitable to prevent escape; when the enclosure is a fenced area, the fence must be appropriate to the breed, have sides of sufficient height, and have the bottom constructed or secured to prevent the animal from escaping over or under it.
• Electronic Fences, Tethers, Runs, and Chains: For the animal-control rule governing confinement of unsterilized animals, electronic fences, tethers, runs, and chains do not satisfy the required confinement standard.
PRIVATE RESTRICTIONS
Private restrictions operate independently from Union County’s public code requirements.
• HOAs and Covenants: HOA rules, subdivision covenants, deed restrictions, architectural-review covenants, and private agreements may be more restrictive than county rules.
• Easements and Plats: Recorded easements, subdivision plats, private access rights, utility easements, and conservation easements may limit fence location even when a county building permit is not required.
• Boundary Location: Union County’s lack of a published property-line fence setback does not determine the legal boundary of a parcel or the limits of any right-of-way or easement.
REVIEW AND ENFORCEMENT CONTEXT
Fence issues are typically reviewed during permit or approval review when required, and through complaint-based code enforcement. Examples include:
• Building-Permit Status: Standard residential fences are reviewed against Union County’s published statement that fences do not require a building permit.
• Land-Disturbance Review: Fence work that is part of non-exempt land disturbance may be reviewed through the Union County Building & Development Department land-disturbance process.
• Erosion and Sediment Control: Where a Land-Disturbing Activity Permit is required, the project may require an Erosion and Sediment Control Plan.
• Environmental Areas: Work near state waters, trout streams, the Nottely River water supply watershed, river corridors, wetlands, or mountain-protection areas may be reviewed under Chapter 30 when the fence project involves regulated land disturbance, clearing, grading, fill, excavation, or tree removal.
• Floodplain Review: Fence work in a mapped special flood hazard area may be reviewed under Chapter 34 when the work qualifies as development or includes construction, fill, grading, excavation, or similar site work.
• Address-Number Visibility: Fences may be reviewed if they obstruct required structure-number visibility from the road or street.
• Animal-Control Enclosures: Fences used as required enclosures for classified dogs or other regulated animal-control situations may be reviewed under the animal-control chapter.
• Utility Safety: Fence projects involving mechanized digging may involve Georgia 811 utility-safety requirements.
USING THIS INFORMATION
This page provides general orientation on how residential fence rules are structured and applied within Union County, based on publicly available source materials reviewed as of June 2026.
In addition to local fence rules, certain Georgia laws apply statewide. See Statewide Fence Laws in Georgia.
It is not legal advice and does not replace official ordinances, permits, surveys, or professional guidance. Rules and interpretations may change, and application may vary based on zoning district, site conditions, easements, rights-of-way, floodplain status, stormwater or drainage requirements, land-disturbance requirements, road or highway encroachment, historic district status, design-review status, rural or agricultural context, livestock context, pool-barrier use, overhead high-voltage line work, utility safety requirements, and private restrictions such as HOA covenants, deed restrictions, private agreements, or conservation easements. Before purchasing materials or beginning construction, confirm current requirements and any site-specific limitations with the Union County Building & Development Department and any applicable private agreements. If this page conflicts with official ordinances, published guidance, or direction from Union County staff, the official sources control. For legal advice or legal interpretation, consult a licensed attorney.