Ajax fence permits & approvals · Reformity Inc.Fence Permit Drawings in Ajax
No permit is needed for an ordinary residential fence in Ajax that stays within Fence By-law 42-2025: 2.0 m in side and rear yards and 1.0 m in front yards. A pool enclosure needs a swimming pool enclosure permit, and a fence on a designated heritage property needs a heritage permit unless the Town waives it in writing.
We prepare your fence drawings, and when a permit, variance or heritage approval is needed, we submit the application to the Town of Ajax for you.
Do you need a permit?
Fence permit rules in Ajax.
An ordinary fence in Ajax needs no permit; Fence By-law 42-2025 sets the limits instead: 2.0 m in side and rear yards and 1.0 m in front yards, measured from the ground at each post. On a lot that falls toward a creek valley, that means checking every post, and a corner lot keeps its 4.5 m daylighting triangle clear. Pool enclosures need a swimming pool enclosure permit, and fences on designated heritage properties, including those in Pickering Village, the town's one heritage conservation district, need a heritage permit unless the Town waives it in writing. For a standard fence, our drawing is a layout for your approval.
Checked against the Town of Ajax's own by-laws and pages in November 2026. Rules change, so we confirm them for your address before we draw.
Height limits by yard
Residential fences can be up to 2.0 m above grade in side and rear yards and 1.0 m in front yards. Grade means the ground below the fence at each post, so on a slope every post is measured on its own.
Ajax Fence By-law 42-2025, 2026 consolidation (PDF)Corner lots and sightlines
Fences are barred from a corner lot's daylighting triangle (4.5 m along each street line in residential zones) and anywhere they block drivers' or pedestrians' view. If the larger usable yard is the interior side yard, the front-yard fence beside it can be 2.0 m.
Ajax Fence By-law 42-2025, 2026 consolidation (PDF)Heritage properties need permits
A fence wholly or partly on an individually designated (Part IV) or district (Part V) heritage property needs a heritage permit before it's built, altered or removed, unless the Town waives that in writing. That includes a division fence on a heritage property's boundary.
Ajax Fence By-law 42-2025, 2026 consolidation (PDF)Pickering Village fence rules
The district plan requires a heritage permit for new or extended fences visible from the street and exempts fencing not readily visible from it. Existing historical fences are to be preserved, new ones should respect historic designs, and traditional front-yard fencing is usually fairly low.
Pickering Village Heritage Conservation District Plan (PDF)Fences beside Town land
A fence separating Town-owned land, other than a road or road reserve, must be built to the Town's Engineering Design Criteria and Standard Drawings Manual. Altering an existing one follows the Town's Work Instruction, and no fence may sit wholly on Town land.
Ajax Fence By-law 42-2025, 2026 consolidation (PDF)
What the city asks for
The Ajax application.
Issued by: No Town permit for an ordinary fence; heritage permits are reviewed by the Town of Ajax's Heritage Planning staff. We put the package together, submit it and keep you posted.
Documents
- For a heritage permit: drawings and elevations showing the proposed changes
- Material samples or specifications (brochures)
- Photos of the existing property, and of neighbouring buildings or the streetscape if required
- Site plan or survey showing existing and proposed structures and setbacks to property lines
- Certified arborist report if removing a tree over 200 mm caliper at 1.5 m
- Results of any historical research, such as historic photos
How it goes
- 1We measure from your survey and check every post against the 1.0 m and 2.0 m limits and the daylighting triangle.
- 2We draw a layout for your approval: fence line, post spacing, heights and gates. It's our drawing; the Town doesn't require one for an ordinary fence.
- 3On a designated property or in Pickering Village, we pre-consult Heritage Planning staff, as the Town advises, to confirm whether a heritage permit is needed.
- 4Where one is needed, we prepare the drawings, material specifications, photos and site plan for the application to Heritage staff.
- 5Beside a park or other Town land, we build to the Town's engineering fence standard and follow its Work Instruction when altering an existing fence there.
- Processing time
- No permit for an ordinary fence. Heritage permits: minor applications that meet the guidelines and were pre-consulted may be approved in one to two business days; the Town must decide within 90 days.
- Inspections
- None for an ordinary fence. Municipal law enforcement officers enforce the Fence By-law and can issue a Work Order to correct a contravention.
Pool enclosure fence — sheet 1 — Elevation, board-on-board section and post-footing detail. From a real Reformity permit drawing set, client details removed. Click to enlarge.
Pool enclosure fence — sheet 3
Fence permit drawing
Permit drawings included
We prepare and submit your permit drawings.
Fence layout, elevation and post-footing details drawn to the Town of Ajax's rules, and submitted with the pool enclosure, variance or heritage application when one is needed.
- Dimensions to your lot lines
- Materials, sizes and spacing
- Footing and base sections
- Code notes for the inspector
Fencing · real projects
Recent fencing jobs in and around Ajax.
Real Reformity jobs from our project files. Customer addresses are never published.
Ajax fence permit FAQ
Quick answers.
Not for an ordinary residential fence that meets the Fence By-law: 2.0 m in side and rear yards, 1.0 m in front yards, and nothing in a corner lot's daylighting triangle. A pool enclosure needs a swimming pool enclosure permit, and a fence on a designated heritage property needs a heritage permit unless the Town waives it in writing.
The Fence By-law lifts the 2.0 m limit only for chain-link tennis court fences, noise barriers required by a government agency, Town-approved golf safety netting on lots next to or within 25 m of a golf course, and fences beside industrial, commercial, railway or utility land where the neighbouring owner builds or maintains the fence. Separately, a privacy screen at least 0.6 m off the side and rear lot lines can reach 2.5 m, with all screens on the lot totalling no more than 6 m in length.
If it's visible from the street, yes: the district plan lists new or extended fences visible from the street among the work that needs one. The plan exempts fencing that isn't readily visible from the street, but the Fence By-law requires a heritage permit for any fence on a district property unless the Town waives it in writing, so check with Heritage Planning staff first, as the Town advises. There's no fee.
Send the form on this page or call 437-241-6287. We reply within one business day, visit to measure, prepare the drawings for the Town of Ajax, submit the application and give you a fixed written price for the work.
Let us handle the Ajax permit.
We measure, draw it to the Town of Ajax's rules, submit the application and build to the approved plan. One business-day reply.