San Jose, CA Animal Ordinances: Beekeeping (2026)

Under San Jose Municipal Code § 7.60.510, it is unlawful to keep or maintain any hive of bees on any lot or parcel in the city without first obtaining a permit from the city's animal care and services administrator. Permits run twelve months and require the applicant to declare compliance with the placement criteria in § 7.60.570: no more than two hives per lot, hives set back at least ten feet from side property lines and fifty feet from any neighboring dwelling, oriented toward a house, and surrounded by a six-foot fence. Wild swarms of bees are separately banned under § 7.60.500.