Kingsport, TN Fence Regulations: Fence Permit Requirements (2026)

Kingsport treats the fence permit question through the building codes adopted in section 22-96 of the Kingsport Code. The 2018 International Building Code and the 2018 International Residential Code each carry a section 105.2 (R105.2 in the residential code) listing work exempt from permit, and the Board of Mayor and Aldermen amended both. Each amendment deletes the phrase "Fences not over 7 feet (2133 mm) high" and substitutes "Fences not over 8 feet high." A fence at or under 8 feet is on the exempt list; a fence taller than 8 feet is outside the exempt phrase and falls back to the permit process run by the building official, who is in charge of the building department and enforces the building codes under section 22-49.

The permit exemption does not lift the zoning rules. Section 114-139 sets separate limits. In any residence, business or professional district, a wall or fence of not more than six feet in height can be erected or maintained within a front yard, and a wall or fence of not more than eight feet in height can be erected in any other yard. No height restriction applies to a wall or fence in any industrial district or to an approved retaining wall in any district. No barbed wire fences are permitted within residential zoning districts, though protective devices using barbed wire can be installed on walls or fences used with a commercial or industrial use in a residential district.

A fence built without regard to those limits is a zoning violation even when no permit was needed. Section 114-38 lets the zoning administrator, building official or another appropriate authority, or an adjacent or neighboring property owner who would be damaged, institute injunction, mandamus or other appropriate action for a structure erected in violation of chapter 114. Section 22-96(a) also keeps one copy of the adopted building code on file in the office of the city recorder for public inspection.