Wicomico County, MD Fence Regulations: Retaining Walls (2026)

2, Work exempt from permit, to list the specific improvements the County will let owners build without first applying to the Chief Building Official. ' That measurement point, from the footing rather than from grade, means a wall with a partly buried footing can end up taller than four feet above the visible ground and still fall under the height cap, since the code measures the whole wall face. The surcharge and liquid-impoundment exceptions mean a four-foot or shorter wall still needs a permit if it holds back a sloped load above it or contains flammable or combustible liquids in the fire code's Class I, II, or IIIA categories, because those conditions raise the engineering stakes regardless of height.

Any retaining wall over four feet, or one that falls into either exception, is treated like other construction under § 117-3D: the owner, authorized agent, or contractor must apply to the Chief Building Official and obtain a permit before building it. The County's parallel International Residential Code modifications at § 117-5 do not list a separate retaining wall exemption, so the four-foot threshold in § 117-3E governs residential retaining walls built in unincorporated Wicomico County as well.