Fences in the Netherlands: Schutting Rules, Height and Distances

Putting up a schutting, a fence, between two Dutch gardens raises three different questions that people often run together: whether you may enclose your plot at all, how high the fence may be, and whether you can make your neighbour share a boundary wall. Each has a different answer in a different place.

The right to enclose and the right to a shared dividing wall come from Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 5. The maximum height, by contrast, is not in the civil code at all: it comes from public-law building rules and from your own municipality, which is why no page can give you a single national figure.

This page separates the three questions: the right to enclose under artikel 5:48 BW, the permit reality on height, the planting distances in artikel 5:42 BW, and the right to demand a shared scheidsmuur under artikel 5:49 BW.

Information last verified on 22 July 2026. This page provides general legal information about Netherlands law and does not constitute legal advice in an individual case.

The right to enclose your plot: artikel 5:48 BW

The plainest rule comes first. Artikel 5:48 BW provides, in a single line, that the owner of a plot is entitled to enclose it (De eigenaar van een erf is bevoegd dit af te sluiten).

That is the legal basis for building a fence or planting a hedge around your own land. It does not, on its own, tell you how high you may build or how close to the boundary you may plant. Those limits come from other articles and from public-law permit rules, set out below.

For the record of what counts as a wall, artikel 5:43 BW defines a muur for these purposes as any opaque barrier (ondoorzichtige afsluiting) of stone, wood or other suitable material. That is why a solid wooden schutting is treated as a muur for the dividing-wall rule, and not only a brick wall.

How high can a fence be, and why there is no single answer

There is no single national limit a page can quote for neighbour noise or for fence height. Neighbour noise is governed by the local municipal ordinance (the Algemene Plaatselijke Verordening, APV) together with the civil nuisance test of artikel 5:37 and artikel 6:162 BW; fence rules combine artikel 5:42, 5:48 and 5:49 BW with the APV and the omgevingsvergunning. Because the APV differs per municipality, a nationwide figure would be wrong somewhere, so check your own gemeente.

The reason is structural. The two-metre figure people quote is a public-law permit threshold, not a civil-code rule, and it is qualified by the local omgevingsplan and the municipal ordinance (APV). As a common national starting point, a fence up to two metres is often allowed without a permit behind the front line of the house, and up to one metre in the zone toward the public road, but these are the permit-free (vergunningvrij) defaults and your gemeente can regulate them differently.

Because these height thresholds sit in national building rules under the Omgevingswet and are then overlaid by the local omgevingsplan and APV, the only safe answer to how high a fence may be is to check the rules for your own address, for example through the municipality or the national Omgevingsloket. A fence that exceeds the permit-free height is not forbidden outright; it simply needs an environmental-and-building permit (omgevingsvergunning).

Planting distances: artikel 5:42 BW

How close a tree or hedge may stand to the boundary is fixed by the civil code, in artikel 5:42 BW:

Planting distances are fixed by artikel 5:42 BW: a tree must stand at least two metres from the boundary, measured from the centre of its foot, and a shrub or hedge at least half a metre, unless a local ordinance or a local custom allows a smaller distance.

In practice that means a tree must keep two metres from the boundary, measured from the centre of its foot, and a shrub or hedge half a metre, unless a local ordinance or a local custom (plaatselijke gewoonte) permits a smaller distance. A planting that stands too close can in principle be required to be moved or removed.

There is a built-in exception in artikel 5:42 lid 3 BW: a neighbour cannot object to a tree, shrub or hedge that does not rise higher than the dividing wall (scheidsmuur) between the plots. Overhanging branches and encroaching roots are a separate matter, handled under artikel 5:44 BW and covered on the page on overhanging branches.

Demanding a shared dividing wall: artikel 5:49 BW

Artikel 5:49 BW gives neighbours in built-up areas a distinct right. The Dutch text reads:

1 Ieder der eigenaars van aangrenzende erven in een aaneengebouwd gedeelte van een gemeente kan te allen tijde vorderen dat de andere eigenaar ertoe meewerkt, dat op de grens van de erven een scheidsmuur van twee meter hoogte wordt opgericht, voor zover een verordening of een plaatselijke gewoonte de wijze of de hoogte der afscheiding niet anders regelt. De eigenaars dragen in de kosten van de afscheiding voor gelijke delen bij. 2 Het vorige lid is niet toepasselijk, indien een der erven een openbare weg of een openbaar water is.

Two features matter. First, the right applies only in an aaneengebouwd gedeelte van een gemeente, the built-up or contiguously-built part of a municipality, and not where one of the plots is a public road or public water. Second, within that area either owner may demand at any time that the other co-operate in erecting a scheidsmuur of two metres on the boundary, and the cost is shared equally (voor gelijke delen), unless a local ordinance or custom regulates the manner or height differently.

It is important to keep this apart from the permit question. The two metres in artikel 5:49 BW is the height of a shared wall you may demand, not a ceiling on how high a fence may be. A free-standing fence, wall or hedge with the boundary running lengthwise underneath it becomes common property (mandelig) under artikel 5:62 BW, so both neighbours own it and share its maintenance.

Building on the boundary or on your own land

Where you build changes who owns the fence. A fence you put up entirely on your own land, inside the boundary, remains yours, and the height and permit rules above still apply to it. A free-standing fence or wall with the boundary running lengthwise underneath it becomes mandelig under artikel 5:62 BW, jointly owned by both neighbours.

That difference has practical consequences for repairs and for later changes. A mandelige afscheiding cannot simply be altered or removed by one owner acting alone, whereas a fence wholly on your own side is yours to maintain. If you are unsure exactly where the boundary runs before you build, the registered line can be re-marked, which is covered on the page on property boundaries.

Frequently Asked Questions

How high may a fence be in the Netherlands?

There is no single national maximum. As a common starting point, a fence up to two metres is often permit-free behind the front of the house and up to one metre in the zone toward the public road, but those are the vergunningvrij defaults under national building rules and your municipality can regulate the height differently through its APV and omgevingsplan. The only reliable answer is to check the rules for your own address before you build.

Do I need a permit to put up a schutting?

Artikel 5:48 BW gives you the right to enclose your plot, but whether you need an omgevingsvergunning depends on public-law rules. Within the permit-free height for your location no permit is needed; a fence that exceeds it is not forbidden outright, it simply requires an omgevingsvergunning. Because the thresholds are overlaid by the local omgevingsplan and APV, confirm the position with your gemeente or through the national Omgevingsloket.

Can I force my neighbour to share the cost of a fence between our gardens?

In a built-up area, yes, to a degree. Artikel 5:49 BW lets either owner in an aaneengebouwd gedeelte van een gemeente demand that the other co-operate in erecting a dividing wall (scheidsmuur) of two metres on the boundary, with the cost shared equally. It does not apply where one of the plots is a public road or public water, and a local ordinance or custom can regulate the manner or height differently.

How close to the boundary can my neighbour plant a tree or hedge?

Artikel 5:42 BW sets the distances: a tree must stand at least two metres from the boundary, measured from the centre of its foot, and a shrub or hedge at least half a metre, unless a local ordinance or custom allows a smaller distance. There is an exception in artikel 5:42 lid 3 BW for a tree, shrub or hedge that does not rise higher than the dividing wall (scheidsmuur) between the plots.

Who owns a fence built on the boundary line?

A free-standing fence, wall or hedge with the boundary running lengthwise underneath it becomes common property (mandelig) under artikel 5:62 BW, so both neighbours own it and share its maintenance. A fence you build entirely on your own side of the boundary remains yours alone.

Is the two metre rule a maximum height or a right to a shared wall?

The two metres in artikel 5:49 BW is the height of a shared dividing wall (scheidsmuur) that a neighbour in a built-up area may demand, not a ceiling on how high a fence may be. The permit-free height of a fence is a separate, public-law question set by national building rules and the local municipality. Keeping the two apart avoids a common mistake.

What can I do if my neighbour's fence is too high?

First check whether it exceeds the permit-free height for your location under the local APV and omgevingsplan; a fence above that height needs an omgevingsvergunning, and enforcement of the public-law rules is a matter for the gemeente. A civil dispute about a shared boundary wall, by contrast, is decided by the rechtbank, since neighbour law is routed to the courts by the value of the claim.