FENCE RULES – LINCOLN (COUNTY), MISSISSIPPI
OVERVIEW
Residential fences are permitted on private property within Lincoln County, subject to local regulations.
This page applies to properties in the unincorporated areas of Lincoln County; the City of Brookhaven may regulate fences under its own ordinances.
Fence-related orientation for Lincoln County comes from the Lincoln County Board of Supervisors, Lincoln County Administrator, Lincoln County Chancery Clerk, Lincoln County Engineer and Road Department, county forms and emergency-management pages, and Mississippi statewide sources. Lincoln County does not publish a consolidated local fence code, zoning ordinance, fence-permit page, building-permit page, or residential fence height, material, or placement standard in the referenced published materials.
This page focuses on typical single-family residential fencing. If the jurisdiction’s adopted code or ordinance materials do not state a specific limit or requirement, this page notes that the code does not specify one. If no local code or ordinance is available in the approved source packet, this page notes that the jurisdiction does not publish the relevant standard in the referenced published materials.
Compiled From Lincoln County Board of Supervisors, Lincoln County Administrator, Lincoln County Chancery Clerk, Lincoln County Forms, Lincoln County Engineer, Lincoln County Road Department, Lincoln County Emergency Management, City of Brookhaven Building Permits, Mississippi Secretary of State Mississippi Law, Mississippi State Fire Marshal Fire Code Enforcement, Mississippi Emergency Management Agency Floodplain Management, and Mississippi 811 Underground Facilities Damage Prevention Law as of July 2026.
GOVERNANCE
Lincoln County governs county matters through the Lincoln County Board of Supervisors. The Lincoln County Administrator is responsible for daily county administration. The county website does not publish a consolidated residential fence ordinance, zoning ordinance, building-code chapter, or fence permit application for standard residential fences in the referenced published materials.
The Lincoln County Administrator page states that the office supervises zoning and building-code ordinances adopted by the Board of Supervisors. That administrative description does not identify a specific zoning ordinance, residential building-code edition, fence ordinance, or fence approval process currently administered by the county.
The Lincoln County Chancery Clerk serves as Clerk of the Board of Supervisors and custodian of Board minutes and county records. The referenced published materials do not identify an adopted-code ordinance, State Uniform Construction Code opt-out resolution, or other recorded action establishing Lincoln County residential building-code administration.
Mississippi Construction-Code Status: No local code status published / unclear. The referenced published materials do not identify the residential code edition administered by Lincoln County, a statutory opt-out action, or a county or contracted inspection arrangement.
The Lincoln County Engineer and Road Department administer county road, bridge, drainage, culvert, ditch, and right-of-way functions. Their referenced pages do not publish a fence-specific setback, encroachment permit, driveway-visibility standard, or drainage requirement for standard residential fences.
The City of Brookhaven separately publishes municipal zoning and building-permit procedures. Those city procedures are not treated as Lincoln County requirements for property in unincorporated areas.
PERMIT AND APPROVAL REQUIREMENTS
• Building-Code Administration Context: The referenced published materials do not identify the residential building code currently administered by Lincoln County and do not publish a separate local fence permit requirement for standard residential fences.
• County Permit Publication: The official county forms index does not publish a fence permit, building permit, zoning permit, development application, floodplain permit, or right-of-way encroachment form for standard residential fence work. The absence of a listed form is not stated as a permit exemption.
• General Ordinance Administration Context: The Lincoln County Administrator page refers to supervision of zoning and building-code ordinances adopted by the Board of Supervisors, but the referenced published materials do not identify a current ordinance or explicitly state that standard residential fences require a permit, certificate, zoning approval, or development approval.
• Zoning Compliance: Building-code permit status and local construction-code administration are separate from zoning, setback, subdivision, floodplain, stormwater, drainage, right-of-way, easement, utility, and plat requirements. Confirm any applicable county conditions, setbacks, plat requirements, and site-specific limitations with the Lincoln County Board of Supervisors and Lincoln County Administrator before construction.
• Municipal Administration: The City of Brookhaven publishes separate city zoning and building-permit procedures. Property inside Brookhaven municipal limits is subject to the applicable city process rather than this unincorporated-county orientation.
• Other Approval Context: The referenced published materials do not publish a county floodplain approval, stormwater approval, drainage approval, historic approval, design-review approval, pool-barrier approval, right-of-way permit, or utility approval requirement that explicitly applies to standard residential fences.
FENCE PLACEMENT RULES
• Property Lines: The referenced published materials do not specify a setback requirement for standard residential fences from property lines; however, fences must be located entirely on the owner’s property and must not encroach into rights-of-way or easements.
• Yard Placement: Lincoln County does not publish a county placement rule for standard residential fences in front yards, side yards, rear yards, corner lots, driveways, alleys, rural residential areas, or large-lot residential areas in the referenced published materials.
• Road, Drainage, and Right-of-Way Publication: County pages identify road, bridge, drainage, culvert, ditch, and right-of-way responsibilities, but the referenced published materials do not publish a fence-specific county setback, encroachment, gate, drainage, or driveway-visibility standard.
• Utility Safety: Mississippi law requires notice through Mississippi 811 before excavation where the Mississippi Underground Utility Damage Prevention Act applies. For fence projects that involve digging, including digging, drilling, augering, boring, grading, or other movement of earth, notice generally must be given at least three full working days before excavation begins. Mississippi 811 is a notification center and does not mark lines itself; member utilities or their locators mark covered facilities, and the excavator must check the positive-response status before beginning work where required. This statewide utility-notice framework is separate from local fence permitting, zoning, development approval, easement limits, right-of-way approvals, floodplain review, stormwater review, drainage review, historic or design review, HOA restrictions, and other applicable requirements.
FENCE HEIGHT AND VISIBILITY RULES
• Maximum Height: Lincoln County does not publish a defined maximum height for standard residential fences in the referenced published materials.
• Yard-Based Height: The referenced published materials do not specify a county height limit for front-yard, side-yard, rear-yard, corner-lot, rural residential, agricultural residential, or large-lot residential fences.
• Visibility: The referenced published materials do not specify a county clear-vision, sight-triangle, driveway-visibility, alley-visibility, or intersection-visibility standard for standard residential fences.
• Adopted-Code Context: Because the referenced published materials do not identify the residential code edition administered by Lincoln County, no model-code fence permit exemption is stated as a county height limit or local permit rule.
MATERIAL AND CONSTRUCTION LIMITS
• Standard Materials: Lincoln County does not publish a defined residential fence material or construction standard in the referenced published materials.
• Prohibited Materials: The referenced published materials do not specify county residential standards for chain link, wood, vinyl, masonry walls, electric fencing, barbed wire, razor wire, finished-side orientation, opacity, gates, columns, or decorative features.
• Pool Barriers: Lincoln County does not publish a county pool-barrier standard for private residential pool fences in the referenced published materials.
PRIVATE RESTRICTIONS
Private restrictions operate independently from Lincoln County‘s referenced published materials. HOA covenants, subdivision restrictions, deed restrictions, private easements, architectural-review covenants, agricultural agreements, boundary agreements, recorded agreements, conservation easements, and similar private rules may be more restrictive than countywide published standards.
Private restrictions are not treated as Lincoln County permit approvals unless the county’s published materials expressly make them part of county review.
REVIEW AND ENFORCEMENT CONTEXT
Fence issues are typically reviewed during permit or approval review when required, and through complaint-based code enforcement. Examples include:
• County Location: Whether a property is in unincorporated Lincoln County or inside the City of Brookhaven or another incorporated municipality with separate local administration.
• Construction-Code Publication Status: The referenced published materials do not identify a residential building-code edition, State Uniform Construction Code opt-out action, or county or contracted inspection arrangement for Lincoln County.
• County Permit Publication: Lincoln County does not publish a separate local fence permit, building permit, zoning permit, zoning certification, development approval, or certificate requirement that explicitly applies to standard residential fences in the referenced published materials.
• Published Fence Standards: Lincoln County does not publish a consolidated residential fence ordinance or defined county height, material, visibility, or yard-placement standard for standard residential fences in the referenced published materials.
• Road and Drainage Context: County road and engineering pages identify road, bridge, drainage, culvert, ditch, and right-of-way functions, but no fence-specific county setback, encroachment permit, drainage condition, or visibility standard is published.
• Utility Safety: Mississippi 811 notice requirements apply when fence work involves excavation covered by the Mississippi Underground Utility Damage Prevention Act.
USING THIS INFORMATION
This page provides general orientation on how residential fence rules are structured and applied within Lincoln County, based on the referenced published materials as of July 2026.
In addition to local fence rules, certain Mississippi laws apply statewide. See Statewide fence laws in Mississippi.
It is not legal advice and does not replace official ordinances, permits, zoning approvals, zoning certifications, development approvals, locally adopted building codes, surveys, or professional guidance. Rules and interpretations may change, and application may vary based on zoning district, site conditions, easements, rights-of-way, floodplain status, stormwater requirements, drainage conditions, historic district status, design-review status, rural or agricultural context, livestock or party-fence context, local building-code administration, adopted-code status, opt-out status, pool-barrier use, Mississippi 811 utility-safety requirements, coastal wetlands conditions, and private restrictions such as HOA covenants, deed restrictions, private agreements, or conservation easements. Before purchasing materials or beginning construction, confirm current requirements and any site-specific limitations with the Lincoln County Board of Supervisors and Lincoln County Administrator and any applicable private agreements. If this page conflicts with official ordinances, published guidance, or direction from Lincoln County staff, the official sources control. For legal advice or legal interpretation, consult a licensed attorney.