# Guard & Barrier Heights Compared: 14 Countries, Two Genuine Holdouts Guard and barrier height compared across 14 countries — the figure almost every code still fixes, and the two holdouts: Sweden's 2025 repeal and Japan's scope-gated 1.1m rule. - Canonical HTML: https://www.chippy.tools/articles/guard-and-barrier-heights-by-country/ - Publisher: Chippy Tools - Language: en - Updated: 2026-11-09 # Guard & Barrier Heights Compared: 14 Countries, Two Genuine Holdouts Sam Petherbridge · Qualified Carpenter & Builder Updated November 9, 2026 Guard height is one of the few figures on our building-code hubs that almost every country still nails down to a hard number — which makes the exceptions genuinely interesting. Twelve of the fourteen countries we cover fix a specific guard or barrier height, most clustering around a familiar 900–1100 mm band. The two holdouts are worth knowing about before you build: Sweden abolished its numeric guard-height requirement outright in the 2025 reform, and Japan’s well-known 1.1 m figure turns out not to apply to most ordinary houses once you read the scope-gating clause behind it — leaving Japan with, in practice, no fixed guard height for a typical 1–2 storey detached home either. ## Guard & barrier height, by country | Country | Guard height | Governing standard / clause | |--------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Australia | 1000 mm (floor/deck/balcony/landing); 865 mm above a stair (from the nosing line) | [NCC 2025 Housing Provisions 11.3](https://ncc.abcb.gov.au/editions/ncc-2025/adopted/housing-provisions/11-safe-movement-and-access/part-113-barriers-and-handrails) | | USA | 36 in / 914 mm, required where a walking surface is >30 in above grade/floor within 36 in horizontally | [IRC 2021 R312.1.1/.2](https://up.codes/viewer/connecticut/irc-2021/chapter/3/building-planning) | | New Zealand | 900 mm (stairs/ramps & their landings); 1000 mm (balconies/decks/internal floor edges) | [NZBC F4/AS1 Table 1](https://www.building.govt.nz/building-code-compliance/f-safety-of-users/f4-safety-from-falling/) | | UK (England) | 900 mm (stairs/landings/ramps/internal floor edges); 1100 mm (external balconies & roof edges) | [Approved Document K (2013)](https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/60d5bdcde90e07716f516cfd/Approved_Document_K.pdf) | | Canada | 900 mm (within a dwelling & on stair flights); exterior 900 mm where ≤1800 mm above grade, else 1070 mm | [NBC 2020 9.8.8.3](https://free.bcpublications.ca/civix/document/id/public/bcbc2018/bcbc_2018dbp9s98) | | Ireland | 900 mm (stair/ramp/landing); 1100 mm (floor/balcony/roof edge) | [TGD Part K 2014, Diagram 6](https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/f9d0e-technical-guidance-document-k-stairways-ladders-ramps-and-guards/) | | France | ≥1.00 m, reducible to 0.80 m if the guard element is >50 cm thick — the one codified guard figure, but its own text names balconies/terraces/galleries/loggias, **not** stairs by name | [CCH art. R134-59](https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/codes/article_lc/LEGIARTI000043818881) | | Germany | MBO model baseline: 900 mm (1.00–12.00 m fall height, residential), 1100 mm above 12 m — but only Nordrhein-Westfalen states this in statute; Bavaria’s law requires only “sufficiently high and sturdy,” no number | [MBO §38 model](https://www.bauministerkonferenz.de/Dokumente/MBO-FAQ/%C2%A7%2038%20MBO%20-%20Umwehrung.pdf) / statute varies by Land | | Spain | 0.90 m (drop ≤6 m); 1.10 m (drop >6 m) — one rule for both stair/landing and floor/balcony edges | [CTE DB-SUA 1 §3.2.1](https://www.codigotecnico.org/pdf/Documentos/SUA/DccSUA.pdf) | | Indonesia | **No numeric figure anywhere.** A baluster/guard is mandatory on any open stair side, spacing required only to be “cukup rapat” (close enough) — qualitative only | [Permen PUPR 14/2017, Lampiran II §1, pts 19–20](https://peraturan.bpk.go.id/Details/104477/permen-pupr-no-14prtm2017-tahun-2017) | | India | 1.0–1.2 m at a balcony, roof-terrace or verandah edge; no dedicated stair-guard height figure found | NBC 2016 Part 3 §12.11 (“Parapet”) — [bis.gov.in](https://www.bis.gov.in) | | Japan | 1.1 m — but **only** for a 2nd-storey-or-higher balcony/rooftop edge, and only in special-use / 3+ storey / windowless-room / >1,000 m² buildings; no guard-height figure exists for stairs at all, and an ordinary 1–2 storey detached house typically falls outside this scope entirely | [Building Standard Law Enforcement Order, Art. 126](https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/325CO0000000338) (scoped by Art. 117) | | Norway | 900 mm (stairs/ramps & landings); 1000 mm (balconies/floor edges, ≤10 m drop); 1200 mm (>10 m drop); exempt below a 3.0 m drop to ground | [TEK17 §12-15](https://www.dibk.no/regelverk/byggteknisk-forskrift-tek17/12/iii/12-15) | | Sweden | **No fixed general guard height** — removed in the 1 Jul 2025 reform; only child-safety opening/gap figures remain fixed (≤100 mm vertical gap, 0.8 m anti-climb zone) | [BFS 2024:9, Kap 2 §11](https://www.boverket.se/sv/PBL-kunskapsbanken/regler-om-byggande/sakerhet-anvandning/racken-ledstanger/) | ## Sweden dropped the number, but kept the child-safety detail Sweden’s 2025 reform (BFS 2024:9, in force 1 July 2025) removed the general guard-height figure entirely — there’s no longer a Swedish equivalent of “900 mm at a stair, 1000 mm at a balcony” to cite. What survives is narrower but still hard-numbered: a maximum 100 mm vertical gap and a 0.8 m anti-climb zone, both aimed specifically at stopping a young child getting through or over a guard. It’s a useful reminder that “no fixed height” and “no rules” aren’t the same thing — Sweden simply moved the enforceable detail from the overall height down to the openings within it. ## Japan’s 1.1 m figure is famous, but rarely applies to a house Ask most people what Japan’s guard height rule is and you’ll hear “1.1 m” — and that number is genuinely in the Enforcement Order, at Article 126. But Article 126 is scope-gated by Article 117 to a specific set of larger or non-residential buildings: special-use buildings, anything 3+ storeys, windowless rooms, or floor areas over 1,000 m². A typical 1–2 storey detached house sits outside that scope in practice. Read narrowly and literally, that means the country most people associate with a specific, fixed 1.1 m guard figure has, for the ordinary house case, effectively no fixed guard height at all — and no dedicated stair-guard figure exists in Japanese law regardless of building type. It’s the same pattern as Sweden, arrived at from the opposite direction: not a repeal, but a scope clause that quietly excludes the most common building type. ## Stairs and floor edges usually get different numbers — check which one you need Most of the remaining twelve countries don’t use one guard height for everything. New Zealand, the UK, Ireland and Norway all set a lower figure for a stair, ramp or landing guard (typically 900 mm) and a higher one for a floor edge, balcony or roof edge (1000–1200 mm) — the reasoning being that a stair guard is braced against and gripped differently than a balcony rail, and the fall consequences differ too. Spain and Canada instead band their figure by drop height rather than location. Before you build a guard to “the” figure for your country, double-check which specific case — stair, landing, floor edge, or balcony — the number you’ve found actually covers. ## Check your own country’s full guard rules The table above is the headline figures. Each country’s stair page covers handrail heights, opening/gap limits, and the full clause text: - [Australia — balustrade height requirements](https://www.chippy.tools/building-codes/au/stairs/balustrade-height-requirements/) - [USA — stair & guard rules](https://www.chippy.tools/building-codes/us/stairs/stair-and-barrier-requirements/) - [New Zealand — stair & barrier requirements](https://www.chippy.tools/building-codes/nz/stairs/stair-and-barrier-requirements/) - [UK (England) — stair & barrier requirements](https://www.chippy.tools/building-codes/uk/stairs/stair-and-barrier-requirements/) - [Canada — stair & barrier requirements](https://www.chippy.tools/building-codes/ca/stairs/stair-and-barrier-requirements/) - [Ireland — stair & barrier requirements](https://www.chippy.tools/building-codes/ie/stairs/stair-and-barrier-requirements/) - [France — stair & barrier requirements](https://www.chippy.tools/building-codes/fr/stairs/stair-and-barrier-requirements/) - [Germany — stair & guard requirements](https://www.chippy.tools/building-codes/de/stairs/stair-and-guard-requirements/) - [Spain — stair & barrier requirements](https://www.chippy.tools/building-codes/es/stairs/stair-and-barrier-requirements/) - [Indonesia — stair & handrail requirements](https://www.chippy.tools/building-codes/id/stairs/stair-and-handrail-requirements/) - [India — stair & barrier requirements](https://www.chippy.tools/building-codes/in/stairs/stair-and-barrier-requirements/) - [Japan — stair & guard requirements](https://www.chippy.tools/building-codes/jp/stairs/stair-and-guard-requirements/) - [Norway — stair & guard requirements](https://www.chippy.tools/building-codes/no/stairs/stair-and-guard-requirements/) - [Sweden — stair & guard requirements](https://www.chippy.tools/building-codes/se/stairs/stair-and-guard-requirements/) ## Get your baluster spacing right along with the height A compliant guard isn’t just the right height — the gaps between balusters matter just as much, especially where a child-safety figure applies. Chippy Tools’ [baluster spacing calculator](https://www.chippy.tools/features/baluster-spacing-calculator/) works out even spacing across any run in seconds, so you can nail both the height and the gap in one pass instead of two. ### Skip the manual maths Chippy Tools has professional calculators that handle these calculations for you — offline, on any device. [![Download from the App Store](https://www.chippy.tools/images/download-badges/app-store/en.svg)](https://apps.apple.com/app/apple-store/id1579138717?pt=1325369&ct=chippy.tools&mt=8) [![Download on Google Play](https://www.chippy.tools/images/download-badges/google-play/en.png)](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=tools.chippy&referrer=utm_source%3Dchippy.tools%26utm_medium%3Dwebsite) ## Frequently asked questions What's the most common guard height figure? 900 mm turns up repeatedly as the figure for stairs, ramps and their landings — the UK, Ireland, Canada, Norway, Spain (below a 6 m drop) and, informally, several others all sit at or near 900 mm for this specific case. Floor-edge, balcony and deck guards are usually set higher, commonly 1000–1100 mm. Which countries have no fixed guard height requirement? Sweden, since the 1 July 2025 reform removed its general numeric guard-height requirement outright — only child-safety opening and gap figures remain fixed. Indonesia never had a numeric figure to begin with; its rule is qualitative ('cukup rapat' — close enough). And Japan's headline 1.1 m figure is scoped so narrowly (special-use, 3+ storey, windowless-room, or >1,000 m² buildings only) that a typical 1–2 storey detached house usually falls outside it entirely, leaving no fixed guard height for the ordinary residential case. Why does Japan have a guard height figure that doesn't apply to most houses? Because Article 126 of the Enforcement Order sets 1.1 m for a balcony or rooftop edge, but that clause is scope-gated by Article 117 to a specific set of building types and sizes — broadly, larger, non-residential, or multi-storey buildings. A standard detached house rarely meets that scope, so in practice there's no guard-height figure that applies to it, even though 1.1 m is the number most commonly quoted for Japan. Do stair guards and floor/balcony guards use the same height? Often not. Several countries — the UK, Ireland, Norway and New Zealand among them — set a lower figure for a stair/landing guard (typically 900–1000 mm) and a higher one for a floor edge, balcony or roof edge (1000–1200 mm), because the fall risk and typical use of the two locations differ. ## Other languages - [es](https://www.chippy.tools/es/articles/guard-and-barrier-heights-by-country/index.md)